Monday, November 5, 2012

English Theater Competition 2012: A Success Story

Every year in September Peace Corps volunteers throughout Mozambique put on provincial English Theater competitions which invite local schools to prepare and present theater pieces related to a socially relevant theme in front of their community.  In 2011 I was responsible for organizing the competition for the central region of Mozambique.  I invited 15 schools from around the region to prepare 10 minute skits on the theme “Choose Your Future.”  It was an overwhelming responsibility for me to coordinate such a massive event in my first year as a volunteer while I was still trying to learn the ropes of planning things in a foreign context.  Bank hold-ups, communication snafus, transportation nightmares and t-shirt complications were only a few of the roadblocks that I had to negotiate my way though in order for the event to run smoothly for the 150 participants that attended the event.  The $10,000 grant that I received to run the competition didn’t find its way into my local bank account until the day that schools were scheduled to arrive, and even then, I found that I was only permitted to withdraw up to $100 per day from that account.  Despite these problems, I found ways to make it work. The schools showed up, presented their skits, and had a great experience.  All in all, at the time, English Theater 2011 was my biggest success and most harrowing experiences as a PCV. 

In 2012, I figured that I knew what I was doing.  I handled all of the money transfers early, figured out transportation costs and communication with the various schools with plenty of time to absorb any potential obstacles.  This year, as a result of an expansion in the program I split my region into two separate competitions with 10 schools and 120 participants each.  Our theme in 2012 was “We Are All Equal” and schools presented a number of compelling skits related to gender, racial, and socio-economic equality.  Other than the fact that for a second straight year I was unable to find an emcee and had to embarrass myself with some emergency stand-up comedy in front of a theater full of non-native English speakers, the 2012 competition was organizationally a huge success.  I made a few calculating errors and ended up almost $500 over budget, but who’s counting? 

The more compelling story that came from the 2012 English Theater competition is the personal story of one of my dearest students here in Mangunde, a 10th grader named Patricio, or Patrick.  I’d like to tell you Patrick’s story as it culminated in an inspirational way at the 2012 English Theater Competition in Chimoio.

Patricio Gonçalves is an orphan who was born in Chimoio, in the Mozambican province of Manica.  When he was a child his mother died and his father took him to Zimbabwe.  In Zim, he learned some basic English and studied up through the 5th grade.  I’m not clear on all of the details, but at some point he was abandoned by his father and he moved back to Chimoio where he had no family and few connections.  As a kid in Chimoio, he was left to provide for himself, trying to earn enough money to live and eventually go back to school. 

In 2005, when he was 13, he met a Peace Corps volunteer also living and working in Chimoio.  He began to work for her, getting her water in exchange for school money.  When the PCVs term was up, she recommended that Patricio move out of Chimoio and enter one of the rural boarding schools run by ESMABAMA, an Italian Mission that operates four boarding schools throughout the province of Sofala, in Mozambique.  Patricio elected to attend Mangunde Secondary School and the PCV agreed to pay for his school fees and minor expenses as she returned to the States.

In Mangunde, Patricio struggled at first to fit it with other students and reconcile his lack of family support.  He failed 8th grade in his first year, but found hope and motivation in the connections he made with the PCVs teaching there at Mangunde, and in his love for English Theater.  Since 2008, he has been under the tutelage of six different Peace Corps volunteers at Mangunde and participated in the English Theater Competition every year.  While he has, at times, struggled in school because of his past, he loves Peace Corps volunteers and all of the various secondary projects that we do here in Mozambique.  He is a leading member of the English Theater and JUNTOS groups of Mangunde, and has participated actively in Science Fair, taking home 2nd place at the provincial fair in 2012. 

In 2011 Patricio suffered from an almost fatal bone infection which nearly put him in a coma and forced him to miss four months of school to be flown to Maputo for emergency surgery.  He underwent dozens of blood transfusions, multiple surgeries, a myriad of different medications and a slow and frustrating recovery process to his enigmatic condition.  Despite all of this hardship, throughout his illness and recovery, he stayed focused on the one thing that mattered most to him: what would the theme be for the 2011 English Theater competition?  He eventually recovered and miraculously made it back to Mangunde in time to finish school and participate in the 2011 competition entitled “Choose Your Future.”  Mangunde presented brilliantly and Patricio was a star.  They were disappointed by a 5th place finish, but, considering what it took just to get there, it was a huge success.

In 2012, Patricio found out that his father had passed away and suffered more and more from complications from his surgery and chronic headaches.  Nonetheless, he stayed focused on English Theater, and, when this year’s theme, “We Are All Equal”, came out he whipped the Mangunde team into shape.  At the competition, despite having to leave the event midway through to go to the hospital to treat a crippling migraine, he stumbled onto the stage in a delirium and accepted the award for Best Actor that he earned from his stunning performance.  Later in the awards ceremony the overall winners were announced and the judge called out “1st Place…MANGUNDE!!”  Patricio rushed the stage with his fellow students and hugged me in celebration of what was a truly gratifying day after all he had been through.

What does Patricio’s experience tell us about English Theater and the Peace Corps in general?  It tells me that Peace Corps projects such as English Theater do not only exist on paper.  I have learned that when you are dealing with organizations and grant money it can often feel a bit hollow.  They want statistics – how many males and females benefited from this use of funds?  What ages?  Was there an HIV and AIDS component?  Did you offer HIV testing?  How many people tested positive?  Yes, maybe we can say that 98 students attended the event and gained knowledge about HIV and AIDS or that 16 people got tested for HIV.  Those are tangible statistics which are important indicators for success.  The impact of English Theater, however, has roots that go much deeper than HIV testing and numbers on a page. 

To me and to the 100 plus students that I met at the competition that day English Theater represents a passion and a motivation to achieve something more for so many students around Mozambique.  It is an opportunity for students to leave their tiny communities and experience something bigger than themselves; it is a chance for students to get excited about learning and to share in a cultural exchange; it is hope and drive when sometimes they have nothing else to looking forward to.  Patricio is not the only one; I see that passion for English theater in the eyes of every student who is chosen to represent their school and community every year at the English Theater competition. 

As for Patricio, he is back here at Mangunde and even though the 2012 trophy hasn’t even settled into its spot on the shelf yet, he’s already curious about what the theme will be for next year.  In school this year, he’s repeating 10th grade for the second time, and next week, will have a shot at the National Exam to see if now, at the age of 19, he can advance into 11th grade.  

As I get ready to leave Mozambique it’s natural to think about the people and places I will miss the most and my buddy Patricio will definitely be at the top of the list.  Because of his experience and friendship with so many other PCVs here in Mangunde he’s one of the few students who really gets us and appreciates the work that we do.  So many students come to us asking for us to do this or that and so rarely do we get recognition for the time and effort that we contribute to this school.  Patrick gets it, and he’s a wonderful person because of it.  This is from a letter that I received from Patrick last year:

I wish you all of the good things, my teacher.  You are very wonderful and a shining star in my life…Forget about the past; think about the present and the future.  What will become of the people you are teaching?  They must be the fruits from your hand…Your student friend forever,

-Black Man Soldier from Jamaica, Patrick

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