Presenting the donation, Brother Raymond Lewis, President, SSVP Sierra Leone mentioned that SSVP is a Catholic faith organization that embrace the world in a network of charity, serving the poor and needy or marginalized, bringing them love, hope, respect, joy, aid and development in a more just Society. He revealed “The news on the mudslide and flood that occurred in Sierra Leone on international Televisions, newspapers and internet torched the heart and minds of our brothers and sister Vincentians in England and Wales to send a donation through us (Society of St Vincent de Paul-Sierra Leone) exclusively for survivors of the Mudslide and Flood disaster that occurred on the 14th August 2017” Brother Lewis further mentioned that SSVP targeted children because most of them lost either both or a parent during the mudslide and flood disasters and some of the children were as young as 7 months, therefore SSVP targeted them as the most vulnerable amongst the survivors.
Adding further, Brother Lewis submitted that SSVP Sierra Leone did not exclusively chose to buy the donated items but had a first-hand felt need assessment with Don Bsco Fambul orphanage home in respect of challenges of the survivors at the home. It was on the background food and non-food items including beans, butter, milk, sugar, eggs, corn flakes, onions, tomatoes, mayonnaise, sachets of water, bathing and laundry soaps, scrubbing and mobbing brush/brushes, disinfectants amongst others were bought and donated to cushion some of the challenges at the home, he maintained.
The Spiritual Adviser of SSVP Sierra Leone, Reverend Farther John Garrick said, as Vincentians, we seek to deepen spirituality and mutual love and support to each other with the primary objective to serve the poor and needy through our words, thoughts and deeds with one society and to Christ as demonstrated by SSVP of England and Wales. Father Garrick further said “The donation may be small but the intention and purpose behind it matters most”
Receiving the items on behalf of the children who survived from the mudslide and flood disasters and Don Bosco Fambul home, Reverend Father Emmanuel C. Ajah, Parish Priest and Deputy Director, Don Bosco Fambul expressed thanks and appreciation for the timely gesture towards the mudslide and flood survivors. “No donation or gift is too small and the and intervention of the SSVP England and Wales to support these vulnerable children through SSVP Sierra Leone is a though in the right direction” Father Ajah further added that a disaster of such nature to hit vulnerable people in a poor country will blur their future if not properly catered for with sustenance, skills and psycho social support etc. “The items will be used for its intended purpose and thanks to Vincentians of England and Wales for their spiritual generosity and Vincentians of Sierra Leone for facilitating the process.
