Speaking during a handover ceremony of items to Mary Black, a mother to 9-year-old Eliza, the group administrator Jacqueline Mlaviwa said they saw it fit to come to the rescue of their fellow woman who was taking care of a sick child.

Eliza Sabola developed Macrocephaly, a condition in which the head is abnormally large when she was 6 months.

“As Zokonda Amayi group, we felt pity when we saw the woman with her baby on MBC Reach Out and Touch program and we organised ourselves to come and rescue her by giving her a decent place to sleep together with the sick child. It’s very disheartening to see that she and the baby sleep on a bare floor without any mattress,” said Mlaviwa.

Receiving the donation, an evident emotional Mary Black thanked the women for the kind gesture and said this will alleviate the suffering that she has endured for the past 9 years.

“These women have brought me 2 mattresses and 2 blankets. I only sleep on a mattress when we go to the hospital. My child and I endure cold and rough nights but now this will be a different story. I am very grateful,” said Mary Black.

Black visits Thyolo and Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital every week to have Eliza checked and she either has to cycle with the girl on her back or borrow money from well-wishers.

“I cannot run a business because I have to be with the child every hour of the day. It becomes tough when I can’t find money to visit the hospital or feed my two children. These women have lifted a heavy burden off my shoulders,” explained Black.

The women also gave Black some cooking oil, soya pieces, squash, washing and bathing soap, chitenje wrappers and K30,000 cash, among others

The Zokonda Amayi group then went to Traditional Authority Chimaliro in Thyolo district where they also donated various items including mattresses, blankets and food items to Gogo Ida Mission who keeps 5 orphaned children.