A group of residents in the Cayman
Islands have come together with Multi Vineyard Ministries to assist a village
in Zambia, known as Mufutuli, with back-to-school supplies, medicine, and other
essentials, as well as stuffed animals and other treats.
Spearheaded by Gary Wray and Nadia
Hardie of Sunshine Suites, this is the second year the group is endeavouring to
assist the village children, who do not have running water, electricity or many
of the other basic amenities that children in the West are accustomed to, said
Mr. Wray.
He said between local churches and
volunteers, the group is looking for a formal, non-profit organization to address
the urgent needs of underprivileged children and people in remote parts of the
world.
“We have had the honour of going to
actually see the village and spend time with the young people whom these
supplies benefit and it is always marvellous to see how just a simple stuffed
toy can impact their lives,” said Mr. Wray.
He added that one of the major
concerns in the village was the fear of being eaten by a crocodile while
retrieving water from the river, which is apparently a common occurrence. “This
could be solved by simply installing a pump, and these are the types of projects
we are hoping to accomplish there.
Last year, the Chrissie Tomlinson
Memorial Hospital was one of the organisations on Island that donated medicine,
according to the project organisers.
Nadia Hardie also expressed a deep
conviction about seeing the lives in Africa positively impacted through the
help of the group of people she and Greg have bee working with in this regard.
“We had a drop-off over the weekend
for this year’s drive, which allowed people to donate old school books,
uniforms, shoes, stuffed toys and other items, and we want people to know that
they can still play a part in helping out, as we will be continuing to take
donations,” she said.
Ms Hardie added that donated goods
may be brought to the Sunshine Suites, or those interested may call her on
926-1819.
In addition to the collection of
goods, the group is also securing a 40-foot container to ship items.