TANZANIA

In 2019, my husband and I spent three weeks in Tanzania. For me, it was a childhood dream that had finally come true, a dream I had cherished since 1984, because in that year the teacher Walter Rausch came to my school. I was 15 at the time. Walter had lived and worked in Tanzania for four years before that and brought countless stories with him.

For me, the big wide world had come to my small town. I was endlessly fascinated and dreamed of traveling to Tanzania one day. But it wasn't until more than 30 years later that this dream came true, when my husband and I traveled through the country together with Walter in 2019.

In the course of his life, Walter has also built up a considerable private aid organization, and in the meantime has founded the association Tanzania AG of the Friedrichs-Gymnasium Herford e.V. for this purpose. With an impressive personal commitment, he collects donations in the five-digit range every year, which are mainly used to support the schooling and vocational training of children whose parents could not otherwise afford it. The donations - 100% of which, by the way, end up in Tanzania and with Tanzanians in need! - Walter usually distributes personally on site if possible, and that can be as many as 170 families, which he looks after.

Since 2021 I have been working with the young photographer CK from Dar es Salaam. He has already been to Msasani Primary School once on my behalf to take more reference photos for my series "School Children in Tanzania". I have also sent other models I wanted to paint to him for a photo session.