Although 13 800 kilometres separate Saint Vincent’s Catholic Primary School in Ealing, London, and The Domino Foundation in Durban North, the two have had a relationship for several years which has proved beneficial to those being supported by the non-profit organisation.
The school’s head teacher, Monica McCarthy, is a past learner of Our Lady of Fatima Dominican Convent School and has carried a banner for the foundation’s work through her ongoing connections with the school. McCarthy said the learners at St Vincent’s are committed to contributing to the common good and are always enthusiastic about supporting the Domino Foundation.
She said they have recently been involved in a school initiative driven by their enthusiasm to support ‘Action against Homelessness’. “Or school’s motto is ‘We grow, learn and achieve by following Christ’ and our children are taught that, just as each of them is made in God’s image, so too are their peers in far-away KZN. The pupils in the schools of Amaoti are like them in so many ways, but now many of them have no roof over their heads and nothing to eat. That really touched the St Vincent’s learners,” said McCarthy.
With the exchange rate of the Pound Sterling to Rands, the school’s donation of £650 will go a long way to easing the plight of some of the many people still taking shelter in community halls. Cathy Whittle, who heads the Disaster Relief Unit’s team, was enthusiastic about the English children’s generosity.
She said: “With what we were sent by St Vincent’s, we will be able to supply 246 people in those halls with a healthy cooked meal each day for three days, or give 37 families of four each a relief hamper with food and hygiene items sufficient for two weeks. St Vincent’s pupils certainly are great examples of what their mission statement says about their being signs of God’s presence so others feel valued with a sense of worth, dignity, security and belonging”.
