Inverness County Cares

In 2012 the St Charles Lwanga High School (Lwanga School), Nairobi, was founded to provide education for 280 AIDS orphans and homeless children and by 2013 it was experiencing great need. School director Br John Kennedy was a student at the Coady International Institute, and at that time he made contact with Inverness County Cares (ICC).

The Lwanga School is the only home most of the students know and their only possibility of obtaining an education. ICC pledged to feed the students for one year. The year passed and it became a stable refuge, which could not exist without the support of ICC. In 2015, ICC entered into a partnership with Chalice Canada, an aid and development organization, based in Bedford, NS. A budget was approved for the year 2015-16 based on the needs of the Lwanga School ($73,000 provided by Chalice and $60,000 by ICC) and the funds are allocated to the school in quarterly increments. In order to access the next quarter’s funds the Lwanga School must provide receipts and proof that the funds have been allocated to the appropriate areas specified in the budget.

Chalice has a staff of 8 in Nairobi, overseeing Chalice initiatives in 13 Kenyan communities and 4 other African countries. As well, each year individuals supporting ICC have visited and/or volunteered at the Lwanga School (expenses paid personally).

Donations given to ICC are duly recorded and a personal thank you note is sent. Each month ICC sends the donations collected, to Chalice with donor information. Chalice in turn, adds the funds to the account designated for the Lwanga school and in February of the following year, Canada Revenue receipts are send to donors by Chalice.

www.lwangachildren.com

www.invernesscountycares.com

On October 20, 2016 members of Inverness County cares gathered at The Sisters of St. Martha’s Mother-house, Bethany in Antigonish. The occasion was a concert organized by Janet Van Zutphen and John Gillies, to show appreciation to the sisters for their generous contribution to the St Charles Lwanga Secondary School and Children’s Center (Lwanga School). The concert featured, renowned fiddler John Donald Cameron, the three MacNeil sisters Orianna, Jessie Helen and Nora as well as Ben, Harvey and Janet Van Zutphen. Betty Jane Cameron, a recent visitor and volunteer at the Lwanga School, spoke to the sisters and gave an overview of her time at the school. It was an evening of mutual enjoyment for the Marthas and ICC members and entertainers. Even one hundred year old, Sr. Mary of Nazareth MacDonald experienced rejuvenation as she sang along with the Cape Breton songs and tapped her toes in tune to the fiddle music. Fr. Duncan MacIsaac beautifully recited a poem, composed by a Lwanga student, in tribute to the Martha Sisters, for their building of the Martha Kitchen at the Lwanga School. The evening was made complete with a tempting and tasty variety of sandwiches and sweets arranged by the Marthas and served with a good cup of hot tea. Everyone including the entertainers is looking forward to another concert next year.

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ICC Receives Sad News from Kenya

Inverness County Cares (ICC) has been supporting St. Charles Lwanga School in Kenya for four years. The school was founded by Brother Kennedy Oronjo, who is a 2012 graduate of the Coady International Institute in Antigonish. The students are mostly orphans, street children or from very poor families, and their only hope of breaking the cycle of poverty is education. Many of the students struggle against great odds in their personal lives.

ICC received some very sad news from Kenya in late September.  Sharon Awuor, a seventeen year old female student, had passed away. She was a very bright student in Form 3 [Grade 11] at the St. Charles Lwanga Secondary School in Ruai, Kenya.  Sharon was an orphaned student at the school who lived her life being HIV Positive.  She was diagnosed with meningitis about a month before her death. She was committed to hospital and lived out the rest of her life there.  Sharon’s mother and father had both passed away at a very young age, leaving her older sister to look after the family. Below is a moving tribute written by Daisey, one of Sharon’s best friends at the school.

Tribute to Sharon “Sharon was a sister and friend to all of us, very hardworking and always appeared among the top students as she was very bright, intelligent and very active.  She was a great debater and member of our journalism club. She started the journalism club which turned out to be the biggest club in our school. Her biggest dream was to be a lawyer and fight for human rights. To make her dreams come true, we should all work hard especially those who want to become lawyers as she did. When we went to visit her at Nazareth Hospital she mentioned Brother Kennedy and said she wanted to be with him. At Nairobi, she said, “When I will be with Brother, I will be okay”.  She loved to stay at school, as it was her home. The days we had, the memories we shared, the moments we enjoyed together, the affection she showed towards us will forever stick in our minds. So will the restless days and sleepless nights we spent together and the sorrows we shared. Up to now we can’t believe that you walked away from our lives. You are lying before us too breathless to argue. We will miss every part of you and treasure all the time we spent together. We are mourning your solemn dignity. May your soul rest in eternal peace. Amen. R.I.P Our dear Sharon.”

This September ICC is working on the 2016-17 fundraising campaign to support the education of the 280 students at St. Charles Lwanga School for the coming academic year. Many of the students deal with similar life situations and circumstances as their friend, Sharon Awuor.