SIMON SAWYER

Designer and Fabricator

By Standing Voice

August 13^th, 2018

Simon Sawyer is a UK-based designer and fabricator. This June, Simon travelled to Tanzania to offer direct, hands-on support to help renovate Standing Voice’s Umoja Training Centre (UTC) on Ukerewe Island. His efforts were focused on building the centre’s new library, where he worked alongside artists Camille Walala, Julia Jomaa, and Alex Booker, and local carpenter Lusato Mkeka.

It was a pleasure to help transform the UTC into the most productive space it can possibly be. The centre helps people with albinism and their families develop skills, form lasting connections and find solace from the isolation and discrimination that many have suffered throughout their lives.

Arriving in Tanzania, I was struck by the light and colour. The ferry across Lake Victoria, from Mwanza to Ukerewe Island, was bursting with brightly coloured items, hand-painted trucks, and women wearing all kinds of beautiful patterns. Everything was so bright! The blue of the sky met the shimmer of the water in a way I’d never seen before. I noticed a few fishing boats with handmade sails, and was fascinated to learn they’d been made from recycled sacks sewn together.

Being honest, I’d been pretty nervous in the lead up to the project. There were a few unknowns with the build: what tools could we get? What timber would be available in Tanzania? What quantities might we need? Arriving on Ukerewe and visiting the timber yard on the first day, the pressure was definitely on. It was so important we got the right stuff and we had a very short amount of time to get it. Straight away I was out of my comfort zone; it put into perspective how easy it is to get everything in the UK!

As soon as we had our materials, it was straight to work. The general lack of resources required us to be innovative with design, moulding our plans and adapting them to suit the materials we’d managed to buy. I worked with woodcut print artist and Summer Skills trainer Alex Booker to begin cutting the timber outside, before passing it through the window into the room that would become the centre’s new library.

Quickly, we noticed a head watching us from outside the door. It was Ramadan – the Chairman of the Ukerewe Albinism Society. He came in and began watching what we were up to, fascinated by our equipment. His English was decidedly better than my Swahili, but certainly not good enough for a full conversation, so we exchanged smiles, handshakes, and names. This was my first interaction with one of the beneficiaries of the Umoja Training Centre. He was watching Alex and I so intently that I invited him to help us. I marked out some bits of timber that needed drilling, then gave the drill to Ramadan. He was pretty tentative at first but after a couple of attempts and guidance, he was flying! He told me he was a mechanic in town, which explained why he picked it up so quickly. After that, he would regularly pop in and check on progress, always with a beaming smile.

The wider team was phenomenal. Everyone was so positive and upbeat; it was a joy to be a part of it all. The centre was brilliant too. I was always met with a smile and patience as I tried to bluff my way through conversation with the tiny amount of vocabulary I'd acquired!

The person with whom I worked the most was Lusato Mkeka, a local carpenter from Ukerewe. There was a language barrier, but we communicated with gestures and drawings, and occasional help from interpreters. He was incredibly skilled, even with the limitations of a very basic toolkit by UK standards. He was a very stoic man, who took great pride in his work. I made it my challenge to get a smile from him, and after initial apprehension on both parts we forged what I felt was a great working relationship, full of smiling and laughter.

The thing that struck me most was how happy everyone seemed to be, despite very troubling and difficult circumstances in a number of cases. I was met with such warmth and generosity that it made me consider what's really important.

I would definitely recommend the project to others in my position. It was such a privilege to know that what I was doing would make a direct difference to people who need it and deserve it more than anyone; the appreciation I was shown was truly heart-warming and will stay with me. It's easy to lose perspective in the daily grind of life, and this really gave me a fresh sense of appreciation for what I have.

I feel very lucky to have seen what Standing Voice is doing in the flesh. The charity has built an incredible team of thoughtful, caring and compassionate people who, above everything else, are committed to the welfare and prosperity of an often-forgotten group. That drive and dedication has left a deep and lasting impression on me. It’s something I'll never forget.