By ALFREDO P HERNANDEZ
A Friend of Tembari Children
MY special Saturday lunch cooking session resumes this Saturday, January 29.
The first lunch-cooking gig for the year is being co-sponsored by Filipino businessman Albert Rocero -- proprietor of MovieWorld, outlets for quality DVD movies and all --- and the family of John Ping Law, an executive at Homeguard Construction Ltd.
Actually, Mrs John Ping Law and children Jen Wen Phoon and Jia Whye Phoon are co-sponsoring a total of three Saturday lunches, starting with one on Saturday.
And the other co-sponsors are the purified water companies Parklane International (Aqua 5) and The Water Company, Pacific Industries and Papua Niugini Freezers (PNF).
The Saturday special lunch cooking is a way for me to provide the kids something different for lunch.
The meal usually is made of beef-chicken-or fish fillet-vegetable dish, special soup, boiled rice and cordial drink.
On weekdays, from Monday to Friday, the Tembari children are serve an early dinner at 4pm of boiled rice and tinned fish prepared with local greens.
At noon, our preschoolers are served snacks of biscuits and cordial drinks.
By the way, 10 cartons of tinned fish are being supplied by RD Tuna each month.
It is one type of tinned fish product that the company exports to European Community in 1.8kg cans without brand.
ONCE SCHOOL gets in full swing, I could expect to see more than 110 children at my special Saturday lunch.
That means, I would have to increase the budget for my Saturday cooking from K400 to at least K500 to cover food for their number.
The cost of foodstuff in Port Moresby has gone up that the usual K400 that I used to raise from two co-sponsors who normally chipped in K200 each is no longer enough to cover cost of food for more than 110 children.
Asking my special lunch sponsors to increase their contributions is really big “inconvenience”.
But anyway, I would try doing it just the same.
I would just cross my fingers that they would still be willing to accommodate my request.
However, if I am unable to raise the actual cooking fund of K500, all I have to do is reduce the amount of servings to each of the kid.
This way, we could stretch the food so it could go around.
But this time, I would no longer call it “special” for obvious reason.
Anyway, for those who wish to co-sponsor a special lunch on Saturday, the cost if K250 each.
Let me know what you think about this.
Email the writer: alfredophernandez@thenational.com.pg
jarahdz500@online.net.pg
freddiephernandez@yahoo.com
THE Tembari Children's Care (TCC) Inc is a day care facility at ATS Oro Settlement, 7-Mile, outside of Port Moresby, PNG. To date, it takes care of more than 200 former street children - orphans, abandoned and the unfortunate - by serving them meals twice a day, and providing them early education. Assistance - food and money - is sent by supporters who find merit in the services we provide to these children. At The Center, they are family. For all of these, we need support that is sustainable.
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