News Article
This article appears in the May 2006 edition of Dunblane Cathedral Magazine

Samson Says "Thank You!"

Thank you, thank you to the people of Dunblane (and beyond) for continuing to respond with donations, Direct Debits and Gift Aid for Mary’s Meals at Nansato School, Malawi. Experience has shown in the last few weeks that if we tried to give a figure of money raised, it would be out of date by the time this reaches your door. Instead, look for the current total on the Likhubula display boards in the Cathedral, in the window of the SIR (Scottish International Relief) shop on the High Street or on our own special Dunblane page of the SIR website.

Communication may be hard from Africa, but we are starting to receive pictures, letters and stories of the difference which a meal a day in school has started to make to the children. Over 100 children have now re-enrolled in the school and the number continues to rise. The teachers are impressed with the simplicity of the scheme – 3 great big pots of bubbling porridge (nsima) to be ladled into plastic mugs and distributed to over 1,000 children. We are impressed that this mountain community can spring into action with a rota to prepare, cook and clean up for this number on a daily basis (could we do as well in Dunblane, especially if we had no running water available?).

Elliott Ross is one of the volunteers from Scotland who is spending a year working in the school. He has observed that for the first 6 months he just thought that the children in his class were not very good at concentrating. After a month of serving Mary’s Meals, however, he sees a visible improvement. He now realises how much the food shortages had been affecting even those pupils who were still managing in coming to school.

Donation cards to support this scheme are still available from the welcome table in the Cathedral, the Cockburn lounge, the SIR shop, libraries throughout Stirling Council and on this website.

If you are one of the many who have already sent money for Mary’s Meals, the children of Likhubula say thank you. In the words of Samson Selemon, a 10 year old boy: “And now I am not hungry. Now I can work hard.”

Zikomo.

Emillie Weitz and Jenni Barr for the Dunblane Likhubula Link