Church puts smiles on needy faces

EIGHTY-SEVEN vulnerable people (children and adults) in various Livingstone communities have received assorted items worth K41,781 from the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Church, Southern Zambia and Northern Zambia Union Conference.

The donation was made on the sidelines of the Southern Africa Indian Ocean Division (SID) Convention for women’s and children’s ministries dubbed ‘Involve them’, which was held in the Tourist Capital at the weekend.

Speaking during the presentation of the items, Northern Zambia Union Conference director of Children Ministries and Women Ministries Rita Twumasi, said the SID Convention was tailored in such a way that delegates were supposed to involve children under the child’s total member involvement.

“We wanted the children to take part in the outreach donation programme so that from the very beginning they know there are needy people in the society who need to be looked after.

“In any case, we are using the Jesus method of mingling with people, identifying people’s needs, supplied their needs, and won their confidence and made them to follow Him,” said Ms Twumasi.

She said the donation of washing soap, sugar, bar soap, mealie meal, cooking oil, beans, kapenta, oranges, pens, books, bananas, salt, milk, powdered porridge were given to people from Nakatindi, Maramba and Mwandi Townships.

In receiving the donation Joyce Mudenda, a resident of Nakatindi area, and beneficiary thanked the Church for the gesture.

“I am really thankful for the donation. God has given these people to donate to us and we are grateful. I am a widow and have five orphans. There is hunger and many other problems in our home and I have no money for school children,” she said.

Another beneficiary, Jenifer Pumulo of Nakatindi said, “I keep my mother who is blind and a son with a mental problem. I also lost another son and have no husband to help me provide with food, thanks to the SDA church,” she said.

Mr Michael Mushe, Chairperson of Nakatindi Community welfare assistance scheme which is under the Ministry of Community Development and Social Welfare, bemoaned the hardships vulnerable people not just in Nakatindi but other areas faced.

He said many people were jobless and that the population was growing but social cash transfer was no longer active in the area. He said the donation was, therefore, a big blessing to the locals.