Pencil Case Project
Jane Ainslie, a friend of Destiny Garden School, offered us, free of charge, space in a shipping container sailing to Mombasa Kenya in June 2010. This was an offer too good to miss and we decided to try and provide pencil cases to each of the children.
Why pencil cases? Committee member Val visited Destiny Garden school with 
her daughter Nadine in April this year and noticed that only one child in the school had a pencil case and it was a very treasured possession. We therefore thought it would be great if all the children in the school owned a pencil case. Kings school Junior Division, together with friends, family and Macclesfield Rotary Club, were asked to search their drawers and cupboards for old pencil cases and contents that were no longer needed. The response we got has been outstanding, not only did we get old pencil cases but also many new, so many that we are sure the shops in Macclesfield will have noticed a distinct run on them from their shelves! We also received some very generous donations of money to go towards the project.
We have therefore been able to fill 230 pencil cases, one each for the 205 
children, one for each of the teachers and spares for any new pupils when they join. Everything was packed into large box files which were in turn packed into 6 packing cases and dispatched on Saturday 5th June. The cases will be loaded into the container then onto the ship by early July. When the ship arrives in Mombasa, Jane will be there to supervise its unpacking and will personally take and distribute its contents to each of the children at Destiny Garden School.
Pencil cases were put in box files for each class
Each Pencil Case was labeled with the child's name and a thumbnail photo
2 sweets were originally placed in each pencil case but, as we thought they might melt in the heat during transit and become a sticky mess, they were removed and packed separately
A Box File for each of the teachers was filled with paper, files, scissors, chalk etc., together with their own pencil case
More pencil cases of all shapes and sizes
All the Pencil cases were put into six large packing cases and, on Saturday 5th June 2010, started their journey to Mombasa.
The packing cases being loaded on the shipping container which is was on the vessel"CMA CGM Musca" due to sail on the Saturday 19th June and will arrive in Mombasa on 2nd August.
Jane collected items for 6 Kenyan schools, 3 in Niarobi and 3 in Mombasa, and in the end the shpping container had 12,715 items including
3,740 pens and pencils
2,294 books
2,094 items of clothing
995 notebooks
957 games and other toys
544 bats and balls
260 filled pencil cases
178 baby toys
149 storage boxes
124 pillows, duvets and covers
111 tubes toothpaste
106 jigsaw puzzles
79 bags and purses
67 chairs
24 bikes, scooters and ride on toys
22 desks
and 3 train set play tables11 October 2010
The shipping container in Mombasa was finally released – it got stuck in customs for a couple of months!!
When the boxes were delivered to Destiny Garden School, there was great excitement amongst both the children and staff; Jacob said “ the children and teachers were full of joy and the school has been blessed by your efforts ... we received items beyond our expectations ... it brought a ray of hope to the teachers’.
The children loved their pencil cases!
The Teachers with their boxes - they were delighted that they hadn't been forgotten!
Jane's Shipping Container contained much needed tables and chairs
Masikah with the Children's Encyclopedias donated by Julia
The 6 packing cases for Destiny Garden School contained -
Destiny Garden School Assignment - Boxes 1 to 6 Item Details Box Item Details Box Pencil Cases - Baby Class x 23 Pencil Cases - Class 4 x 12 Pencil Cases - KG1 x 23 Teachers Pack - Baby Class Pencil Cases - KG2 x 16 Teachers Pack - KG1 Pencil Cases - KG2 x 16 + Spare x 2 Teachers Pack - KG2 Books Vol 1-3 Encyclopedias x 3 volumes Encyclopedias x 4 volumes Pencil Cases - KG3 x 21 Pencil Cases - KG3 x 9 + Spare 7 Teachers Pack - KG3 Pencil Cases - Class 1 x 16 Teachers Pack - Class 1 Pencil Cases - Class 1 x 11 + Class 2 x 4 Teachers Pack - Class 2 Books Vol 4-8 Encyclopedias x 5 volumes Teachers Pack - Class 3 Pencil Cases - Class 2 x 24 Books Vol 18 - 20 Encyclopedias x 3 volumes Pencil Cases - Class 3 x 7 + Class 4 x 4 Bag for Julius Game - Elastic (50 mtrs) & Balls (8) Pencil Cases - Class 3 x 11 Bags Sweets for the children - 4 bags Pencil Cases - Class 4 x 11 Teachers Pack - Class 4 Books Vol 9-13 Encyclopedias x 5 volumes School Administrator Pack Weights Stores 1 - Stationery All Boxes Measure -
41.5cm x 42cm x 41.5cmStores 2 - Stationery Box 1 = 15.7 Kg Box 2 = 17.7 Kg Box 3 = 18.9 Tin 1 Felt Tip Pens Box 4 = 21.8 Kg Box 5 = 22.5 Kg Box 6 = 22.1 Kg Tin 2 Assortment of stationery items Bags Sweets for the children - 5 bags
