Kaitlin Houlditch-Fair has been turning cartwheels about as long as she’s been walking. The daughter of Shelby City Park Gymnastics Instructor Dot Houlditch, Kaitlin grew up in the gymnastics program and also helped her mother when she got older.
“I owe all my gymnastics skills and life skills to her; she is the most amazing woman I’ve ever met,” Kaitlin writes about her mother. “And yes, it is fair to say that I have been doing cartwheels from a very young age. My mom was even still teaching when she was pregnant with me. It’s embedded in my bones!”
Kaitlin, now a junior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is studying dramatic art and has received a Burch Fellowship to travel to Moshi, Tanzania, to work as an assistant acrobatics instructor at the TunaHAKI Centre for Street Children.
TunaHAKI is swahili for “we have the right.”
Teaching gymnastics around the world
“I heard about the Centre through a friend of mine here at UNC. Last semester I studied abroad in London and started a gymnastics program at a nursery school down the street from where I lived,” Kaitlin said. “I went once a week and taught 3 and 4 year olds and I absolutely loved it.”
Out of that experience, she wanted to do more.
“I just talked to so many people that had travelled, and when I talked to my friend Marie who studied abroad in Tanzania, I knew this was the right place to go,” she said. “I e-mailed the director of TunaHAKI, David Ryatula, and he invited me to come on over, so I went about getting funding for it.”
She applied and was chosen for The Burch Fellows Program. The program was established in 1993 by a gift from UNC-CH alumnus Lucius E. Burch III. It grants up to $6,000 for a student to pursue a passionate interest.
Giving back to the children
With the gift that Kaitlin has been given, she is going to raise money to give back to the children in Moshi.
“I want to raise money for TunaHAKI itself (now that UNC has agreed to cover my airfare and vaccinations and such) because the conditions of the Center are apparently very poor,” she said. “They are in the midst of building a new facility, one with running water and electricity and enough beds for the children, and this money will go toward that.”
To raise money for the orphanage, Kaitlin and her mom’s students in the gymnastics program at Shelby City Park are hosting a Cartwheel-a-thon May 17 from 9 a.m. to noon.
About TunaHAKI
TunaHAKI houses approximately 20 street children, mostly orphans, and provides them with food, education and a family life. These children are not up for adoption as in some orphanages, but have found a home at TunaHAKI. They perform acrobatics and drama for tourists in order to fund the orphanage.
In addition to raising money for the orphanage, Kaitlin’s goal is to study the way TunaHAKI, known for its focus on acrobatics and drama, promotes the physical and social development of the resident children.
Upon her return to UNC in the fall, she will continue volunteering at the Franklin Porter Graham Childcare Institute by incorporating a new African dance program, crediting the artists she learns from in Tanzania.
Want to help?
What: Cartwheel-a-thon to raise money for children in Moshi, Tanzania
When: May 17, 9 a.m. to noon; Students may come for any or all of this time to practice their gymnastics, turn cartwheels and have fun. A minimum $10 per student is requested, with more being welcomed.
Where: Shelby City Park gymnastics room
Why: Kaitlin Houlditch-Fair has received a Burch Fellows grant from Chapel Hill to spend 8 weeks in Moshi volunteering at TunaHAKI orphanage as an assistant acrobatics instructor. TunaHAKI is a center housing approximately 20 street children, mostly orphans, and providing them with food, education and a family life. These children are not up for adoption as in some orphanages, but have found a home at TunaHAKI. They perform acrobatics and drama for tourists in order to fund the orphanage. Money raised from the cartwheel-a-thon will be given to the orphanage.
Donate: Contributions may be sent to the City Park or mailed to Dorothy Houlditch, 5017 Brooks Chapel Road, Ellenboro, NC 28040. Make checks payable to Shelby Gymnastics with “TunaHAKI” in the memo line.
Learn more by visiting:http://www.tunahaki.org/
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