A Timeline of The Butterfly Tree Charity
February 2006
Butterfly Tree charity was founded by Jane Kaye-Bailey in February 2006 after a business incentive trip to Zambia with her late husband, Lawrence, who died in 2008. During a visit to Mukuni Village Jane learnt about the decimation caused by HIV and AIDS, members from every family had been infected or affected. 450 of the 1000 pupils attending Mukuni Basic School, were orphans.
Shocked and disturbed by what she had discovered Jane was determined to find a way to raise funds and awareness to help these vulnerable children. Jane met these three young girls while she was walking around the village and subsequently sponsored them to go to school. Since 2006 thousands of orphans and vulnerable children have access to improved education, health and water facilities, not just in Mukuni but throughout the Kazungula, Livingstone and Kalomo Districts.
April 2006
In April 2006 vigilant about where the money would go, Jane and her younger son David, returned to Mukuni Village to offer further assistance, taking with them medical supplies for the clinic, clothing for the orphans, and books and stationery for the school. They met the Chieftainess, the Prime Minister of the village and the School’s Head Teacher, Presley Mulenga, gaining knowledge of what could be done to improve the lives of these vulnerable people. Much of the time was spent at Mukuni Basic School learning about the orphans. They returned to the UK to continue fundraising and to start the process of forming a charity.
February 2007
Inspired by the three little girls, pictured above, the UK charity was founded by Jane and registered the following year, in February 2007.
The Butterfly Tree was also registered as a Non-Government Organisation in Zambia in March 2007, where the team comprises of the UK Trustees and local Zambian people. Between them they have a vast amount of experience in business, charitable and community work, as well as health and education.
2007 – 2008
Our first majot project was to help fund a three-bay classroom for Mukuni Basic School to have the first rural ‘high school’ in the Kasungula District. The children are able to complete grade twelve instead of having to leave after grade nine, as most of them cannot afford to board in Livingstone’s high schools. The BFSS provided The Butterfly Tree with a grant to equip the high school.
The charity has also built a pre-school and was funding three members of staff, attended by 225 young children from Mukuni Village, until is was taken over by the government in 2015. Seveteen pit-latrine toilets have been provided for both the pupils and teachers. Huge amounts of stationery and equipment has been donated. Feeding programs for over 450 vulnerable children are funded at Mukuni. A further 15 schools are provided with seeds and fertilizer to create sustainable feeding programs.
2009-2012
After doing several projects in Mukuni Village The Butterfly Tree received numerous requests to help other schools and communities.
2009 saw the upgrading of Katapazi School and boreholes were added to the schools of Katapazi, Mukuni, N’gandu and Siamasimbi. In 2010 six additional classrooms had been build at Kamwi, Siamasimbi, and three at Mukuni for special education, pre-school and grades 8 and 9. In 2011 a pre-school for Machenje and a new school for Mandandi were completed in the Mukuni Chiefdom.
The Butterfly Tree deveopled two new schools in Matengu and Silelo in the Musokatwane Chiefdom, which opened in 2012. Materials and equipment were provided for all these schools with the addition of N’Songwe, Libala, Mulindi and Manyemunyemu.
