At
Casa Rex & Sol Resorts we believe that strength lies in our community pulling
together – we have seen it countless times with some remarkable results.
In
the small coastal town of Vilanculos, there are many initiatives & efforts
towards building a better & stronger community that go unnoticed. We would
just like to point out a few that directly involve our staff & their
families, & show them that we, too are committed to helping out wherever we
can. As an example we have picked 2 incidences – the first where one of our
staff has outdone himself in running a local English class from a make-shift
classroom in his garden - & the second a touching story of the help given
to 2 twin girls born to another one of our staff.
At the beginning of 2013 our dedicated Head Housekeeper - Sr Sergio Manga founded the Escola de Inglês
da Comunidade de Alto Macassa – the Alto Macassa Community English School. He realized that there are many adults in his
community who do not speak English and are, as a consequence, disadvantaged
when applying for jobs in the predominant local tourism industry. He decided to
teach them!
The move was welcomed by the Secretario de Bairro - the area
Administrator, who himself asked to be a pupil and the fledging school was
opened.
Sergio built benches from local wood under the trees in is garden
paying for the transportation of wood himself.
Casa Rex and other members of the ex-pat community assisted with the
purchase of books, pens, blackboards and chalk.
Teaching when he finishes work, Sergio already has two classes.
One at 4.00 pm for children and another
which starts at 6.00 pm for adults. The benches are filled to overflowing and
the appreciative students are progressing well.
The good rains this year have however highlighted the need to
build a more sheltered structure. Casa Rex has donated roofing and funds are
currently being raised to purchase other building material and more exercise
books and dictionaries.
Empowering the enthusiastic students is a worthy project and
Sergio, our special Housekeeper, is deserving of support in his non-profit
venture!
The second
example involves one of our gardeners, Filemone Chissumba, working at Deacra (Sol
Resorts’ self-catering villas). A month ago, Filemone’s wife died tragically
whilst giving birth to twin girls, leaving him with the monumental task of
looking after these 2 babies. Our manager at Casa Rex (who we commend for
always being ready to assist in like-situations), most effectively put the word
out, encouraging the community to help out. It was very touching to see the
community response, as Filemone has been inundated with donations of clothes
& other essentials. As the picture indicates the girls are doing well &
we will continue to follow their story!
To
conclude, in the words of Mother Theresa – “Never
worry about numbers. Help one person at a time and always start with the person
nearest you.”
