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New Life Band Ministries
P.O. Box 2378
Arusha, Tanzania
East Africa
Tel: 255 27 2500930
e-mail: newlifeband@habari.co.tz
Website: www.newlifeband.net

The Mission to Youth & Students: New Life Band from Tanzania, East Africa, is an inter-denominational ministry that serves as an instrument to transform the lives of youth and students within Tanzania through the gospel of Jesus Christ by giving them hope and opportunity by knowing that they are loved.

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A BIG ASANTE SANA to all of our friends and partners in ministry for your prayers and financial support. Your support has greatly helped us in our Youth Ministries, our Secondary School operations and expansions, and in sustaining our families. Despite the world's economic hardships, we joined hands and faith together, and have accomplished many things in 2010. We encourage you to continue to pray and support this ministry that is changing the lives of so many young people and their families.

SECONDARY SCHOOL PROGRESS! The number of students at our Secondary School has almost doubled, from 52 last year to 92 this year. Next year, we expect our student body to grow to 180 students, as our reputation continues to spread to parents/guardians and the whole community. Academically, we continue to be among the top rated schools in the Northern Zone. Our ranking this year was # 23 out of 117 (up from #37 last year). As we grow, we will need dorm facilities, additional classrooms and scholarships.

SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM: It is said if you educate a person you have invested in a highest return in development of the family, community, nation and the world. We have established this program in order to help only those bright girls and boys from poor families and we invite you to participate in this investment that you will be helping for the better lives of many and in this turn to help a whole people. A $440 scholarship will support a student for 1 year. Please, if you are interested in this program let us know and we will send you all the details you need.

NATIONAL YOUTH CAMP
From June 6 to 14 we held our National Youth Camp at our own school facility for the first time! We had 374 participants, and we used the tent shown in the picture for our assembly sessions, as well as our own classrooms, dorms and cooking facilities. It was like a "dream come true" for us. We have had increasing difficulties and expense finding a proper venue for this very important, popular, and long standing part of our ministry.

SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION EFFORTS
We have completed 4 of the 6 classrooms, and we are working on the fitting of laboratory functions into the two remaining classrooms that will be used as chemistry/physics and biology laboratories. We have completed modern toilets for staff and students, and an outdoor wooden kitchen for our school. We are anxious to complete the Hostel begun by Elim LC, Petaluma, CA for use initially as a dorm for girls. We also plan to roof two rooms of the first floor of the original 4-story building (pic on right) that we started construction on in 2005. One of these rooms will be used as a dorm, the other as a regular classroom. It is important to complete these buildings both for increased student capacity, and to allow us to host the area wide, November 2011 Form Four Private Candidate Center Examinations at our school. Hosting these examinations will be a great honor for our school. We thank God for your generosity. Without your help none of this would have been possible.

CONCERTS AND RALLIES
We had concerts and gospel rallies in Tanya, Moshi, Arusha and Singida, where many people came to hear us.

We were shocked by the size of the crowds, especially in Singida, where some people biked up to 35 miles to the place where we were performing.

A WORD FROM A VOLUNTEER TEACHER (Sharon is from Resurrection Lutheran, Oakland, CA)

"Dear Friends, My name is Sharon Brostrom and I am a volunteer English teacher at New Life Band Secondary School for a year. I want to tell you about my experience thus far. Though I have lived in Africa before, much has changed, and this is engaged living in a new country of Tanzania.

Many know Tanzania for its great beauty and the wonderful wildlife and birds here, and you would have time to see all this if you come here. (By the way, next week I will go visit these places with my students for a study tour.) The part about Tanzania that I find most remarkable are the people. They are very helpful, funny and very welcoming. They have made my adjustment to living here very comfortable by helping me learn the language, understand the food, find my way to school and back, and even taking me into their homes for two months while I found a place of my own.

Now I'm situated in a coffee plantation where I have a room and bath, the use of a terrific kitchen and laundry room. I ride my bike, a good strong girl's bike, down to the main road in the morning, take a short Dala Dala bus ride to Kisongo and walk up to the school when I get there. The students I teach in all three forms are receptive to learning English, and I have been able to use the experience I have gathered over the years of teaching and being a pastor. We have written and read stories, made pizza together, and now we will make masks. With books I sent before I came, we have created a small library which the students are using more and more.

So, if you are retired and feeling that you are not using your garnered experience and knowledge, consider coming to New Life Band Secondary School as a volunteer. Or, if you are a recent graduate and want to experience some hands on living and teaching in another culture before you settle into your own, this is the place for you. The groundwork has been laid for you. The work takes patience and a willingness to learn how another culture does things, and the discretion to know when to learn and when to speak up with a new idea. Those are skills you can use throughout life!

The teachers are a lovely group of fun and interesting people. We have good talks about their ideas and cultural beliefs, with many questions about my life and beliefs. We have become friends. I have learned not just facts and data, but also how they live life with so much less than much of the world, and how their strong faith carries them along through hard times. This has been a rich experience so far, and I look forward to learning more." (Sharon Brostrom)

VISITORS: If you want to visit a place where you will also help the community, please contact us.

Students and teachers came from Sun Prairie HS, WI and Oak Park River Forest HS, IL and helped make bricks and plant trees at our school.

A group from Hope 2 Others, led by Rick & Karen Klemp (WI) visited for 2 weeks and had a wonderful time with our students. They have raised sponsorship for 4 of our students. With Sun Prairie HS, WI they have donated science equipment and are raising money to ship an ambulance. Interviews with students, teachers, James & Ondo will soon be posted at www.bringinghope2others.com.

Valerie Williams of Windsor, CA led a Purpose-Full Tours group of 12 to visit our school, our gardener's Maasi poultry project and an orphanage. They are bringing people to Africa to experience the need and allow God to plant a vision in their hearts of what their part might be in helping.

NEWS OF NLB MEMBERS OWN CHILDREN
The picture shows some of the NLB Members children who are now in various primary, secondary, or college schools: Holy Shepherd Lutheran Church in Orinda, CA has set up the New Life Band (Kids) Scholarship Support Fund to assist with a proper education for children of the New Life Band members. New Creation Lutheran/San Jose, Bethlehem Lutheran/Encinitas and several individuals are supporting this special fund, in addition to their regular support for the NLB.

If you are interested in contributing to this special fund, email Pastor John Valentine at jvalentine@holyshepherd.org, or simply mail a check to Holy Shepherd Lutheran Church, 433 Moraga way, Orinda CA 94563 noting that it is intended for NLB Kids' Scholarship.

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ALL OTHER DONATIONS TO THE NEW LIFE BAND MINISTRY MAY BE MADE BY:

Wiring funds directly to their bank account: Mission to Youth & Students (New Life Band), National Bank of Commerce Ltd., Uhuru Road Branch, P.O. Box 3004, Arusha Tanzania, Account No. 0141 05 006176, Swift Code NLCBTZTXAOT4 - note change. (Additional fee [up to $50] may apply) or by sending a check made out to Our Savior's Lutheran Church, 1035 Carol Lane, Lafayette, CA 94549 with "New Life Band" on the "memo" line. Funds sent through Our Savior's Lutheran Church will be combined with other donations and wired to the New Life Band on a regular basis.

Updated December 2010 -- Please Note: The Swift Code has changed -- see above. Be sure to use the letter "O" and not a zero. Thank you.