Here at AWP, we are constantly making a difference in the lives of others. Meet the people who make our vision a reality.
Chris Adare and his fiancé
Christopher Adare is currently serving as the International Director for AWP. Adare manages administrative duties, as well as designing and building water pumps, and implementing projects.
Adare knows his calling to serve in Malawi came in 2006, when he spent the summer working at an orphanage in Kasungu, Malawi. After graduating from the University of Washington, Adare moved to Malawi where he worked with Children of the Nations, an orphan assistance organization. Adare believes his biggest challenge since moving to Malawi has been learning to be accepted. As an outsider, Adare has overcome prejudices and is now able to examine and change the way he treats other cultures. Adare says he has seen changes in the Malawian villages through his work with AWP and believes they are on the right track.
“I would love people to be praying for my upcoming wedding; for the AWP staff to be effective in the community, and for peace, stability and security in the region.”
John Fry
John Fry is a workshop assistant for AWP and helps set-up irrigation systems in local villages.
Fry grew up in Mtandire, Lilongwe, where he lived with his parents and three siblings. His father died at an early age and Fry was supported by an orphan assistance organization, Children of the Nations. COTN provided for Fry to go to school and upon completing his twelfth year, he began working for COTN. Before starting with AWP, Fry was a part-time builder. Fry considers AWP to be a blessing to Malawi and seeks to help villagers understand the importance of irrigation systems and how they work.
Fry requests your prayers for his mother, who is unemployed, and siblings, who are still in school: “I want them to do well so they can have good educations and good jobs.”
Chaswezi Zulu Simwela is from the Katetele Village in northern Malawi. An Environmental Management Specialist & Partnership Coordinator for AWP, Simwela first begin working for AWP as a volunteer, before joining as staff full-time in November 2011.
Growing up in a large family, Simwela understands first hand the difficulties Malawians are facing when it comes to providing for and raising a family. Simwela helped start Action for Behavior Change with Carol Maclean, an organization devoted to counseling youth, and was able to pull from his life experiences to mentor younger people. Simwela later attended school in Lilongwe, where he began working toward a degree in Sustainable Development. Simwela plans to go back to school and study for his Bachelors at the University of Livingstonia. “Working for AWP has opened my eyes to see beyond what farmers in rural communities are lacking. I believe I can become a strong and reliable bridge to help them achieve sustainable livelihoods if I ...attain higher education.”
Under Simwela’s guidance, AWP has been able to partner with groups like Ukwe Extension Planning Area and Matindi Youth Organization, helping villages throughout southern Africa.
Blessings Malamba and family
Blessings Malamba, one of thirty children, spent his childhood divided between his village and town. He worked at a local market during secondary school to pay for his education and later found a job as a dog handler. Malamba first became aware of AWP in 2010, when he met Chris Adare. Conscious of poverty and lack of water in Malawian villages, Malamba was eager to get involved with AWP and help his community.
“It is always my prayer to God [that] AWP should go in[to] many districts in Malawi so that Malawi can be transformed.”
Wallace Storr and family
Wallace Storr works in the AWP demonstration gardens, irrigating and pumping to maintain the vegetation. Storr, a Malawian farmer, husband, and father of three, attended school through grade eight, before stopping because of school fees.
Storr asks for prayers for AWP, his family and problems in the community.
Custom Gabson and family
Custom Gabson has been working full-time for AWP since January 2012, primarily in the demonstration gardens alongside Wallace Storr. Before coming to AWP, Gabson worked for a farmer growing maize on the other side of Mziza, Chiwaza. Recently widowed, Gabson has three children, ages 10, 12 and 18.
Please keep Gabson in your prayers, that God will give him wisdom and grant his family peace.
