KATIMA MULILO – The Organisation for the Empowerment of Widows, Widowers and Orphans of HIV and AIDS in Namibia (OEWONA) has received a food donation from Model Pick n Pay worth N$3000.
The OEWONA soup kitchen which depends on good Samaritans to stay afloat caters to over 150 orphans. Speaking at the handover ceremony on Thursday last week, the managing director of Model Pick n Pay Namibia, Henry Ferris, said given the support the retail chain receives from the community, it was only befitting to plough back into the community. “We are proud to hand over the donation. It’s a small token of appreciation to the community of Katima Mulilo due to their support over the years. We are equally happy to be associated with charity organisations such as OEWONA,” said Ferris. “We are not doing this for exposure. We plead to other organisations to follow suit in helping vulnerable members of society. We just came from Rundu now, where we also gave a donation. We have done this all over Namibia in places such as Oshakati, Oshikango and Keetmanshoop,” he said.
OEWONA representative and former Member of Parliament, Patricia Siska, commended Pick n Pay for the donation. “We found it fit to look after widows and orphans and therefore decided to start a soup kitchen. However, we don’t have a budget and we depend on good Samaritans. We are busy looking for a permanent place where we can feed over 150 orphans,” said Siska. “Some business people only want to get money from the community, but won’t plough back. We urge other business people to kindly help us in running this feeding scheme,” she said. First Lady Madam Penehupifo Pohamba is the patron of OEWONA.
By George Sanzila