Imelda Munika
Millions of people feel frustrated, alone, forgotten, and stuck in hopeless situations, and donating to those in need can help them to eventually rise and leave hunger, fear, and isolation behind.
This is according to the Marembo Charity Foundation, an organisation whose long-term goal is to help those in need to put food on the table and move out of a generational cycle of poverty.
Since 2020, the charity foundation realised that vulnerable people still face similar challenges during the Christmas holiday.
The foundation started the initiative of cooking for the vulnerable and homeless during Christmas, to enable them to celebrate the birth of Christ and get some hope.
“We believe everyone deserves a decent meal and clothing on this day, and as a charity we have taken the initiative to cater for them to show them that they still matter and we care about them,” Florian Marembo founder of the charity foundation explained.
Marembo said the vulnerable members of the community do not have enough clothing, food, education, and healthcare.
“Being vulnerable means being deprived economically, politically, and socially. They hardly get opportunities. They have inadequate nutrition, a higher risk of diseases, and a lack of access to healthcare and essentials for living, resulting in low achievement. So the foundation has chosen this day to ensure the vulnerable community gets a proper meal and clothing and also gets to celebrate Christmas in one place and together as a family,” he said.
Marembo said last year they fed nearly 82 adults and 21 children.
“We visited the Khomasdal homeless shelter and also donated food to the men who stand by the robots at Dorado Park, Hochland Park, and Windhoek West,” he said.
Marembo said as one of the organisation’s new year’s resolutions, the Foundation intends to foster more collaborations with NGOs like Hadula Charity Foundation, Namibia Women Empowering Associations, and Ms & Mr Inspiration. “We have crossed into 2024 with confidence to cater and see to it that vulnerable members of the community are served in numerous ways that are sustainable. The Foundation wishes to create self-help projects in towns like Rundu and Nkurenkuru to enable residents to help themselves instead of relying on donors. The Foundation also wants to expand its projects and activities to other needy people in other regions and towns,” he said.
Marembo added that feeding the needy on Christmas day would not have been possible without the contributions from various donors.
“We as a foundation, thank all hands that extended beyond means to sacrifice and make the day for our people. We would like to take this opportunity to appreciate and thank you all for everything. Our doors are open for collaboration and networking as a foundation, and we are looking into building lasting relationships with different organizations and donors who see our work as important and purposeful,” he said.