Local People: Tracy Taylor

Tracy Taylor: Restoring hope

Juniper Green resident Tracy Taylor helped start a charity that supports widows and orphans in Tanzania. A GP, Tracy is married to Richard and they have two boys aged 14 and 11.

In Swahili the word for “hope” is tumaini. So it’s an appropriate name for a charity that works to bring hope to people who have been impacted by HIV/ AIDS in Kagera, northwest Tanzania.

The Tumaini Fund was established in 2003 by a Scottish GP, Dr Susan Wilson. Through a visit to Kagera she had learned that, following the genocide, the HIV/AIDS rate in the area had soared to 30 per cent. Many of the households were headed up by children made orphans by the disease. Dr. Wilson wrote to numerous charities, but none had the resources to start a new work in Kagera. So she set up Tumaini.

Ten years later Tracy Taylor, who was living in Aberdeen at that time, visited Kagera with a group from her church. They had helped with funds to build houses for Tanzanian families and wanted to see first-hand how the people were doing.

“By this time Dr. Wilson had moved to Guernsey,” explains Tracy, “so the charity was administered from there. But after our visit to Kagera, a small group of us were keen to set up a separate and independent Tumaini Fund (Scotland).

“Our idea was that we would take on individual projects for Kagera, by raising funds and awareness in Scotland.” In 2014 the charity was officially recognised and added to the OSCR register, and Tracy became its chairperson. “Dr. Wilson still oversees Tumaini’s work,” she says, “but we do our part – and the charity is now established in eight different countries.”

Tracy says there are a couple of things she really loves about Tumaini. One of these points is that 100 per cent of the funds raised goes directly into the work – none of the Tumaini charities take an admin cut. “The other thing I love is how the social outreach in Kagera is done by 200 local parish workers. They are well respected and they know where the orphan-headed households are. Though we work under the auspices of the local Anglican church, we help people from all faiths or none.”

Tumaini Scotland was launched with six concerts by singer Ian White. The £10,000 raised made it possible to buy a bicycle for every parish worker. “Each of these people cares for about 130 orphans,” says Tracy, “in very rural areas. So the bikes really help them to get around.” Other projects include sinking wells, establishing a vocational training school, and providing psychological help for those who have been traumatised.

“It’s amazing to think that just two pounds a month can feed a child,” says Tracy. “I’m very happy to speak to groups about all the ways they can help us change lives through the Tumaini Fund.”

Visit www. tumainiscotland.org.uk and Facebook@Tumainiscotland for more information. Contact Tracy at tumainiscotland@gmail.com

The Village People column is contributed by Suzanne Green. Suzanne, a freelance writer/ editor, lives in Balerno and writes regularly for Konect. She is married to Andy and they have two adult daughters.