Two years ago, I had the privilege of traveling to Hope Community School in Zambia. In 2017, LPP began a partnership

with local nonprofit, SparkVentures, to help Hope School start a preschool program. Hope serves children in Twapia Village, one of the poorest neighborhoods in Ndola, where most children do not have an opportunity to attend school. This was my third visit to Hope and I had the pleasure of traveling with Simone Platt, one of our LPP-Belden teachers.

With steady progress occurring, Hope now has two vibrant and successful preschool classrooms where children are thriving on their early learning experiences, which in turn is helping them to be more successful when entering into Grade 1. It has been incredible to see how these classrooms have grown and evolved each time I have been to visit. The children spend their days much as ours do—playing, laughing, singing, counting, snacking, and dancing. The teachers are energetic, creative and hard-working. Many of their learning materials have to be made from scratch using whatever materials they can, as they cannot be purchased in a store. Increasing access to and engagement with books for the preschool children has been one of our main efforts during our visits.

Each visit to Hope School has filled my heart with joy beyond measure. I hold so much respect for this community of teachers and students, who work their hardest each and every day, with their own hearts full of joy, to make the most of their opportunities despite incredible obstacles.