Christmas treat for homeless people
A Christmas luncheon hosted recently for the homeless and underprivileged at One Church in Avondale, Harare, turned out to be a well-subscribed event.
Over 200 disdvantaged people turned up for the party and were fed with food and beverages.
The programme, a brainchild of three youths based in Avondale — Livias Mwanza, Edmond Musaruro and Caleb Dongonda — saw a number of homeless people mostly from Epworth and areas around Parirenyatwa Central Hospital and Avondale thronging One Church premises on the day.
With the assistance of other youths — Simangaliso Sibanda, Dorcas Zenda, Melisa Sithole and Tatenda Utsihwembanje — and the One Church team, they made sure the food was shared among the recipients in time.
Speaking to StandardStyle, one of the organisers, Mwanza, said they were shocked by the high number of the underpriviledged who turned up for the party.
“It’s not the first that we have done this, however, we were not sure whether the word had gone out so clearly,” said Mwanza.
“We were, however, perplexed by the numbers that turned up and we were prepared for the worst.
“Every person who turned up got a decent meal and a few parcels to take home thanks to One Church who gave us the support we needed.”
He added: “We hope to keep on doing this during most of the public holidays celebrated in this country.”
A beneficiary, Onias Gutu from Epworth, said he was happy to be part of the Christmas party and expressed gratitude to the organisers.
“It’s not every day that you meet youths with such hearts,” Gutu said.
“In most cases, during these times, most people only care about their loved ones, but forget the homeless and the underprivileged, therefore, hats off to these youths for coming up with such a noble idea.
“Actually, our leadership must adopt such ideas nationwide.”