Inverness County Cares would like to thank community members for their interest in the recent working trip of six of our members. They visited St Mary’s Special School in Kawambwa and St Odilia School in Mporokoso, Zambia. Inverness County Cares still available to present our story to interested groups in Nova Scotia.Community interest has already generated twenty more Chalice sponsorships of children at these sites. These sponsorships particularly assist not only the blind, visually impaired and students with albinism who attend these schools but also their families.
The science of albinism has not reached many of the people living in remote villages. They live with the belief that people with albinism are magical or even possessed. Black magic followers believe that a potion made with body parts of an albino person will bring good fortune and success in business, politics and personal lives. They pay substantial sums of money to purchase these potions. This leads to the kidnapping, death or maiming of persons with albinism, in order to create these potions. The poverty in these areas leads desperate people to participate in the trade of albino body parts.
In keeping with this lack of accurate information on the genetics of albinism, when a seemingly white child is born to a black family the father becomes suspicious as to the parentage of the child and this leads him to abandon his family. Because of the shame associated with albinism, the child is often hidden away because of the dishonour associated with their skin colour. This leads to a high percentage of single mothers raising albino children.
The families are often subsistence farmers earning a yearly income of $400 Canadian or less. Their survival depends on the success of the crops they grow. The red sandy soil, in the North of Zambia, with very few stones, is favourable for small scale farming. These small farmers can’t afford machinery, so they cultivate their crops and do all digging with just a large, long handled hoe, no shovels, no rakes, just the hoe. We saw old and young, male and female working in the fields with this tool. The magnitude of acres they cultivate with just this tool is remarkable. From their labour comes a variety of tasty and nutritious food to feed their families, such as maize, cassava, peanuts, potatoes and squash.
Recently the threat of drought in Zambia and surrounding countries has led to a very stressful situation. A Chalice sponsorship of one child in the family creates a safety net for the whole family. When a family is sponsored, the parents still work very hard to provide for their family, and the additional funds give them an added measure of food security. Sponsor families form a community of families who meet on a regular basis, learn how to budget and collectively support each other. These are called Family Circles and may contain fifteen to twenty-five parents helping parents. They are stronger as a team.
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: [email protected] or send a cheque to Inverness County Cares, 5414 Route 19, Judique, NS, Canada, B0E1P0. Taxation receipts provided for USA and Canada.
