Page 13 - link magazine

13

A 2 Z Home Improvements
other side of the globe
All your needs in one number
to Ocotal in Central America Kitchen/Bathroom fitting, Tiling. Plumbing, Electrics.
Painting. Decorating, Carpentry and much more
Another on-going project it is not safe to drink. These units
funded by international aid is the are very basic. A plastic container 111 Pinehurst Road Tel: (01793) 339671
building of storm gullies and with an earthenware filter and lid. Swindon Mobile: (07778) 2(17977
drains at the sides of the roads. The filtered water is 100% pure
The majority of roads in Ocotal are and safe to drink. The cost is only
no more than dirt tracks, which $10, but many families are still too NO NEED TO LIVE WITH HARD WATER
are awash with water during the poor to afford one. For a few cents CONTACT:
rainy season. Some are extremely they can buy a small plastic bag of SWINDAN SOF ATER
steep and homes can literally be water or they send the children
,A fr
washed away. The drains will take out to beg for water. Kinetico Block Salt Water Softeners guarantee soft water
away the water making their We visited various pre-school 24 hours a day. Only 19" high, non-electric. meter controlled\, //
homes safer. groups and the school. We fasci- Rent, lease. purchase. DIY sales & service. Salt delivered.
r'O
Edward was also very proud of nated the children. Every time they
the project to install septic tanks to saw a camera they wanted their
the poorer areas of Ocotal. Prior to photo taken. Schooling is free in
this these people had no proper Ocotal, but as uniform is required
means of sewage removal. and parents have to pay for all
their books and pens, many fami-
lies cannot afford to send their
children. Consequently there are
many street children.
A couple of years ago some of
the young boys on the streets
started boot cleaning opposite
the Town Hall. Now a shelter
has been built for them and they
have formed their own co-op-
erative and have a flourishing
'El Hogar De los Ancianos' is a business. At the bus station there
bright cheery place and the ban- is a day centre, run by volunteers,
ners were up to greet us. It is home where the street children are en-
to 21 elderly residents and is the couraged to go and learn to make
only one in Ocotal; without it they things they can sell for small
would be on the streets. It is con- amounts of money. °
stantly under the threat ^ -. _ I
of closure for lack of
funding. There was only
one full time carer and
two part time volunteers r1 n
who did everything -
cooking, washing and
cleaning. A nurse visits
regularly but medication
was limited.
It was noticeable that
the residents had very
few possessions. One
elderly bare-footed gen- Ky
tleman approached the
y
Ma oress and said that
all he wanted was a pair
of shoes. Jenny was so
moved by this that she Superglide.
bought a pair the next day and It is so noticeable in Ocotal that For Kitchens — Bedrooms — Sliding door wardrobes
took them to him. He was over- people are helping themselves. Top quality at affordable prices.
whelmed and could not thank her There is a lot of international aid, I or free survey/estimate call 01793 861584 )
enough. but they do not take it for granted. Coleshill, Nr. Highworth. wilts.
The home relies heavily on char- They are proud of what they have
ity for its day-to-day running costs. and extremely grateful for what is
They do get a payment from cen- being done. These people have
tral government of $600 per quar- been through a terrible revolution
ter, though sometimes it does not and a disastrous hurricane. They
arrive. While we were there we deserve all the help they can get.
presented Edward with £500 that What they cannot give back in a
has raised through the Mayor's material way they certainly make
charity fundraising to be used for up for with their hospitality and
food and medicines. the hand of friendship. rJr
Another item that we kept see- Further details of SOL, contact
ing were the water filter units that the chairman Bruce Clarke, 11
are sponsored by SOL. Although Fosse Close, Swindon SN2 2BP.
many homes have a water supply, Tel. 533338. bruce@wessex.net