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| The
Belgaum Rotary Club with the 1,000th bedkit |
Our Overseas Volunteer Partners’ (OVP)
Rotary Club hosted today’s distribution of a 1,000 bedkits to the needy
children of the area surrounding Belgaum. After making our way through the
large crowd of parents and other relations of the children that packed two of
the streets surrounding the distribution site, we showed the children the
numerous contents of the bedkit to their cheers, applause and wide-eyed
amazement. This taste of what they were to receive generated a sense of
excitement in each of them and they stared and pointed at the bedkit items when
they got to the picture taking location. The bedkit contents were top quality
and the variety made this year’s kit one of the best, if not the best, kits
that we have seen in all of our travels with SCAW. The organisation of the distribution by Dr.
Karuska, this year’s distribution chairman, was first rate. It went
particularly well due to the help of the teenage children of the Rotarians,
especially Jesh and Deep.
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| The
children of the Belgaum Rotary Club members - they were a big help during the
1000 bedkit distribution |
During the distribution the Rotary Assistant
District Governor, Mr. Raju Naik, arrived to find out more about SCAW and see
the distribution first hand after hearing so much about it from the Belgaum
SCAW Trust Chairman, Mr. Dilip Chitnis. The local press showed up to interview
him and the SCAW Team Leader. Later that day, the hotel staff came running up
to us to tell us that we had being on the news handing out ‘gifts from Canada’.
We were instant celebrities for the day.
In the evening, the members of SCAW team
were guests of honour at the weekly Belgaum Rotary Club meeting. Trust Chairman
Dilip Chitnis praised the 26-years friendship between SCAW and their club and
provided the members with an historical overview of the 100% charity. Bill
Sergeant then spoke to the club to thank the Trust Committee and the members of
their Rotary Club for the steadfast support that they have provided. This was
followed by a delicious buffet dinner where the team had the opportunity to
talk with the Rotarians, their spouses and members of their family. It was a great
opportunity to renew friendships or make new ones with our very hospitable
hosts.
