Losing a parent is heartbreaking for any child; then having to give up your education makes it almost unbearable. This is the case of many orphans in Zambia. In the six Zambian schools supported by The Butterfly Tree there are almost 1000 orphans. To date we are sponsoring 175 children and desperately need more donors to sponsor orphans in Zambia. On my last trip to Mukuni Village I was staggered to meet over sixty children who could not meet their school and exam fees. By giving a child an education it is not just giving them a chance in life it is also giving them hope.
Mukabalenga was one of the first orphans in Zambia to be on The Butterfly Tree orphan sponsorship program and writes the following letter to her sponsor:
“It’s really beyond human understanding for me to have this opportunity of writing this letter to you, hope and trust all is well with you, as for me not so bad. I really appreciate your support, I don’t how I can express my appreciation. You are playing an important role in my life such as that I cannot think of my dead parents. I don’t have much to say only words of thanks dwelling in my heart.”
Orphans in Zambia: Mukabalenga Siachanane at Mukuni Basic School
By paying for the orphans’ schooling, which covers school and exam fees, books, uniforms, shoes and school bag someone in the villages will accommodate them. This way the orphans do not have to be sent to the orphanages in Livingstone. Often it pushes the guardians further below the poverty line but at least the orphans are able to remain at the school with their friends, the teachers are very generous some of them having as many as five orphans living with them. Presley Mulenga, Head Teacher at Mukuni Basic School has five of his own chilren plus seven orphans living with he and his wife in his two-bedroomed house. The Butterfly Tree offers a daily feeding program to orphans in Zambia, sponsored by Cunninghams, to over 500 vulnerable children providing them a nutritional meal in addition to their morning porridge.
It costs only £95 ($150) to sponsor orphans in Zambia, alternatively £8 per month. I believe that every child has a right to education. Many more like Mukabalanga urgently need your help. To find out more visit our orphan sponsorship page. See the orphans singing with the choir on Youtube.
