What happens when a group of like-minded people come together to share their passion, experiences, hopes and dreams? Magic. That’s the best way to describe what happened last Thursday evening at MATTER when over a hundred people gathered at MATTER’s headquarters in St. Louis Park to celebrate the impact and power of partnership for the [...]
“I have to tell you, for a doctor, it was nightmarish stuff. I lost patients because we’d run out of oxygen. It used to give me nightmares; it was deeply traumatic for all involved.” MATTER’s Medical Director for Projects in Zimbabwe, Dr. Mike Jeans, recently shared his harrowing experience as a doctor in Zimbabwe’s Victoria [...]
On a beautiful summer day in 2018, a container load of medical equipment and supplies from MATTER was being unloaded at Victoria Falls Hospital in Zimbabwe. Winnie, one of the hospital's nurses, stood watching from a distance hardly believing what she was seeing. “I feel like we go to war every day. We get people in accidents that need x-rays, pregnant [...]
“Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all the darkness.” Desmond Tutu It’s MATTER’s privilege to partner with individuals and organizations to bring the bright light of hope to families and communities throughout our world. During these dark days of fear and uncertainty, sickness and death, that light is needed now more than ever. In the capital [...]
YOU MATTER. Two simple words that come together to form a powerful statement. At MATTER, this is not a mere tagline. It’s the guiding principle by which we work with and serve others. When people believe they matter and believe others matter too, amazing things happen! There is no better example of this than that of our dear [...]
Here in the Midwest the growing season is definitely over. The fields have been harvested and are now sitting barren and brown, waiting for the cover of snow to blanket them until spring. But it’s another story entirely in Zimbabwe. With temperatures in the 90’s and humidity at 90%, their growing season is in full swing. There's [...]
It’s every teacher’s dream for their students to come to class happy to be there and eager to learn. For Aubrey Chiwandura, the facilitator for the first MATTER Innovation Hub (MIH) Program in Zimbabwe, that’s his experience almost every day. And he loves it. “They come running with smiles on their faces because they love [...]
“I hope that everything they do here helps their future to be brighter, not only on the educational side but even in life, because the creativity, critical thinking and problem-solving skills, which are all promoted by the MATTER Innovation Hub, also apply even in life.” Sharing his hopes for the 260 students he works with [...]
July 17 was a momentous day at the Victoria Falls Primary School in Zimbabwe. Students and staff lined up in neat rows in the school's courtyard awaiting the arrival of Zimbabwe’s First Lady. As dignitaries and distinguished guests began to arrive and the media set up their cameras, the air was thick with anticipation. The [...]
On the grounds of the Victoria Falls Hospital, under the heat of the intense Zimbabwe sun gathered a small group of people from the hospital, the community and MATTER. After surveying a strip of land adjacent to the hospital’s back parking lot, it was declared "the perfect spot". The area, neglected and overgrown with weeds, [...]