In May 2011, Frantisek and Jirka walked in a dowtown of Chester, the municipality nearby the border with Wales and admired remnants of roman fortification. They talked with their good friend Peter, a head of ACET International, about history, football, horse racing and also about Africa. I will show you something, when we gets home,“ said Peter. „You might be perhaps very much interested in it.“

British weather has not surprised. It started raining again, so we put our hoods on and walked back. After we walked up to Peter’s attic office, Peter turned his computer on said: „Welcome in the hub of the Universe!“ We laughed together and then he started to narrate a story about Zimbabwe and some Willard, who has a team in the south of this country and takes care for hundreds of AIDS orphans. Both Frantisek and Jirka were excited. After they returned home to the Czech Republic, they contacted Willard to tell them more about his development project a bit more.

In one of his letteres there was an urgent query: „If it is possible, we need to raise some money to buy corn flour, oil, soap and matches to be able to feed rural communities.“ One of those communities is located in Lushumbe. There are 159 kids, whose parents died of AIDS. Willard’s team support kids through a modest but efficient feeding programme: they want to make a corn porridge of each child before classes begin. However, they have no money to start this programme.

Corn porridge is the only meal that local kids have during a day. If they do not eat at all, the are distracted and usually do not pay attention in the class. Those kids, who are HIV positive, can receive antiretroviral pills only if they have at least one nourishing food per day, otherwise medicaments can be toxic.

What a tough reality of local kids! Czech ACET was seriously challenged by the query from Zimbabwe and started to look for the ways to help feeding stomachs of local orphans. We were sure there would be willing people around who would be happy to contribute. Due to individual donors and due to those, who contributed during beneficial concert of gospel choir in the city of Plzen (October 2011), we collected about €5000 for Zimbabwe. Part of this money, that were not exactly allocated for a concrete children, was transferred to Lushumbe. €2000 can feed children of Lushumbe every day in first three months of 2012!

Frantisek and our friend Roman headed to Lushumbe immidiately after their arrival to Bulawayo. Nearby the school, there is a store that is just about to be opened. There are sacks with corn flour, oil. Matches and pieces of soap. An ax and wood ready for a fire lies nearby. „Come over, porridge is almost ready.“ Local staff invited Frantisek and Roman in.

They see a lady in colorful skirt with a big wooden spoon. She is stirring porridge in a jar of almost 60 gallons.  Kids are slowly approaching, expecting a nourished breakfast as a good start for their school day. „Do not worry, everyone will get his portion,“ encourages kids standing in a long queue a cook. Kids are excited and stare at some white strangers are taking photographs and make video. Queus gets slower because of that. Each child grabs his plate, sits nearby to the grass, and eats. Some of them use spoons, some of them not. Porridge pours down on their faces. But it is so taseful! It is warm and full of energy. It gets them ready for the whole day. They invited a white uncle to sit down among them and taste one portion too. He can feel some special kind of harmony. He is now „in their boots“. He just tried how special this porridge ritual is for each child, who at least for a while, enjoying the food, forgets about a tough reality of the day.

White stranger swallows last bite, dries tears in his eyes, looks all kids around and tries to make a friendly smile.

Not only because he has just shared an ordinary breakfast with bunch of little nippers, but also becasue of what local staff told them: „Thank you for coming. Lots of people are coming to admire sightseeing to our country. Seldome comes over to see us. You came and we are grateful for that.“

 Warm greetings from Frantisek, Roman (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe) and Jirka (Czech Republic)