Feeding scheme

As part of our trip we were eager to help Mario and his wife who run the GCU feeding scheme-which is a fundraising scheme in which Mario and his wife make large pots of a different food each week to help many members of the community. We went In confident to help as many people as we could but it's fair to say we didn't realise the extent of the poverty and suffering of people in Africa. As we approached the old church that welcomes the families that are in desperate need help, we saw floods of people queuing up with their ticket numbers and tubs, some even had their children, to collect their food which they will try to feed their families with for a whole week. The group got split up between the two feeding stations and were shown what to do and how much food to put in each tub. We each took turns shovelling food from the pots onto the plates that we used to dish out the food, into the different sizes of tubs. We had to give different sized portions due to age or size of the tubs the families brought with them. As we got near the bottom of the pots the queues got distressed because they feared they wouldn't be able to eat for another week, so one of the helpers took over to dish out the food. One of the most heartbreaking things to see was young families and the elderly not getting anything to eat. Every one of us was in shock over how many families were needing the feeding schemes help and were upset that not everyone was able to eat for another week. Because this came as such a shock, most could not hold back the tears at the fact we take for granted having a variety of different meals and diet when so many people are suffering. It showed a different side to life that most of us have never experienced and felt touched when the families and people were so grateful. This was truly an eye opening experience.


By Beth, Eva and Ellie H