The New Manlueana House: A Home Away From Home

Despite the challenges of COVID lockdowns, we've successfully established a beautiful new student house in Manlueana. Built by local Timorese builder Sabino, this four-bedroom home now accommodates eight students - two young men and six young women. What makes this house special isn't just its physical structure, but how it's become part of the local community. Surrounded by food gardens growing bananas, mangoes, and native trees, there are no fences - just open spaces where our students have been warmly embraced by neighbouring families.

Meet Our Students

Our residents come from various regions including Remexio, Alieu, Ainaro, Liquica and Oecusse, and they represent the pioneering spirit of Timor-Leste's youth. Many are the first in their families - sometimes even in their entire communities - to pursue higher education. They bring rich cultural heritage with them, speaking their indigenous languages alongside Tetum, and often English and Portuguese.

These young people typically come from subsistence farming communities, and their journey to higher education represents a significant transition not just for them, but for their entire families. Some have overcome considerable challenges, including losing parents at a young age or facing other hardships, making their determination all the more inspiring.

Student Leadership in Action

One of the most encouraging developments has been watching the students take ownership of their living space. They've formed a management committee, supported by Luisa (a student mentor from our Santa Cruz house) and the National Youth Organization of Timor (JDN). The students manage their own cooking and cleaning rosters, household budgets, and community living arrangements - all valuable life skills that complement their academic pursuits.

The Impact of Your Support

Your sponsorship remains crucial to this program's success. While we've moved away from traditional fundraising methods like Treks for Timor, your consistent support through scholarships has enabled us to:

- Cover essential education costs including school fees

- Provide necessary equipment like laptops

- Support living expenses

- Enable students to maintain connections with their home communities

- Create a sustainable support system for future generations of students

Looking Forward

What's particularly heartening is seeing how the program has become self-sustaining within the Timorese community. The house was built by local builders, is self-managed by students, and supported by local organizations like JDN, who provide wonderful advocacy work for young people, especially young women and those with disabilities.

This is exactly what we hoped for - not just providing housing, but helping create a sustainable pathway for Timorese youth to access education and build their futures.

Thank you for being part of this journey. Your continued support makes these transformative opportunities possible.

With gratitude,

Lynne Keevers & Lynne Dooley