The Story of Masasi Community

Isolated and in the middle of the bush, Masasi is a community located far from the main road. Although Masasi is located close to a diamond mine, it is a place of desperation with few employment opportunities, which encourages small illegal mines. Early marriage abounds, as does a heavy presence of witchcraft and ancestral worship. A community known as a drought area, Masasi’s soil is infertile and struggles to produce the food that is desperately needed. Although through subsistence farming people try to grow millet, a drought-resistant crop, the nutrients this provides are insufficient. Each year the community faces an extreme season.

70 Children currently supported by 11 Care Workers

Basic Services Started in 2022

110 km from the MUTARE Local Office

Masasi was identified in 2021 by Hands at Work leaders in Zimbabwe as one of the most vulnerable communities. In 2022, when local leaders were re-visiting the community, they connected with key people such as the Council Leader and Village Chief, with whom they shared the vision and heart of Hands at Work. The community Councillor shared, “there have been many organisations come to this community. They see and then go. They drilled a borehole, but none of them came to look after the orphaned and vulnerable children”. As the Hands at Work leaders met with different individuals, it was clear that God was revealing to them the right people in the community to serve. 

As the team was identifying the most vulnerable children to come to the Care Point, God was busy revealing His heart for the community. On one occasion, they met a child named Gift*, who was busy looking for mice to eat. Leading the team to the home where he stays with his auntie, they learned that his mother had died and his father had left the family and run away. Gift was one of the many vulnerable children that the Zimbabwe team met. Hearing their stories, it became even more clear that this was the right place for them to be.

Two local women, Ivy and Irene, showed the team around the community and spoke on behalf of the children. Inviting their Primary Caregivers to be Care Workers, the team created the new CBO around these children. Eventually the Mutare team and the Zimbabwe leaders did a Foundations Training with the Care Workers and church leaders, sharing the vision of Hands at Work. This was followed by a Maranatha Workshop, where they shared about who Jesus is and who He can be in their lives.

The local Hands at Work team in Mutare currently supports four Community Based Organisations, which exist to care for the most vulnerable in their communities. The office provides training, networking, and encouragement to those Community Based Organisations like Sakubva. It also gives administrative support, including helping with funding proposals, monitoring and evaluation, bookkeeping and reporting to donors.

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