| Thurs Feb 4, 2010 The entire group headed out to plant 300 trees (mango, oranges, coconut, papaya, lime, Lechie, Pomello and Jackfruit). It was incredibly hot making it hard to manage. A few of us had to return to the vehicles to find shade as the heat was incredibly draining and we were afraid of getting heat stroke . But the rest of the group persevered on to get the job done. While part of the group was busy purchasing supplies to take to the New Light School, Trevor, Tammy and Dave went and purchased the fish from the hatchery. We then delivered them to Global Neighbors farm, released them into the ponds and left them in Henry’s care, the farm manager. These fish will be raised there until they can be sold. Our next stop after lunch was the New Light School that we attended just the day before. While there we learned how in dire need these people were for food and supplies. We handed out baby blankets & layettes, clothing and rations of food (rice, cooking oil, garlic, beans, white radishes and oranges) to the families who attend there. These people are very poor and some days have no food to feed their families. We were a welcome sight for all. Then the principal of the New Light School took us to another area which was even poorer than the people we had just assisted. At this site it was very disturbing as the stench was so strong in turned our stomachs. We provided the headman of this area with the supplies to distribute to the 23 families evenly to avoid people being missed. The hunger pains in their stomach is nothing new to these people, they are providing for their families as best they can and more often it still is not enough. We have witnessed sick children who are starving and it make us feel so helpless. Imagine having a starving child of your own, but no matter what, you cannot provide enough food for them. What we have done today is provide a short term solution, what Global Neighbor Canada is providing now, is a long term solution, which is access to education. Education is the key. |
