Big Interview: Helen Maseko

She is one woman who stands out in her role of caring for children she did not give birth to. Helen has been instrumental in the raising of abandoned children in spite of losing her own at birth. She and her husband raise 45 children in their household at Nyambadwe in Blantyre. Caroline Somanje spoke with her about the pressures on her life and her family.

Who is Hellen Ndale Maseko?
I am married to Godknows Maseko Executive director  of Step Kids Awareness,   who calls me mai wa ngwiro (virtuous woman).

What sort of background did you have in terms of education and upbringing?
I lost my father when I was very young but I was lucky to have a strong woman for a mother. I was raised by my uncle following my father’s death. I did my primary and secondary school at Namalimwe primary and secondary school respectively. I have also studied child development. As a primary school pupil, I used to play football and contrary to what I am doing today, I always dreamt of becoming a great footballer.

How many children do you raise in your household?
We have 45 children in our house.

Tell me more about the children.
There are 24 girls and 23 boys. Among these children, 13 are below five years old and two have physical challenges. The youngest is now two years, but we have been with him since he was eight months old. The oldest one is now 18 years old and is studying for diploma in journalism.

For how long have you been raising these children?
We have been doing this for seven years, since August 2 2007 to be exact.
Do you have children of your own?
No. We lost four, all at birth and due to some complications, we have just stopped [trying]. God has blessed us with 45 children and we thank him for that.

What is a typical day like in the Maseko family?
It’s full of fun and very busy. We start our day as early as 4am. Every child has to bath while boys are preparing breakfast. At 6:20am we gather for morning devotion where one child leads us in prayer. At 6:30am all school-going children leave for school. When they come back, they eat their lunch and relax a bit before focussing on home work at 3.30pm. At 4:30pm, girls start preparing dinner which we normally eat at 6.30pm, followed by evening prayers where we also discuss issues to check if the children encountered challenges during the day. We close our day with a word of prayer and those who have to study do so until 8:30pm. Then we switch off the rights waiting for another new day.

You said the boys prepare breakfast while the girls cook dinner. Who prepares lunch?
I prepare lunch while the children are at school so that when they come back, they have something to eat.

What are your meals like?
On Mondays we always have [Nsima], beans and vegetables. On Tuesday we eat matemba. On Wednesdays okra for lunch and then soya peaces for dinner. On Thursday we have beans again and on Fridays we take anything available. We have chicken or beef served with rice on Saturdays and Sundays. Breakfast is mostly likuni phala or rice porridge.  If we are eating beans, we consume five kilogrammes per day. We eat five kilogrammes of beef per week and three chickens per week.

How do you do your family shopping?
It’s crazy.  We shop once a week, usually on Saturdays when we buy vegetables, soap, relish and other basic needs.

How do you reach out to the needs of each child?
This is very tricky but I try to interact with each of them especially the girls because we have adolescents who need very close monitoring. We are happy that with the little we have, we go on and they are doing well academically, socially and spiritually. We make sure that every week we go through their exercise books to check their performance in school.

What happens when one of them falls sick?
I take the child to the hospital and I or my husband looks after them if they are admitted. We don’t want our house maid to guard a child who has been admitted to hospital because we believe this is a time a child needs parental love.

Do you have a housemaid?
We have two nannies.

Who pays for the children’s school fees?
Some of the children have scholarships. We also raise money from small income generating activities and sometimes well wishers come to our aid. We have 16 children  in secondary school, one in college, 23 in primary school and five in nursery school.

What income generating activities are you involved in?
We hire out a mini-van we own, produce T-shirts and sell chickens. We also depend on well wishers both locally and internationally.

How do you identify the children you bring into your household?
Children are identified in different ways mostly my husband who usually goes on the street to talk to street kids and decide on whether to bring them home or not. Some are brought to us by the social welfare department or the police.

Are you not stressed?
I can’t say we are not stressed. When we have a baby, we have really stressful nights; you know how babies are. Then there are financial pressures that are also felt because babies need milk. There are times a baby is brought in and we literally have no money to buy it milk. But somehow we survive; 13 of our children came when they were below two years old.
It’s not so easy sometimes to pay attention to each and every child whenever a problem rises, but we make sure each and every child feels loved.

How do the children relate with each other?
We have taught them to love one another and they really do and that has made it easier for us to run this home. I am really proud of them. When a new child walks in, the first thing they do is take a shower while the others prepare clothes for them. When the child is weak, we give him food before they take a shower.

What impact does such a huge family have on you?
It’s an amazing experience that has made me strong.

What lessons have you learnt from this cause?
Learn to love and be patient with people, especially children. Be dedicated and a risk taker if you are to achieve your goals n