Emergency Food & Water Supplies

By: Hannah Hughes

The week before last (sorry for the delay in writing this blog), Jennifer and myself were driving back to St. Teresa's after doing home visits, when she asked if I minded stopping at the Barrier Market. I told her I did not, but was not aware of why we were stopping. I thought she may just need to pick something off or drop something off to one of the shops there. When we pulled up, I saw a huge crowd of women, some with ox carts, some on Boda Bodas, and many just on foot. I asked Jennifer what was going on, and she told me that these were the emergency food supplies that had been donated by Farmers Helping Farmers. As soon as we got out of Mama Jen's car, I was greeted by a few of the women from the Muchui women's group who I have come to know pretty well. Esther, Emily, and Harriet were beyond happy, and had difficulty expressing just how grateful they were. They kept repeating "I am so excited, so happy, and so thankful to you". And by "you", they are thanking Farmers Helping Farmers and the people of Prince Edward Island. I am so lucky that Jennifer wanted to stop at the Market that day, as it was an amazing experience to see the women receiving this food, and getting to hear from them first hand how much it means to them and their families. Some of the women who have smaller families told me that this food would be able to last them up to three months. They all also got their water tanks filled, which is a very big deal as many of the farms we visit are running on little or no water in their tanks. It makes me so happy to see the women receiving something they so desperately need, and will need in the upcoming months. So any money that can be donated to Farmers Helping Farmers to help the Muchi women and their families, is more appreciated by them than any of us will ever know. Of course, this would be the one day that my camera would die, so unfortunately I was not able to get a picture at the market. But to be honest, a picture wouldn't have done justice! Thanks again to Farmers Helping Farmers, and to any Islanders who support their causes. The difference you are making is evident here in Kiirua, and once again, the women thank you all, so much.