Mtsiliza Feeding Center Feeds 525 Daily
POSTED ON Aug 26, 2010 / UPDATED ON Jan 27, 2011
Children line up for food at the Mtsiliza Feeding Center
Children line up by the dozens.
Venture Team Host Kim Witte of Silverdale, Washington
Children are thankful for what they receive, no matter what size portion.
Sponsorship can change a child's life! Sponsor a child today!
Recently, my brother Jeff and I helped at the feeding center in Mstiliza, Malawi. There are over 525 children who come here daily to get breakfast and an afternoon lunch. I enjoy taking Venture teams to participate in this, because it is so moving and amazing to see how so many children are fed out of the huge pots! Still, I don't like the part when children are still coming for food and the food is being served in small quantities, or some children are fed the bottom of the pot. Jeff was serving the nsima (the staple food for Malawi) and I found myself sitting in front of a big pot of soup and hard-boiled eggs. I was instructed by the women in the kitchen to give each child one hard boiled egg and a spoonful of soup (similar to tomato soup). Small groups of children at a time entered the kitchen. Some children had plastic bowls while others had pencil boxes that they used as dishes. I was sitting on a low chair and out of respect some children bent down lower then I was. I made a point to look each child in the eye and smile.
As I served the children, I once again stopped and thought of how blessed I am. I had pancakes and oranges for breakfast that morning and a tuna sandwich for lunch. Later that night I had hamburgers and rice. For the children who I served that afternoon, that nsima and egg may have been the last time they ate until the next day. THANK YOU JESUS FOR GIVING US FOOD!
As the children kept coming for food, I was instructed to cut the eggs in half and give each child half. My first thought was, “How is that fair that the kids who came first got a whole egg and now I am to only give half? Children are going to start complaining and wanting what their friends received!”
In America, I know that the complaining would have started. In Malawi...no complaints; the only word I heard was ZIKOMO (Thank you!). Thank you for the lump of nsima and the half of the boiled egg.
Greatfulness. Thankfulness. Happiness. A few words to describe the children today. WOW!
I wanted to share this experience, but also challenge those reading this to help! Even though over 525 children come and eat daily at our feeding center, not all of them are sponsored. For $32 a month you can sponsor a child in Mtsiliza and help with school fees, clothing, soap, medical needs, and the feeding center. Please visit our Sponsorship page and sponsor a child today. If you choose to sponsor a child, you can even come next summer to meet them! How exciting!