Botswana Orphan Project
Western Australia, Australia
Ursula Borgas

^{Project Botswana, Manyana 2007 trip.}

On 2 July a team of volunteers from Perth went to Gumare, Botswana, to construct educational and day care-centre facilities. The day care centre will include a hall, kitchen area, classroom and toilet block. The team will be there for three and a half weeks to complete the projects.

The team of 14 volunteers, aged between 15 and 76, are from the Carmel Seventh-day Adventist church and other country churches in Western Australia.

The team will also distribute goods to the needy villages of Botswana, and supply medical supplies to the hospitals and clinics in the area.

“I go on the trips to see the smiles on the kids’ faces. The simplicity of the gifts we give mean so much to them and little to us. As leader, I go to give people in Australia and myself the opportunity to help another culture,” says Greg Whyte, leader and organiser of Project Botswana.

Project Botswana is an initiative to help young women and HIV/AIDS sufferers, including orphans and vulnerable children, living with the disease in this country. The team will continue to help improve the lives of people in Botswana by constructing the facilities to accommodate the people in need. It is run by the Seventh-day Adventist Church and the projects will continue to care for the needs of the HIV/AIDS orphans and vulnerable children living in different communities in Botswana.

HIV/AIDS is the biggest crisis in Botswana so Project Botswana’s aim has been to set up an orphan centre to care for children who have been affected by HIV/AIDS. They provide counselling services, education opportunities, recreational services to keep vulnerable children off the streets, meals on a daily basis and also provide clothing and toiletry needs to the children.

Project Botswana operates is a non-profit operation and any money raised goes toward covering expenses or other projects. In running these trips, Project Botswana hopes to discover the joy that comes from giving themselves in service to God and to others.

^{Project Botswana, Manyana 2007 trip.}