Inverness County Cares

Inverness County Cares (ICC) is a local organization which has been working toward improving the lives of students at the St Mary’s Special School in Kawambwa and the St Odilia School in Mporokoso, both located in Northern Zambia. For six years ICC has put great effort into providing a better life for the students in the schools. These children are some of the neediest in the country. They are blind, visually impaired and are living with albinism, a condition which destroys their vision, and is very painful. Besides this they are constantly in fear because of the risk of assault and kidnapping, since their body parts bring in a very high price on the black market.

Inverness County Cares provides $30,000 per year to cover education costs, clothing, food and shelter. Funds gathered over and above this amount are designated for needs which the Sisters who administer the schools, determine are most important. Over the past two years these extra funds are responsible for significantly upgrading the living situations of the students and their caregivers.

In 2024 ICC contributed toward projects which improved conditions at the schools. Plumbing was upgraded in the dormitories and wash buildings, to provide running water, functional toilets and sinks for the students. Previously the students carried buckets of water to the wash rooms and filled a barrel for personal ablutions. Broken sewer pipes were replaced to make indoor toilets usable again.  One-hundred-sixty broken window panes were replaced and the locking mechanisms on the windows repaired, to prevent more breakage of windows in windstorms. One-hundred-forty light fixtures and bulbs were installed in classrooms, dormitories and other buildings used by the children.

The sisters who lovingly care for the children in Kawambwa, needed repairs to the chapel in their convent. ICC provided the funds to paint and repair water damage sustained when the roof leaked. The sisters in Mporokoso lived in a convent without running water or a well. ICC dug a well and installed indoor plumbing for them.

The St Mary’s school depended on their 28-seater bus for all errands to buy groceries, building supplies and trips about town in addition to conveying children to and from school at the beginning of the school year and the end. A Toyota Tacoma was purchased for all about town runs and for reaching students in remote areas, where the bus could not travel because of poor road conditions.

Ceiling tiles were installed in classrooms and dormitories as buildings with only a metal roof, without a barrier to the interior of the building below, became unbearably hot in the summer season.

Recently funds were sent to provide repairs as determined by the sisters who administer the schools. Sixty-five bunk beds will increase the capacity of the dormitories and the ongoing renovation of the ablutions building will continue and fifty-four new desks will improve classroom conditions. These buildings had fallen into disrepair because of lack of funding for regular maintenance. Food for the children was the main priority. Following the afore mentioned repairs and renovations, ICC is running a pilot project where money is provided every six months for regular school maintenance and ongoing repairs as needed to ensure the schools stay in better condition. 

All this work was made possible because of your direct donations to Inverness County Cares and indirect donations to the bottle and can collections in the trailers in Port Hood and Mabou.

We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for making the Kawambwa schools a much better place to live and study. These children are some of the most vulnerable as they must contend with the challenges of blindness and reduced vision and in addition cope with the dangers faced by people with albinism. They are never free of the fear of assault and abduction because of the high prices offered for the body parts of persons with albinism. Witch doctors and makers of potions use their body parts to provide guarantees of good luck and success in business, love and success in elections.

Their key to a brighter future is the education provided by the Kawambwa Schools. Here their special needs are takin into consideration and with their hard work and determination they are able to look forward toward success and independence.

Inverness County Cares (ICC) is a local charitable organization, founded in 2012 and based in Inverness County, NS, Canada. ICC works in partnership with Chalice.ca, a Canadian charity, based in Bedford, Nova Scotia. Chalice provides guidance and assistance to help ICC provide a better life for the children at the Kawambwa schools. The Kawambwa Project involves supporting two schools for albino and visually impaired students, in Northern Zambia. Inverness County Cares always welcomes new members. Individuals who wish to donate, can use the donate button on our website   https://invernesscountycares.com When using E-transfer, please include your mailing address for CRA tax receipts and a thank you message.   E-transfer address:  invernesscountycares@gmail.com or send a cheque to Inverness County Cares, 5414 Route 19, Judique, NS, Canada, B0E1P0. Taxation receipts provided

Its garlic season again and Inverness County Cares has a plentiful crop of garlic. The hard neck bulbs (saved from last year’s harvest) were planted November 2024 on a sunny well-drained hillside, in soil enriched with compost and last year’s straw tilled into the soil.  To insulate against the alternating freezing temperatures and periods of thawing during our Atlantic winters, the bed was covered in an insulating blanket of straw. Over this, spruce branches were laid to keep the straw in place and trap insulating snow.  After the removal of the branches in early spring the garlic shoots began to poke through the straw about the same time the tulips and daffodils made their appearance.

Despite the dry summer, the garlic did quite well, owing to the straw which held in moisture and discouraged weeds which would compete for space and nutrients. In July the scapes were picked and made into pesto. Removing the scapes, ensures the bulbs grow to their full potential without having to put out energy to produce the tiny flower/bulbs which develop on the top of the scape.

By the end of July, the bottom half to two thirds of the leaves had yellowed signalling time to pick the garlic. Approximately 750 garlic bulbs were tied together and suspended from the rafters to dry and cure. Now the time has come to tidy the bulbs by cutting off the dry stems and the dry roots.

These garlic, store well into early spring in a cool environment. An alternative way of storing your garlic is to put peeled garlic cloves in a food processor with olive oil. Blend together and freeze on a cookie sheet, then cut into cubes and seal using a vacuum sealer. Store sealed frozen garlic cubes in freezer for garlic ready to pop in your favourite recipe.

These garlic bulbs are an important part of Inverness County Cares’ fundraising plan. This year we will sell by the pound. 

½ pound for $15 (negotiable). To purchase garlic, contact us at 902 227 5425, colmac27@gmail.com or invernesscountycares@gmail.com  We are located in Judique, NS.

We also want to express our thanks to the many people who donate their refundable bottles and cans to our collection trailers in Mabou at the Fresh Mart and in Port Hood at 209 Main Street. We want to thank Ted and Hermina Van Zutphen, Wayne and Karen Beaton and new Freshmart owners Allan and Lucie MacMaster for providing a space for the trailers.

We are so pleased with how quickly the trailers fill up. Thank you to the team who tidy and stack the trailer contents, Stephen Doiron and Brendan Moloney in Port Hood and Stanley Beaton in Mabou. Thank you to the crew who use their trucks to tow the trailers to the Enviro Depot in Port Hood. Thank you to those who empty the trailers; John MacInnis, Archie MacLeod, John Gillies, John Kommes, Bernie Gillies, Richard MacDonald, Colleen MacLeod. Thank you to Zutphens for the trailers and the help moving them.

The refundable bottles and cans are our top fund-raising venture. With each passing month we are happy to note the intervals between emptying the trailers are getting shorter.  Thank you so much for your support.

Thank you also to the newspapers (Oran and Reporter) who give us the opportunity to share our stories with their readers and help bring about an understanding of what we do and a glimpse into the life of the people of Zambia.  

Inverness County Cares (ICC) is a local charitable organization, founded in 2012 and based in Inverness County, NS, Canada. ICC works in partnership with Chalice.ca, a Canadian charity, based in Bedford, Nova Scotia. Chalice provides guidance and assistance to help ICC provide a better life for the children at the Kawambwa schools. The Kawambwa Project involves supporting two schools for albino and visually impaired students, in Northern Zambia. Inverness County Cares always welcomes new members. Individuals who wish to donate, can use the donate button on our website   https://invernesscountycares.com When using E-transfer, please include your mailing address for CRA tax receipts and a thank you message.   E-transfer address:  invernesscountycares@gmail.com or send a cheque to Inverness County Cares, 5414 Route 19, Judique, NS, Canada, B0E1P0. Taxation receipts provided.

In Zambia, technology is scarce but skill, creativity and an unstoppable work ethic are abundant. The people here accomplish extraordinary things with the simplest of tools and a whole lot of fortitude.

Much of the country relies on subsistence farming. Imagine working sunbaked, sandy soil with nothing but a single tool: a long heavy hoe. There are no tractors, no mechanized help, just determination. Each day families walk kilometers to their fields, hoes slung over their shoulders, ready for hours of hard work. They grow enough food to feed their families and maybe have a little left over to sell at the market. The annual income for many of these hard-working farmers is around $400 Canadian dollars.

At the schools, even the grass cutting reveals the same blend of necessity and ingenuity. To keep dangerous snakes at bay, workers use ‘slashers’, long blades shaped like a small hockey stick, to manually cut grass. With one arm swinging in rhythmic relentless motion, the job gets done.

The schools also grow their own produce and raise poultry to feed both children and staff. Without refrigeration, food is sourced daily. When Winnie requested chicken for her cooking class, she didn’t expect to be greeted the next morning by live protesting chickens, but that’s how things work here. Everything is fresh and nothing comes easy.

Two volunteers, John Gillies and John MacInnis, partnered with local tradespeople to help improve the schools’ infrastructure. The word that best captures the spirit of the Zambian workers is MacGyver, making, fixing and inventing with whatever is at hand. The pair were amazed at the clever solutions they witnessed, building, patching and repairing using scraps, resourcefulness and pure willpower.

Take the windows for example. Sister Agnes’ request was to repair all 160 broken panes across the school buildings. While some had been held in place with putty, others had cement, which had been packed in when putty ran out. A hired glazier quickly adapted. He sent them to a nearby welding shop to get rebar shaped into chisels. Cost was just 25 cents a day to re-sharpen the tools. Within a few days, the old glass was gone and new panes were being cut and fitted with precision. However, the glazier reminded them that if the stops and hardware were not fixed, the next windstorm would undo everything. That task was taken care of and the windows are now secure.

Water was another critical issue. The showers and washrooms had long been dry. Sister Agnes brought in a plumber who knew the aging system. What followed was a masterclass in low-cost innovation, rubber tubing tightly wrapped around leaking joints, hand-dug trenches for new pipework with no rocks thankfully and hours of sweat. Within four days, water flowed again. The boys could finally take real showers instead of hauling buckets from a 45-gallon drum.

Of course, water pressure wasn’t perfect and as soon as the toilets began to flush, new problems emerged, leaking pipes, blockages and yet more digging. But by the time the volunteers left, the system was well on its way to working again.

The cement floors in many buildings were cracked and uneven, making them hard to clean and difficult for visually impaired students to navigate. ICC committed to fund new tile installation and the local tilers did such excellent work that John and John said they’d be proud to have it in their own Canadian homes. The tradespeople were not only skilled but innovative, using every resource to their advantage.

Electrical repairs were another top priority. The buildings needed a lot of work, over 100 light bulbs replaced, multiple fixtures and plugs repaired and kitchen stoves brought back to life. Years of wear and limited funding had taken a toll. To remedy this, Inverness County Cares initiated a new maintenance budget of $100 per month per school to help prevent things from falling into disrepair again.

In Canada, if materials cost $100, labour usually costs the same. In Zambia, the approach is different. Labour costs around $40 for every $100 of materials. It is a system shaped by economic necessity but it allows work to be done in a way that is sustainable and fair.

Inverness County Cares were able to contribute $17,200 CDN to cover the costs of the repairs described here. Many thanks to our wonderful supporters for making this happen.

What we witnessed in Zambia was more than just hard work. It was resilience, resourcefulness and a deep sense of community. These are people who don’t wait for perfect conditions. They make do, they adapt and they get the job done with whatever is on hand. Whether it is farming, plumbing or laying tile, they do it with pride and they do it together.

Inverness County Cares (ICC) is a local charitable organization founded in 2012 and based in Inverness County, NS, Canada. ICC works in partnership with Chalice.ca, a Canadian charity based in Bedford, Nova Scotia. Chalice provides guidance and assistance to help ICC provide a better life for the children at the Kawambwa schools. The Kawambwa Project involves supporting two schools for albino and visually impaired students in Northern Zambia. Inverness County Cares always welcomes new members. Individuals who wish to donate can use the donate button on our website https://invernesscountycares.com. When using E-transfer, please include your mailing address for CRA tax receipts and a thank you message. E-transfer address: invernesscountycares@gmail.com or send a cheque to Inverness County Cares, 5414 Route 19, Judique, NS, Canada, B0E1P0. Taxation receipts provided.

On Thursday, May 15, 2025, a long-hoped-for blessing arrived at St. Mary’s Special School for the Blind in Kawambwa—a sturdy, reliable 2025 Toyota Hilux (Tacoma) diesel, 4×4 truck. Its arrival marked the end of a long wait and the beginning of new possibilities for the school community, who had hoped and prayed for this day.

This story began in January 2024, when members of Inverness County Cares (ICC) visited Zambia. During their visit, it became clear that a small, agile vehicle was greatly needed. A truck would help with the many daily responsibilities of the school—like collecting supplies and reaching students in distant rural villages, where no child should miss out on an education simply because of where they live.

Up until now, these tasks were managed with the help of a large 28-seater bus donated by Chalice and ICC three years ago. While this bus served with stamina and strength, it was not suited for transporting cement or lumber—or navigating the deeply rutted, muddy roads during Zambia’s long rainy season.

To offer some perspective, Zambia has nearly 68,000 km of roads, yet only a small portion are paved. The rest are gravel, sand, and dirt, and can be nearly impassable during the rains. A 4×4 vehicle, like the Hilux, is not a luxury here—it is a necessity.

Thanks to the generous hearts of ICC’s donors, the funds for the truck were sent before Christmas. But as is often the case with meaningful change, there were delays. For five months, the school waited patiently through a maze of paperwork and formalities. Eventually, Sister Marjory made the long, journey to Lusaka to collect the truck. It was a demanding trip—but one made in faith and hope.

When she and Lewis, the school’s devoted driver, returned to St. Mary’s, after a 21-hour drive, they were met with joyful singing, laughter, and even a shower of baby powder—a Zambian tradition to mark special occasions. The Hilux, decorated with balloons and ribbons rolled into the compound, bringing with it not just transport, but new opportunities.

Children crowded around the truck in awe, their excitement bubbling over as they asked for rides. Lewis did his best to balance his pride in the gleaming new vehicle with his concern that nothing should dim its shine. Father Kennedy Kashinga led a prayer of blessing over the truck and everyone who would use it and then said a mass of thanksgiving. Then, to the delight of all, Lewis gave the children rides around the compound tooting the horn as everyone sang and danced.

Sister Agnes, who manages the Chalice project and serves as the school administrator and the rest of the staff and sisters, were laughing, singing, and dancing with the children and staff. This moment meant so much. With this truck, the school can now reach children in the most remote corners of the region—ensuring that even the most isolated children have a chance to learn, grow, and be part of the Kawambwa family.

One of Sister Agnes’s first plans was to visit former students who have continued their education elsewhere, to check in, offer encouragement, and remind them that they are still very much part of the St. Mary’s community.

To everyone who played a part in making this possible: the students, caregivers, and staff extend their deepest thanks. Your generosity has brought more than just a truck—it has brought hope, dignity, and a renewed sense of connection.

St. Mary’s in Kawambwa and St. Odilia in Mporokoso continue to flourish because of your goodwill. These schools bear witnesses to the powerful change that can happen when people choose compassion, kindness, and love.

Inverness County Cares (ICC) is a local charitable organization, founded in 2012 and based in Inverness County, NS, Canada. ICC works in partnership with Chalice.ca, a Canadian charity, based in Bedford, Nova Scotia. Chalice provides guidance and assistance to help ICC provide a better life for the children at the Kawambwa schools. The Kawambwa Project involves supporting two schools for albino and visually impaired students, in Northern Zambia. Inverness County Cares always welcomes new members. Individuals who wish to donate, can use the donate button on our website   https://invernesscountycares.com When using E-transfer, please include your mailing address for CRA tax receipts and a thank you message.   E-transfer address:  invernesscountycares@gmail.com or send a cheque to Inverness County Cares, 5414 Route 19, Judique, NS, Canada, B0E1P0. Taxation receipts provided.