A native of Zimbabwe, Phiri volunteers full time. One of the places he works is Nyabira School, an impoverished elementary school near the capital of Harare. Phiri says his training helped him see through new eyes, and overcome complacency that has set in at the school. Phiri applied for a grant from the Center for Purposeful Living. The money enabled him to buy textbooks for some of the students, though due to rampant inflation in Zimbabwe, not as many as he would have liked.