Celebrating Christmas with Mercy Ministries
By Maswabi Precious Matantilo on December 17, 2014 in Capacity Building, News
On Dec 11 Akros staff held a Christmas celebration with nearly 300 orphans and vulnerable children from Mercy Ministries’ Chifundo School. Akros also donated a Canon multifunction printer to assist the school with its daily office operations which in the past was problematic and very expensive as the school had to subcontract nearby printing outlets to access the service.
Akros staff spent the afternoon at the school to play with the children, share gifts, and a special lunch during the Christmas party. The excited pupils entertained the guests with a series of songs, dances and poems. The event was made even more colourful when Santa Claus joined the fun and presented some wrapped gifts to the children that included toothpaste, toothbrushes, a toy puzzle, bathing and washing soap. Akros staff made their musical debut through entertainment for the children with some Christmas carols.
Mercy Ministries was founded in 1996 by a couple, Mr and Mrs Phiri of Lusaka with the aim to take care of children and widows in need. “I am inspired to do more for the needy in society by the fact that I dislike seeing people lack” stated Ms Dorothy Phiri who is also director of the school. She also indicated that she loves to put smiles on sad faces as doing so was putting a smile on God’s face.
Mercy Ministries has branch ministries that offer assistance to people with different needs. They include Chifundo School which currently schools and feeds approximately 350 orphans and vulnerable children from kindergarten to grade 12 after which sponsors are identified to support the children’s tertiary education. The children are identified by community leaders and churches, as well as caregivers who work for the organization. Ms Dorothy Phiri, thanked Akros staff for their kind gesture and for putting a smile on the children’s faces.
The vision of the school is to see the orphans and vulnerable children grow up to become responsible members of society who will take up leadership roles in different sectors of the Zambian economy and contribute to the development process of the country. Akros looks forward to sharing future celebrations with children and the staff of Mercy Ministries.
About Maswabi Precious Matantilo
Precious Matantilo is an Advocacy and Communications Officer for Akros and is a Global Health Corps fellow for 2014/2015. Before joining Akros, Precious worked for the Commonwealth Youth Programme as programmes assistant. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Development Studies from the Zambian Open University.
