Shine Relief Trust’s annual fundraising event on the 8th of September saw 38 people of all ages and backgrounds gather together to walk or cycle in support of vulnerable children in Malawi
A group of 12 cyclists set off from Cottingham and a group of 26 walkers set off from Beverley on Saturday morning to cycle 50km and walk 18km.
The groups met at South Dalton village hall – the finish for the walkers and half-way point for the cyclists. All fundraisers had a celebratory lunch together and heard some stories of the children Shine Relief Trust is supporting.
Many, who walked the four hour route in brilliant sunshine, mirroring the steps of children in Malawi, felt a sense of injustice that many children in Malawi have to walk for hours every day to get an education. Cyclists, on the other hand, were more mindful of how a bicycle could transform a child’s life in rural Malawi.
A simple bicycle reduces travel time to school, thus releasing more time to manage their other responsibilities. Many families have lost both parents, leaving the eldest child in charge of their siblings and the household, which often leaves no or little time for attending school and doing homework, let alone finding the funds to pay school fees and buy a uniform.
In rural Malawi, the only way to get a child to hospital quickly is often by bicycle; however, due to lack of bicycles children can die from curable diseases like malaria. In addition to 500 mosquito nets sent to Malawi using the proceeds from the first sponsored bike ride, Shine Relief Trust is planning to send bicycles to those most in need to better the situation even further.
Shine Relief Trust’s supporters recently responded to an urgent appeal to help provide blankets for 100 children, who were sleeping on fertiliser sacks during the coldest time of the year and had nothing to cover them. Getting a simple cold in rural Malawi can have very serious consequences as medication is not always readily available to everyone.
The support given, mainly by people from the East Riding, has helped Shine Relief Trust feed over 400 children every day to give them energy to attend school. Eight families have been supported in their homes and ten students have been able to sit exams that they never thought they would. These numbers may seem small, yet the difference made to an individual life is astonishing.
We can only help a small percentage of the vast orphan population in this region, but we will not give up and will soldier on helping one student and one family at a time. With big dreams to open a Shine Village, which will enable us to provide a permanent home, education and medical care to the most vulnerable children, Shine Relief Trust continues to raise awareness of the plight of orphaned children in the Warm Heart of Africa.
£2,000 has been raised so far, however we need to raise £3,000 to continue our outreach programs and help more families in an area where there are no other charities providing orphan care support.
Donations are still kindly received in the following ways: Mobile donations text: SHNE00 £1-10 to 70070. Download a one-off or regular giving
form -: www.shine-relief.org .
For more information | info@shine-relief.org | 07762243302 www.facebook.com/SHINERELIEFTRUSTUK
