Cornerstone: Christmas is almost here and the shoes have arrived!

As mentioned when fundraising I was looking for funds to buy shoes for two places, Cece Primary School and Cornerstone Children's Home.

Cornerstone Christmas

I distributed the shoes for Cornerstone Children’s Home immediately because the children are always around. This was the start of their Christmas, which promises to be a good one this year.

Last year’s Christmas there was not enough money for clothes (a vital ingredient in a South Sudanese Christmas), which left the children very subdued. Fortunately a kind donor provided funds for food, so all was not lost.

By contrast, this year, funds from Fulaa (Cornerstone’s supporting charity) were much more ample. Clothes have been bought, chickens destined for Christmas Dinner are strutting around the compound, there was even money left over for prizes for those children who did particularly well in their end of year exams.

The shoes come with very handy red bags. These will be given to the children at the start of the school year as school bags.

Foni and Mini wearing their new shoes.

Close up of the shoes.

William contemplates his newly shod feet.

Cece Primary School

The term had already ended by the time the shoes arrived so we needed to summon everyone back to school. The children received clothes as well which we bought second hand locally. Shoes and clothes were packed into a red bag labelled with each child’s name and given to the children in a short ceremony. The children were ecstatic. The Cece children have never received anything from anyone before. I think you can see this on their faces in some of the photos. It was a lovely occasion.

Those of you who are Catholics will know that this year is a Holy Year of Mercy in the Catholic Church. I think your generosity falls firmly into the category of ‘Corporal Acts of Mercy: clothe the naked’. These children have so little clothing, most in a very ragged state, and with no shoes or very cheap flip-flops which break easily. This is a huge boost to their self-esteem. A very big thank you to all who contributed towards the shoes. They really are much appreciated.