Ossining Non-Profit Works for a Healthier Future in Africa
Since its inception in Westchester in 2006, Life Project for Africa has been providing vital resources and funds for a growing healthcare center in Tanzania.
Set in the small village of Dar Es Salaam, the hospital has since grown to provide invaluable care to the village locals, many of whom are so poverty-stricken they have never had such access to healthcare. With the stream of support from parishioners at St. Augustine’s Church in Ossining, Life Project for Africa has become one of the best sources of sustenance for the locals.
It began in 2006, when Father Stephen Mosha enlisted the help of volunteers at St. Augustine’s, all of whom were looking to have an impact on Tanzania. Father Mosha had come to Ossining from an area in Tanzania where the goal was a healthcare facility. For several years prior to Life Project’s advent in 2006, the parishioners had looked for ways to help struggling African people, and this was the perfect opportunity.
In order to get the details of the expanding not-for-profit worked out, Father Mosha sought the expertise of trademark lawyer Jess Collen to devise a plan for the developing project.
“Father Mosha came to me principally because I was a lawyer,” Collen said. “He asked me if I had any idea where to start and I said, ‘No. I’m a trademark lawyer, but I guess I can figure it out.’”
Collen subsequently established a legal not-for-profit organization, including by-laws and a bank account. Since their initial conversation some six years ago, he and Mosha have been championing the cause for the healthcare center with unwavering commitment.
“It just sort of happened, really,” Collen said. “I had always had an interest and strong desire to do something like this. We needed to figure out how we could raise money, so we started to ask around to see who may be interested.”
Word quickly spread about the cause, and the team was able to not only garner support and accumulate the funds necessary to build the facility, but also raised enough money to acquire a collection of diagnostic equipment to be used in Dar Es Salaam.
“Hospitals are regularly replacing state-of-the-art equipment for the latest and best model. Phelps [Memorial Hospital Center] donated microscopes and ultrasounds that are in great working condition.” Collen said, emphasizing the compassion shown by the Sleepy Hollow-based hospital. The supplies, including several hospital beds, were then shipped by boat to Tanzania.
Life Project for Africa has thrived mainly because of the dedicated volunteers and board members who work selflessly to provide the adequate funds and equipment to one of the poorest areas of the world. The board is comprised of Maggie Kolman-Mandle, Janet DiBenedeto, Kathy Simons, Debbie Ansary, Samir Ansary, and Doreen DeMartino in New York, as well as Father Mosha in Tanzania and Al Cecere in Tennessee. Additionally, a bevy of devoted humanitarians have volunteered in Tanzania on behalf of Life Project, including Collen’s daughter Alicia, New York State Judge Sallie Daniels, and Manhattan-based obstetrician Dr. George Mussali and his family. While in Tanzania, Mussali met with local government health officials to ensure that the growing healthcare facility would continue to thrive.
Several other national organizations have shown their support for the cause. The Starke Foundation provided a representative to administer hearing tests and oversee hearing aid donations for Tanzania. The Segal Family Foundation lent its financial support to the cause, aiding many women and children in dire need. Students at Hendrick Hudson High School held a fundraiser for the organization. Rotary International funded the building of a well to provide clean drinking water, allowing students who ordinarily would not be able to attend public school to do so.
“These kids … can now go to school instead of getting clean water for their family for hours a day,” Collen noted.
Though the healthcare facility has shown great growth in the past several years, Collen said, volunteers are necessary to ensuring the mission will continue.
“What we’d like to do, ideally, is turn over responsibility to the folks in Tanzania, [making it a] self-sustaining facility,” he said.
For now, Collen calls Life Project for Africa a life-changing experience and says he is “absolutely in this for the long haul.”
For more information on how to support Life Project for Africa, visit lifeprojectafrica.org.
Article by Aileen Collins
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.
