News of People from
All Saints' Church
St Andrews
News of Robert Blackwood.
Robert Blackwood, formerly the Rector's Warden before he moved to a post at the University of Liverpool (and, most recently, the Rector's best man), will be walking the final 220km/137 miles of the Camino, the pilgrim route to Santiago de Compostela over eight days in early September, seeking to raise money for a Mothers' Union project for HIV/AIDS widows in rural Zimbabwe. The project gives financial and training support to groups of widows, who grow maize, sunflowers, peanuts and maize meal, which they then process (into sunflower oil and peanut butter). They require low-grade machinery for both processes, that are hand-operated, due to irregular (and often total lack of) electricity supply. Maize meal is for their own use, but the last two harvests have been poor, so the project is struggling, but would be boosted by more women working across regions of Zimbabwe. It's managed through the Mothers' Union, under Ruth Bakare's nominal guidance, since she's retired as the MU's national leader. They also then hope to train up a number of women to go around Zimbabwe teaching others how to become self-sufficient and start their own projects.
Some of you will have met Ruth Bakare when she accompanied her husband, Sebastian (then Bishop of Manicaland, now Bishop of Harare) to St Andrews some eight or nine years ago. Bishop Sebastian preached at All Saints and, following their visit, we raised money for another Mothers' Union project in Zimbabwe. If anyone would like to sponsor Robert, or simply make a donation, please contact Fr Jonathan.