The Flock Sale #3 is over. It was both exciting and rewarding. The number of flocks donated will be published in next month’s Lakeviewer. As of this writing there are two weeks remaining before the new campaign “WATER 4 ALL” will kick off. This part of the Heifer Program will feature: Fish, Water Buffalo, Irrigation Pumps, Clean Water and Water for Life.
FISH – The act of farming fish is known as Aquaculture. Next to Agriculture, fishing is the world’s most important food source. Fish provide nutritious food for families, and they can be sold for additional income.
WATER BUFFALO – Are sturdy draft animals that help farmers plow fields and carry heavy loads to market. They also produce milk and meat.
IRRIGATION PUMPS – Help farmers bring water up from wells, rivers, ponds and lakes.
CLEAN WATER – Millions of people around the world still lack access to clean drinking water. Many homes have no running water or even have a well near them. They spend the whole day fetching water from the nearest source. Watering the gardens and crops take a lot of water. When used for human consumption it must be boiled to make clean water. The fetching is usually done by the children, leaving no time for school.
WATER FOR LIFE – is just that-clean water for a lifetime, and yes, even for life itself.
This will be an exciting venture for us, let’s bring it to life.
September 4th Update
Today’s bible verse is from Isaiah 58:10 – ”If you open your heart to the hungry, and provide abundantly for those who are afflicted, your light will shine in the darkness, and your gloom will be like the noon”.
I want to start with a letter (in part) from Christy Moore, Senior VP of Marketing, Heifer International.
Dear Friend, my heart hurts – and I know yours does too – to think about any child going to bed hungry night after night. This was once the plight of Aysha and her little brother, Imran, who live in Bangladesh. Their father worked hard on other people’s farms. But his wages were low. He never made enough to put a sturdy roof over his family’s head…let alone food on the table. Meals were bits of rice and potatoes or a mixture of crushed corn and water. Aysha and Imran went to bed hungry almost every night…only to wake up the next morning wondering when they’d eat again.
Far too many children around the world feel the constant gnawing pain of hunger. And as I write to you, hundreds of millions more families are falling into poverty. The reasons are many: the pandemic’s ongoing impact in poor countries, international conflict…extreme weather, food supply shortages and the soaring cost of food, itself. This has created a crisis in global hunger, a humanitarian emergency like we’ve rarely seen before. But your generosity is part of the solution.
At Heifer International, we help families lift themselves out of hunger and poverty…permanently. We provide animals like bees, chickens, goats and cows to hardworking farmers, along with training in their care. These animals supply families with nutritious honey, eggs, mild and cheese to eat and stay healthy. And they can sell the extra for their income. With a Hand Up – not a Handout – a family can become self-reliant, earn a steady income and rebuild their lives. Since our founding more than 79 years ago, Heifer has helped more than 42 million families break the vicious cycle of poverty and despair, nearly 2 million in the past year alone. With the growing number of children at dire risk right now, we must come together and do even more to help them make it through this global crisis.”
She goes on later to say that all gifts received by September 25th will be matched.
Let’s see what we did last month. First – the “Passing the Basket” produced $95.00. Thank you. The beginning bank balance on August 1 was $4.00 – we deposited $344.00 in August – donated $340.00 leaving a balance of $8.00 on September 1st.
Last month’s donations were 6 Flocks of Chicks, 4 of Ducks, 2 of Geese and 2 Hope Baskets. The Hope Basket consists of a Flock of Chicks and 3 Rabbits. Donations that were matched were 15 Flocks of Chicks, 7 of Ducks, 4 of Geese and 4 Hope Baskets.
There are still some donations that I have not received the receipts for. I might add that every donation since May 1 – has been doubled. I set a goal of 350 flocks for this program. Actual to date, with donations and matches stands at 210. Somewhat short, but don’t try to tell that to any of the poor and hungry that we served. Again, I want to return to Christy’s letter:
This is just what Heifer did for Aysha and Imran and family. We gave the family a Flock of 15 Chicks and taught them how to care for their new animals. The family now raises chickens that produce protein packed eggs for Aysha and Imran to eat every day. And there’s more than enough extra to sell. Thanks to the profits from the family’s egg business – and seeds and training from Heifer – their parents developed a flourishing fruit and vegetable garden. They can now afford fish and meat, and Aysha and Imran go to bed with full bellies. Now instead of worrying where their next meal will come from, they go to sleep dreaming of their bright futures. That is the power of your generosity. And, thanks to this special match, the impact of your gift will go twice as far to help more children…so they never have to worry about being hungry again.
The families you help live in extremely poor communities. And it’s the children who suffer the most from hunger and lack of nutrition, making them more likely to get sick and miss school. Despite their parents’ hard work, these children are caught in a vicious cycle of hunger and poverty…and they’re doomed to repeat it. And this is all the more tragic because we have the ability to do something about it.
So what do Aysha and Imran’s parents need now for their gardens? WATER — starting yesterday.
“Water 4 All” will be our focus for the next 4 months. It will feature all things pertaining to water. Such as irrigation pumps – water buffalo – fish – clean water and clean water for life.
More will be said of each in the coming months. Christy closes her letter by saying “with the health and very survival of millions of hungry children at stake, please donate as soon as you can. Thank you for caring deeply about others and opening your heart today”. I couldn’t have said it better. AMEN!
