*This is a reprint of the article I wrote for Equanimity Magazine, “From Start to Finish” profiling an organization I’m involved with, J.B. Dondolo. I wanted to take a moment and introduce you to a pet project of mine.*
Whenever you start a project, you generally intend see it through to completion. This is the grounding mission for J.B. Dondolo – taking projects and following them through “from start to finish.” For whatever reason, some charitable projects never see completion. This can be due to organizations running out of funds, and for some projects, never gain the funds needed to start the project. In 2012, J.B. Dondolo was established with the intention to promote and develop projects in low-income areas. The charity’s focus is on providing assistance to complete projects that people have thought about or started, but not yet completed.
The late J.B. Dondolo founded the Igusi Hospital project in Africa after visiting a clinic that lacked the necessities for assisting individuals in the community. He started the project and managed to install electricity before he fell ill and had to put the project on hold. The founders of J.B. Dondolo have since picked up the project and identified the next steps to be completed in order to bring his vision to completion. Lumbie Mlambo, founder of J.B. Dondolo, Inc. wishes to raise funds for a renovation that will turn the existing clinic into a functional hospital. The project has gained the attention of various media channels (BBC, Voice of America, Heaven 97 KVHN).
Because renovating a hospital is such a large undertaking, the project has been broken down into four distinct phases. The first phase will focus on the renovation of the existing clinic. The hospital urgently needs a new water system in order to access clean water. Currently, lime deposits are in the water source and flowing into the pipelines. Cosmetically, the hospital needs a new roof (corroded with asbestos), new windows, new doors, and a clean coat of paint. All of the bedding in the hospital needs replacement, and the property needs a fence. Finally, Igusi Hospital needs to procure basic medical equipment for providing services to patients.
In phase two, J.B. Dondolo will focus on extending and building the hospital. The existing clinic only has two bathrooms, and it requires at least five new bathrooms with running hot and cold water. Between the two bathrooms, there is only one toilet near the building. Obviously, this needs expansion, and the goal is to build five new toilets with sinks and running hot and cold water. The laundry room is also deficient and in need of expansion as is the general waiting room. The charity also plans to build a guest house for housing visiting doctors and purchase medical equipment to allow the basic services a small hospital should provide.
During phase three, J.B. Dondolo will focus upon hospital additions. This will include a maternity ward since there currently is only one delivery bed and three recovery beds. The goal is to add another 20 beds to the ward, including bedding. There will also be a waiting room and triage section built for mothers not yet admitted, but who require monitoring. There will be three cottages built and furnished with five rooms each. Currently, there is no emergency care facility at Igusi Hospital. Plans for two emergency care rooms and ten non-emergency care rooms with complete bedding will help medical officials to provide the necessary care.
The fourth phase will focus on staffing the hospital and ensuring the hospital is accessible. J.B. Dondolo will use raised funds to implement programs that will attract medical staff (including doctors and nurses) as well as programs for training and health education. The hospital will also need non-medical staff members. Finally, building access roads to and from Igusi and a referral hospital will be necessary.
In order to fund such endeavors, J.B. Dondolo is asking for donations. There is a magazine drive set up at fundraising.com where a portion of the sales for each magazine subscription will be dedicated toward J.B. Dondolo’s Igusi Hospital Hope project. For those not wishing to subscribe to a magazine, direct donation through Amazon Simple Pay Donations or a text donation are both possible. The J.B. Dondolo board also has plans to host a 5k race in honor of raising money for the hospital.
For more information about how you can get involved, volunteer, or donate to J.B. Dondolo’s project, visit http://jbdondolo.org or send an email to info@jbdondolo.org. *All images courtesy of http://jbdondolo.org.
