Dear Fellow Rotarian’s   JUNE 2012

We have been honored by The Rotarian Magazine and are naturally very proud they have featured us in the magazine under “World Round up” as the attached article shows.

Our project is also on the Rotary Web Site as a Project link our link number is WO5885 and we were featured earlier this year.

This project is on going as the need is so very great. While Mwandi is a very loving and welcoming Village located in Western Province Zambia, there is great poverty here, the need for housing for the AIDS orphans being taken care of by their elderly relatives is overwhelming and dire. We have hundreds of families waiting for housing and our only resources are from volunteers who come to help build and private donors. The need is so much greater then the funds available to us to build.

Two Rotary clubs from Canada, Ottawa and Ontario have funded huts. We have completed the Ottawa clubs hut and will be working on the Ontario clubs hut in July. Both clubs have indicated they will be happy to have me give their emails out to any Rotary club interested in helping.

Although I am classed as a Missionary and technically work for the United Church of Zambia we receive no funds from them or any other foreign based Church. We are what is called “Self funding Missionaries”. And the “Funding” part is the hard part, so if there is any clubs out there interested in helping please contact me at paula.winland@yahoo.com.

We also have a very unique volunteer program that includes a 4 night 5 day safari to neighboring Botswana as well as three nights in Zambia’s tourist capital, Livingstone. If any one has ever wanted to visit Africa, see the abundant game in Botswana, go on a safari, see one of the seven wonders of the world “Victoria Falls” as well as have an experience of a lifetime with us here in Mwandi please do contact me and I will send along all the information on the volunteering program. I am also on face book under Paula Van Zyl in Livingstone and will add anyone who requests a friend hook up; there are many photos of Mwandi the safari and Livingstone (ok you don’t have to look at my family photos).

We have 2 web sites one is www.projectsupportcenter.org/PAULACARES.html

the other is www.mwandi.co.uk.   

I am Secretary of the Livingstone Zambia Rotary club, last year as well as the upcoming Rotary year and serve on the Board and am in very good standing. I am originally from Los Angeles Calif. but have lived in Zambia since 2003.

If any club is interested I can send along our Project proposal as well as any additional information needed. Our Province was hit very hard with the HIV/AIDS epidemic and about one in three is affected leaving behind hundreds of children with no homes, so help is greatly needed.

Thank you for taking the time to read this short letter and the attached article.

God Bless

YIRS Paula Van Zyl    

Paula And Dan Van Zyl
United Church of Zambia Mission Partners
P.O. Box 61259
Livingstone Zambia

My name is Lynda Biglin. I am from Australia and have currently been living in Mwandi for the last 5 months. I am a return volunteer, having originally visited Mwandi in October last year for the 26 day tour which I booked through i-to-i. I fell in love with Mwandi at this time, the villagers being such beautiful people with such simple lifestyles, the children who are made happy just by giving them a wave, Paula and Dan and their amazing project and their staff who do anything required of them to make the project a success. At the end of my organised tour I could not bring myself to leave, so rearranged the rest of my time in Africa to spend another two weeks continuing to contribute to the project.

Back at home and work, I couldn’t get Mwandi and the project out of my head, so I resigned from my job, collected some donations towards building some houses from family and friends, and came back. My intent was to do a 6 month stint this time before heading home again. Once again, as my 6 months nears its end, the pull is too great to deny, and I have extended my time here until at least March 2010.

Although I haven’t been exposed to many African volunteer projects, the reasons around why I find this one so special and in need are around the size of the project, the day to day struggle to get funds to continue to build houses, the amount of need in this one particular village and the targeted assistance to orphan children and the elderly specifically.

A project that has been created by a couple who have simply seen a need here, with no large organisations for support, who are pouring their hearts and souls into helping other people. I do feel that it is a drop in the ocean compared to all the people in the world who need help, but there is an element of self-satisfaction that goes with it for me to think that at least we are helping a few of these.

I understand that you might be interested in supporting this project both financially and in assisting to find volunteers. I think the need for financial support is obvious, and would of course be greatly appreciated. From a volunteer perspective, not only does this contribute financially, but it also provides the person-power to get the houses built more quickly. It is also an amazingly rewarding experience, having first hand taken away so much more than I feel I have contributed. I have learnt so much from these people, what in life is really important, how you can be happy with very little. I think any volunteer who works on this project will certainly go away a better person after this life changing experience, having learnt a lot about themselves.

I hope my story has helped to give you more of an insight into this project. If you would like any further information from me please don’t hesitate to contact me by return email and I will respond as soon as I am able.

Thanks and regards,

Lynda Biglin.
 

HOW TO SUPPORT PAUL'S  KIDS .. CLICK HERE