Rotary Club of AUN Marks Humanitarian Day with Feed & Read Girls
On August 19, the Rotary Club of AUN, District 9125, Yola, marked the World Humanitarian Day with the Feed & Read girls. It visited their center with gifts including writing materials.
The Club’s President, Mr. Anthony Agbo, reminded the audience that the day is set aside by the United Nations to recognize and encourage the workers who provide humanitarian services to the needy. Mr. Agbo said that AUN has been in the front line of rendering these services since the time of the insurgency.
The visit to the AUN Feed & Read Center, Mr. Agbo explained, was to identify with AUN and the sponsor of the Feed & Read project. The center includes girls who were displaced during the insurgency.
Mr. Agbo gave a quick rundown on Rotary’s history and stressed that it renders services to humanity.
About the volunteer tutors at the center, Rotarian Agbo said that the Club recognizes the passion and dedication of all the trainers in the program. “We celebrate you and others around the world for your display of service above self. We encourage you to continue to do the best you can in providing a better future for the girls.”
Excitement lit up the girls’ faces when Mr. Agbo announced that the Club came with items to support them. This was followed by a thank-you chorus and spontaneous applause from the audience. The gifts were shared among the girls by the Rotarians present, President Ensign leading the exercise.
The girls demonstrated what they have learned in songs and poems to the delight of the guests. To have transformed the girls within just a few months, President Ensign noted, shows that the tutors’ work was “amazing…We will give you everything we can to make sure you keep learning.”
Executive Director of AUN Schools, Mrs. Nkem Uzowulu, who coordinates the program, thanked the Rotarians for their visit and said that the gesture inspires the girls. Starting in February with 70 girls, the center has grown to have more than 270 girls who are being taught to read and are fed one meal every day. The beneficiaries of the program are disadvantaged. Some are orphans and some, too, are children of IDPs.
Feed & Read is being funded from a small grant by the Irish Government and the University’s own resources.
By Omorogbe Omorogiuwa
