Our Team

Denis Palla is the Founder and Director of Flowers Children's Centre. Born in Dodoma / Tanzania he experienced a life of hardship himself. This experience shaped his future and the dream of helping to improve the life of vulnerable children. 

A teacher by heart, he decided in 2016 to establish his own daycare. The beginning was very hard (see more about this topic in our story) and Denis struggled to get the attention of donors, sponsors and volunteers. However, as a result of his determination, he finally managed to make Flowers Children's Centre into the place it is now.

In the meanwhile, Denis is living in Germany. He is still running the school from afar, working day and night to make sure everything runs smoothly. But with the help of our amazing team on site we make it work!

Queen is our Star!
She is a true all-rounder:

- our school coordinator on site and right hand of Denis: doing everything possible and impossible, accountancy, shopping, dealing with the craftsmen, making sure everything is in order.

- a teacher by heart, substitute when one of the teachers is sick or assisting if help is needed 

- our Hostel Mama: she's cooking and cleaning at the Maua Hostel and making sure our volunteers are happy at all times

She is always there. A kindhearted, helpful soul, very curious to learn about foreign culture, a little shy at times, but once she warms up, she's sharing her heart. 

Stumai, our social worker, is also one-of-a-kind. With her sunny, welcoming and open personality she makes you feel at home as soon as you step through our gates at Flowers. She is a social worker by profession and at the same time our volunteer coordinator. 

She's counseling our children and their families, supporting whenever help is needed. She's the liaison between our little Flowers, their families, the teachers and the management. 

She's cares deeply about others and enjoys discussing about everything and anything and sharing her experiences of life in Tanzania. 

The teachers are the heart of our daycare. They all did a one year course in "Earlier Childhood Education" and are professionals in teaching at nursery schools.

Each of them is very special in their own way, using their own talents to teach our little flowers in a specific way.

We are grateful to have them all!

Sandra came to Arusha as a volunteer herself in 2016 and fell in love with Flowers. She is supporting Flowers from her home country Switzerland. Her professional background is Business Administration with a specialization in the field Social Insurance and Social Welfare. She also has work experience with disabled and handicapped people, individuals and/or families at risk and refugees. 

Her range of responsibilities includes the website, Social Media Marketing and she is the first contact person if you are interested in volunteering.

She is also the chair of the association "Friends of Flowers" in Switzerland supporting Flowers Children's Centre by collecting donations. 

Angela accompanied Sandra to Tansania for the first time in September 2022. The children found their way into her heart at once. Two more visits in 2023 and the rest is history: she’s our newest member.

With her professional background as a pharmacist assistant, she brings medical expertise to our team. As she has been working in the Social Security sector for a few years, she has extensive experience with people with disabilities.

Angela is also board member of the association”Friends of Flowers” in Switzerland and responsible for fundraising. She is supporting Sandra with administrative tasks and is also answering volunteer requests. 

Vicky also came to Flowers as a volunteer in 2016 and joined the team. She is a Social Worker and a Health Practitioner for Psychotherapy.

She has professional experience working with refugees, disabled and mentally/emotionally ill children as well as orphans.

She is on maternity leave at the moment, enjoying her two little girls. When time allows in the future, she will be back :-)