St Joseph's make dream come true for Malawi kids

READY access to water, one might think, should be a birthright but for many third world children it's only a dream. And one Milngavie church has just made that dream come true for hundreds of children at a school in Malawi.

St Joseph's Parish Church recently celebrated its 150th anniversary and as a special project to mark the occasion, Mitsidi Primary School in a rural district of Malawi was adopted under the Scottish International Aid fund's Mary's Meal appeal.

However, the parish raised far in excess of the amount required for the meals and it was possible to extend the help.

Parishioner Joe Murray said: "We originally aimed to raise £4,500 as it takes £5.30 to feed a child for a year, but we raised £14,000 and were also able to set up a feeding station where children outwith the school could also go to be fed.

"Being in a deprived area there are around 170 kids to a class — 900 pupils to 12 teachers and they had no furniture, not even desks. So as well as continuing with the meals project we set about generally improving things for the school."

The cereal cooked for the children is prepared on a daily basis by volunteers who get up at 5am.

However, when the well they normally carry water from is dry, which is frequent, they have to get up at 3am to cary buckets of water on their head from a well several miles away.

Now the church has been able to fund a well at the school and it greatly reduces the burden on the volunteers.

Joe and his wife Jess were planning a special holiday this year and designed it around making a visit to the school.

Dr Jo Thorp, also a parishioner, had been assigned to lecture in the region and the three, together with parish priest, Father John McGrorry, visited the school in July.
Father John McGrorry with staff at the school in Malawi


By co-incidence the bore-hole for the well the church had funded was being drilled on the day they arrived.

Joe added: "We got a rapturous welcome. The people of the village were so grateful that on top of sending money we had taken the trouble to go and meet them — it seemed to confirm to them that they really did have friends at the other side of the world.

"For our part we learned first hand what we could best do next to help improve life for them."Joe said the visiting party were humbled at the huge difference relatively small sums of money had made.