The Office

Ofece, one of the maintenance men that has been with YA Beira since its opening in 2007, pokes his head in the office door wearing his usual blue jumpsuit and with a big smile asks “Como esta a saude?” (how is your health) and “Como descansou?” (how did you sleep), just as he does every morning. We respond happily and with a chuckle Ofece says “Obrigado” and shuffles past the row of chairs to ring the bell, indicating the morning assembly is starting.

Papers pile up, our desk becomes cluttered and the room fills with people as we acquire tasks from our co-workers, Miguel, Rita and Zamila. Miguel asks Emma to re-design a YA flyer while Zamila and I create a data base for girls that have already left the hostel. Our day to day tasks vary greatly in the office. It seems as though we have done a bit of everything, but lately we have been focusing on correcting exams, submitting grades and posting results from finals. 

Working closely with Zamila, Emma and I use a lot of our time in the office to plan and organize activities for the girls. Zamila is the matron of the girls home and works with them as their YA mother. We’ve helped her with creating new empowerment projects and trying to improve old ones. Together we have prepared a presentation to market the hostel home to other orphanages. Twice a year they call the directors from orphanages around the area and present the vision and mission of the YA Hostel Home, soliciting the directors to bring their girls ages 15-18 to YA and take advantage of the environment and benefits that it offers. There are currently 20 girls living in the home, but the goal is to double that number in the coming semesters.