It is with great pleasure and relief that we are able to pass on to you encouraging developments about how the money you raised from singing for the 2005 KIDS FOR KIDS CD (an initiative of Lions Club of Brussels Heraldic) has been spent! Moreover, many of you helped us sell the CDs so that some 10,000 euro was raised

Today, your patience (and ours!) has paid off but a quick reminder is surely in order. After the Himalayan Earth Quake Disaster in 2005 (Pics 1 & 2 in attachment) our Lions Club, which raises money for both Belgian and international charitable causes, was anxious to help the suffering population get back on their feet.

Talking to Anja Duchateau of CAF - Children Are the Future ( www.caf-europe.org/ ), we heard that her colleague Meera Ghani- is in fact a Pakistani with family in the region. At that time, however, the press was awash with negative articles about how well-meaning funds were being wasted on tents that collapsed under the snow, heaters with no fuel, foodstuffs, clothes and bedding that were ill-chosen, and so on.

Meanwhile CAF raised another 4,000€ through their own activities so we now had 14,000 euro to donate. But where? And to whom? And to what purpose?

Meera discovered that the most constructive work was being supervised by The Sungi Development Foundation in Pakistan ( http://www.sungi.org/ ). See also link to report at http://www.sungi.sdnpk.org/uploads/EarthquakeDisaster2005.pdf . Talks between Lions, CAF and Sungi resulted in agreement to construct and man a “Community Centre” where young mothers and children could seek every conceivable support to get the surviving members of their families back together and finally get their children back to school.

Easier said then done! It was difficult to select a suitable site and then impossible to get building materials up to it. There were no longer any roads so much had to be carried up mountain slopes by man or beast! The difficulties piled up. As Pic 3 shows, ground boulders for the foundation works were excavated by hand labour as heavy vehicles could not reach the area. Stones were being cut by hand! Then heavy rainfall slowed down the construction work.

So dear singing friends, we are happy to show you Pics 4 and 5 – tangible proof that your efforts were not in vain. And, when the mothers and children actually benefiting from the Centre, we will send you more updates.

And what for 2007? Our “recording engineers” Terry and Alex Davidson received kind authorisation from Ian and Celia Perry – the organizers of CAROLS FOR CHRISTMAS, to record selections from their 2006 concert in Bozar and make up a new CD for this year. Probably children from your school sung in the choirs! A Lions Heraldic team headed by Dominic Kelleher is currently selecting needy charities to be rewarded.

Suggestions, thoughts, ideas on the subject? Mail them to Mel ANDREWS [mailto:andy@tvcablenet.be] (also a member of our Welfare Committee) and we will discuss them.

 Meanwhile, thanks a million for your hard-working and enthusiastic participation in the “Kids for Kids” venture, have a great summer holiday and please try to share this information or the pictures with the parents and children.