Cecily’s Fund has been chosen for a BBC Radio 4 Charity Appeal broadcasting to the nation on February 5 at 07:54am and 21:25pm and February 9 at 15:27, 2023.
Listen to the appeal here here
Cheryl Hooper, Director at Cecily’s Fund says; ‘This is an incredible opportunity to highlight the need to help vulnerable children in Zambia, where two thirds of the country live below the poverty line and school is not an option for many. This is extra-special as we celebrate our 25th Anniversary in 2023’.
The Appeal explains the reality for children in Zambia where 70% are unable to complete school, leaving generations with no means of income or a secure future. The charity uses education as a way to reduce poverty, through health and social care programmes that help children, and strengthen the communities they live in; this helps children to persevere, and complete their education for a better future. Cecily’s fund is asking listeners to help change a child’s life by donating through the BBC Radio 4 Appeal.
The Appeal is read by Lwiza Mulenga, who grew up in Zambia and works for the charity while studying for a health care degree. Lwiza tells Noria’s story, one of the first children supported by the charity. Noria lived in a compound in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, both her parents were HIV positive. She lost her father to AIDs when she was seven, and her mother who was also ill struggled to make a living. Noria left school to help to look after her younger brothers, until the charity and its Zambian partner helped her mother with medical support for HIV, and enrolled Noria and her brothers in a community school supported by Cecily’s Fund.
Now Noria is a teacher inspiring the next generation. She say’s; ‘Without Cecily’s Fund I’d be no-one. They are the backbone to my life.’
The first children supported by Cecily’s Fund, like Noria, are now adults. Some are teachers, doctors, and entrepreneurs, passing on the lessons they have learned, and many now give back to their communities by volunteering for the charity.
To support the Appeal you can donate here during the week of the Appeal. You can also donate by phone by calling 0800 404 8144. Or you can write a cheque to Cecily’s Fund and send it to Freepost BBC Radio 4 Appeal. Please mark the back of your envelope Cecily’s Fund.
Thank you!