December 2025

Nicole's column After 5 After having been in the Netherlands for months, Teleza and I came up 24 November finally back in Malawi. In June when we came to the Netherlands as a family, we could never have imagined what awaited us. Teleza's health slowly deteriorated. With a minor cold, her oxygen level dropped more quickly, which wasn't so much the case before. Her annual check-up was scheduled for early July and I hoped the doctors would be able to help her with a small adjustment. She underwent several tests and it soon turned out that the situation was more serious than we thought. Her oxygen levels dropped during exertion 1 minute under 50%. The doctors decided to perform a cardiac catheterization to investigate why her oxygen levels were dropping so quickly. During the operation, they discovered that her body had created new blood vessels. These were closed during catheterization. However, it soon became apparent that this did not have the desired result and so Teleza's situation was discussed again. The surgeons had suggested closing the holes between her heart chambers and that is how Teleza was put on the emergency list for open heart surgery. Due to the summer period and a surgeon who was on holiday, we had to wait a month before she was called. On February 1 September was the day, Teleza was admitted to the LUMC in Leiden for surgery the next day. We would approx 2 having to stay in hospital for weeks. The next day she underwent surgery 10 hour-long open heart surgery. Unfortunately, during the operation it turned out that her right ventricle was too small to function and therefore it was not possible to close the holes between her ventricles. They went for plan B; a Fontan procedure. During this operation, her right ventricle is completely sidelined and her heart only functions left chamber. The operation was successful and soon her oxygen levels were better than ever. But unfortunately, complications quickly arose. Her body had enormous difficulty finding the new balance between lungs and heart, resulting in her lungs continuously filling up with pleural fluid.. Of 2 The months that followed were extremely difficult. Teleza first spent a week in intensive care, where she was almost unconscious for the first few days due to the many medications she was given.. Eight operations followed for the insertion of new drains, in total there is more than 15 liters of pleural fluid around her lungs were removed. Her right lung appeared to have built up a kind of baffle around a quantity of fluid, which required a tenth operation to manually remove that fluid.. She also had pneumonia and a daily injection of blood thinners in addition to all the checks and wound care. She was also voted in favor 6 put on a very strict diet for weeks. Her sisters had now returned to Malawi with grandmother for school. Despite the large age difference between Teleza and her sisters, they have a very close bond with each other and it was extremely difficult for Teleza to have to go through all this without her sisters.. She fell into a depression halfway through the admission, which of course did not help her recovery. She didn't want to get out of bed anymore, ate almost nothing and had several crying fits and angry outbursts a day. Fortunately and extremely grateful for this, her body eventually found a new balance and we were allowed to leave the hospital at the end of October. Fortunately, the checks that followed were fine 20 November we finally got the good news that Teleza was stable enough to fly back to Malawi. Diana and Maria did very well, but it was also a very difficult period for them. Maria in particular has had a very hard time and it will take some time before everything is back on track for her. Teleza has a trauma survived this period and is still in the process of recovery. She goes a few hours a day, to school a few days a week. A full week is not possible yet. She has difficulty with busy situations and is still busy processing everything that has happened. A little reminder can make her completely upset. It will take some time for all three girls to process this period, but the most important thing for now is that we are together again. Thank you for all the cards we received and for the condolences. They were small bright spots in these difficult times. Kind regards, Nicole Welcome to Malawi. Always when we are picked up from the airport and we drive through the capital to the Afriana House I think: “Welcome to the chaos of Malawi”. Even though a lot has changed in recent times 10 years, yet it remains a world full of chaos for me. Maria and Diana were very happy to be home again. During the ride home, Diana asked the driver if Sima was ready for her. Well not, but there was a welcome committee ready and everyone was so happy to see the girls again. There was a shout, danced, cuddled and sung to the fullest. What a warm welcome and the sima was quickly prepared for her. When this was over the questions came: “Where is mom and where is Teleza”. After I told them that mom and Teleza will really come back when Teleza is better, they asked: “Are you going to sleep here then?”. “Yes until mommy comes back”. For me it was an unexpected trip to Malawi. We could not have foreseen this and that it was spacious 3 would certainly take months. It was good to see how clean and tidy the house was upon arrival. The nannies have finished their work 6 weeks very well done. The children also looked happy and cheerful. All together, from 9 babysitters, by kooknanny, the cleaning nanny, from driver to 2 guards/gardeners they make a good team. All this under the inspiring leadership of Katie and Madalo. When Nicole is in the Netherlands, Katie is in charge of the Afriana House. She has a great sense of responsibility and already lives 11 years at the Afriana House.. She organizes meetings with the nannies and keeps a close eye on things. Katie also arranges everything that needs to be paid and that's a lot I can tell you. Salaries are paid in cash and overtime must be properly recorded. We did the shopping together on Monday and Friday. The prices you pay in a supermarket in Malawi are incredibly high. We only bought the necessary products. Every week 40 bottles of 5 liter water. The water from the tap is not drinkable. In the morning you drink chlorinated water, it is really white, and in the evening you have brown water. So to prevent diseases we buy bottled water. A loaf of bread costs at the bakery in Lilongwe 2 euros in. They only sell white bread. We have one like this every week 35-40 loaves of bread needed for all children and staff. Furthermore, everyone has sima with an egg in the afternoon, brown beans and a sauce of green leaves cooked with tomatoes and an onion and eaten with rice in the evening with a piece of meat, minced meat or sausage. They also often get some yogurt or porridge for dessert. During the morning and afternoon the children receive another bowl ofpaala. This is a healthy porridge made from cornmeal that they love. And of course an occasional sweet in between. The lollipops are a favorite. In the Afriana house there is a clear structure for the children. This is necessary because they always come from a world where there was no structure at all. Every day I went to the construction of the new Afriana House. Unfortunately it was over 6 for weeks very little happened. Nicole has, Before she left for the Netherlands, she made sure that all materials were present and gave the contractor money to buy cement. Unfortunately, he used this money for another project and without cement the construction workers could not do anything. So it is good to visit it every day because as the saying goes: When the cat is away, the mice dance on the table. Nicole then became very angry with him and the fact that he now knew that I came to check every day and took pictures of the progress helped.. Yet it is all quite slow by Dutch standards. But hey, it's Malawi and not the Netherlands. You have to constantly chase everything and call every day otherwise nothing happens. I am very curious whether he will meet the deadline, even though the contractor himself claims that everything will be fine. When I na 3 months later they had started painting, so who knows. What I do know for sure is that it will be very nice and big when it is finished. A private area for Nicole and her girls and much larger bedrooms for the children. The other rooms are also a lot larger, but there is still quite a bit of work to be done before everything is ready. With the exception of the first two weeks of my stay, there have always been children in the hospital. Of nannies, who each care for their own children, indicate well in advance when they suspect that a child is not well. If the child has a fever, we will immediately take him to the hospital. There are no general practitioners in Malawi. If you need help, go to the hospital. Often they have then an inflammation somewhere. They are then admitted and given a minimum antibiotic drip 5 days. This means that there too 5 a nanny must be present with the child in the hospital continuously for days. During my stay there are also 4 newborns admitted to the Afriana House. These are brought by Social Welfare. A little boy was born prematurely and weighed less than one 1000 gram. At first he did very well, but at the end of the second week he started to lose weight even though he drank his bottle every two hours.. So something wasn't right. In the last week before I went home, the doctors found out that he had TB and he was put on the right medication. All this time he was in the neonatology department, which meant that a separate nanny had to stay with him. Getting the nannies 10.000 kwatcha per day which converts to about € 5, is to buy food in the hospital. Clean items such as clothes are delivered every day, diapers, Blankets and water are taken to the hospital and another nanny goes to the children's department 24 hours remains. The nanny in the neonatal department may not be changed as in the pediatric department. This meant that there were two nannies in the hospital at all times, meaning the others had to work a lot of overtime. This is never an issue. They solve it together, but sometimes I really thought so: “An extra nanny would not be superfluous”. He was al 1 nanny needed every other three babies 2 hours to feed and change. Also have there, during my stay, two organizations that support us financially, visited the Afriana House. I gave them a tour and both times we visited the new house. Both organizations were very positive about the new house and I suspected that they were very impressed. Especially about the fact that we also... 1000 m2 of land to be prepared for the future. All children and young people went back to school during the period I stayed in Malawi. Unfortunately it is possible 1 girl not going to school. The reason? There is no more room in the car. At 10 people, it is completely full. I really felt sorry for her. The children really enjoy going to school and being left alone is heartbreaking to see. We really need to raise money for a van. The young people stay in a boarding school and only come home during the holidays. Fortunately, Katie knows very well what everyone needs so they could board the bus with a full suitcase of belongings. On to a new school year. On Sunday 16 In November I flew back to the Netherlands. Nicole and Teleza were now out of the hospital so we spent a few more days together. On Sunday 23 Nicole and Teleza flew back to Malawi in November. Greetings to everyone. Lilian van Elteren Attention – don't forget – Attention SponsorKliks Did you know that you can also support us with your purchases via the internet?? Provide extra help to the children in Malawi without it costing you anything extra, is now a possibility. How beautiful is that? If you click on the “Sponsor Clicks” button via www.afrianafoundation.org, many shops will appear., such as, among others. Bol.com, Coolblue, Booking.com, but also Greetz, the Staatsloterij and even Thuisbezorgd.nl. It costs nothing extra (just a few clicks) and you help the Afriana Foundation in Malawi. Afriana is entitled to a small commission from every order. This also takes you directly to the right site for your purchases. www.sponsorkliks.com/products/shops.php?club=9073 If we do this with many people, the amount can increase considerably Friends Lottery supports Afriana Foundation as a charity 'Good News! The Afriana Foundation's registration to collaborate with the Friends Lottery has been processed. From now on, your club is a charity at the Friends Lottery.” We received this great message from the Friends Lottery. From now on, Friends Lottery participants can transfer the charity of their ticket to our Afriana Foundation. That means that from now on 40% of the value of your Friend Lot, that is € 6.00 per trekking, is immediately transferred to our bank account. It works very simply; met 1 telephone call to the Friends Lottery Member Service, 088-0201020, you can support us. Select the program button 5 and indicate that you want to register with a registration code 22400. The program indicates that you want to support the Afriana Foundation. If you confirm this, the assignment is registered and we will receive that nice contribution from the Friends Lottery. Do and don't forget. Thanks for that.