tvc.dsj.org | March 5, 2019
COMMUNITY
9
It’s the Year of the Warthog at the 20 th Annual Run for Zimbabwe Orphans and Fair
My name is Colton Colonna and
I am a senior at Saint Francis High
School in Mountain View. It is my
pleasure and honor to be one of the
student ambassadors for a fantastic
organization: The Sustainable Living
Foundation. It is also my pleasure
to introduce the organization’s up-
coming event: The 20 th Annual Run
for Zimbabwe orphans and Fair.
Every year this great organization
conducts this quality fair in a way
wh ic h encou rages c h i ld ren a nd
young teenagers to participate in
activities to provide aid to orphans
in Zimbabwe. The whole fair allows
children and teens the opportunity
to fulfill our mission and to live out
our motto of: BE FIT! CREATE ART!
HELP OTHERS!
During our fair, we host a vari-
ety of activities including a fun run
for all ages, an art competition for
the creative children in elementary
school through high school and sev-
eral booths to educate participants
of living conditions in Zimbabwe.
Our races have a range of distances
for each grade. We start our exciting
events with our famous 220 yard Pre-
school dash, followed by our half mile
kindergarten run. Lastly, we have our
mile runs for grades 1-8 and a final
run for high schoolers and adults. All
the runs are led by our group of mas-
cots. Finisher ribbons are presented
to each participant and top three
finishers receive a trophy stuffed with
authentic Zimbabwe money! Team
trophies are also presented to the top
schools in each race. Our art compe-
tition is just as exciting! Elementary
school participants and high school
students that want to express their
creative side have a wonderful op-
portunity to do so. Art is judged by
grade and all levels of experience
are invited to take part. Winners for
each grade receive a stuffed warthog,
which is our mascot for this year! Our
competitions are only a small part of
our amazing atmosphere. Around our
fair, music and food from Zimbabwe
are available to enjoy. The band, Sad-
za, will play at this year’s event from
2-3 p.m. Booths are set up around the
Ellie Clark participating in the kindergarten
1/2 mile run at last year’s event.
fair for those inclined to broaden their
knowledge about the unique culture
of Zimbabwe.
The main purpose of this fair is to
provide aid to orphans in Zimbabwe.
The Sustainable Living Foundation
sponsors the orphanage, Makumbi
Children’s Home. The money donated
at this year’s fair will go to young
entrepreneurs who have “graduated”
from the orphanage to help them open
their own businesses or further their
education. Each of these teens will
receive a micro- grant of around three
hundred dollars in order to achieve
their goals. The teens graduating
this year are Ablant Tinashe, Annah
Chizhanje, Chipo Mutero, Tanyaradz-
wa Chikoza, Charity Tinashe, and
Tafadzwa Combo. Donations will also
be utilized to repair the eight cottages
that house the orphans. These repairs
will include new: electrical outlets,
roofing, and plumbing.
Our fair takes place on April 7,
Noon to 4 p.m. at Saint Joseph School,
1120 Miramonte Ave., Mountain View.
Entry fees for each of the races is five
dollars. The art contest is free to enter.
For more information, visit our web-
site www.ZimbabweParaguay.net.
There, you will be able to contribute
to the cause. Any amount is welcome.
Also, if you have questions, be sure
and contact Meet Director Mrs. Ellen
Clark with questions about the event
at zpclarks@comcast. I can also be
reached at [email protected]
for questions as well. Thank you all
for your future support!
CCH153_CarDonateAd2_4.937x6in_PressQuality.pdf
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8/10/15
7:41 PM
What is One Life
By Gregory Kepferle
CEO, Catholic Charities of
Santa Clara County
Recently we lost a much beloved
staff member at Catholic Charities who
had worked here for over thirty years.
Even in the midst of our grief, I think
of her life and the amazing difference
she has made in the lives of thousands
of immigrant families over those years
of service. She bore her own sorrows
and pains and experienced her own
joys in her life. Her passing leaves a
hole in the hearts of all who knew her
and loved her. And yet, she also leaves
a legacy of hope, a legacy of compas-
sion, and a legacy of victory over death
itself. For in her work, she saved lives.
An immigrant herself, she reunited
families and provided safety to those
who fled the violence and poverty of
Central America and other parts of the
world. Through smart, careful diligent
legal work she helped families seeking
to get right with the law to come out of
the shadows and build new productive
lives in our land of opportunity. She
lived the Gospel call to welcome the
stranger, inviting families into her own
home while they got on their feet and
consoling them in their suffering. Ana
Consuelo’s very name means “the one
who comforts.”
We have one life to live. How shall
we live it?
Every day at Catholic Charities I
witness our volunteers and staff, like
Ana Consuelo, living their lives to the
fullest. They are full of kindness -- full
of compassion – and full of dedication
in brilliant service to those who are suf-
fering. I am blessed to witness some of
their victories: a DACA youth who can
study and work; a hard-working im-
migrant family who are now citizens; a
rescued refugee orphan welcomed into
a foster family; hungry, lonely seniors
who are nourished in body and soul;
children who can finally read; families
who learn the skills to live with mental
illness or physical disabilities; young
men and women freed from gangs and
incarceration who now have hopeful
futures; families who now have safe
affordable housing; and entire neigh-
borhoods transformed.
God has given us the gift of life. Let
us give our lives back to God in the brief
time that we have. Like Ana Consuelo,
let us love deeply, serve humbly and
give generously of ourselves to those
who most need our care and comfort.
Fo r m o r e i n f o r m at i o n v i s it ,
www.CatholicCharitiesSCC.org.
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