This month most of us will be frantically buying presents and getting ready for the Christmas festivities. The shops are stacked with merchandice, delicious food and an abundance of drink and yet we still struggle to find that special present with a difference. One way to overcome this problem is to give a charitable gift and there are many ways this can be done. Each year hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of unwanted presents get tossed in the trash – money, time and effort all spent in vain.
Supper brewing for a grandmother with five orphans
If you want to find a worthwhile present, which not only offers pleasure to both the giver and the recipient, but can benefit a third party who is less fortunate, then you may like to consider one of the following options: Sponsoring an orphan in Zambia will provide an education for a child, donating a mosquito net could save a child’s life or build a house to accommodate an entire family. There are many other ways to help the orphans – donate a bicycle for a child who has to walk a long distance to school, buy a bag of maize for just £10 or donate a blanket for the cold winter nights for only £15.
Sponsor an orphan – Bright Siabenlengu, Mukuni Village
For most Zambians the highlight of their Christmas Day will be going to church, very few will have a celebratory meal or exchange presents. Two thirds of the population lives on less than one pound per day – their stress is not brought on from deciding what present to buy their family members, but whether they will have enough n’shima (ground maize), vegetables and ground nuts to feed the whole family. One young boy, just fifteen years of age, from Mukuni, recently tried to take his life because he could no longer cope with being constantly hungry. Please give this a thought when you are filling your trolley – do you really need that extra bottle of wine?
