Feeding The Famine Stricken Children

Atula Shah from Nairobi wrote a letter to Bhante and Triple Gem Society requesting help to feed children in a famine stricken area of Mutumo, an area Bhante visited on one of his last trips to Nairobi. In her letter, Atula explained that “there is a severe famine in Mutumo where you visited us last time. The reason for this famine has been twofold: all the maze stored from our harvest went bad [with flotoxian] and had to be destroyed. In addition the region suffered from the loss of two full rainy seasons and there have been no food productions from the land.”

The letter went on to describe “UNIMIX,” a food that is used to feed the children. Atula writes, “UNIMIX is a mixture of maze, red beans and oil which is made into flour. A very nutritious and healthy meal can be prepared by simply adding water. It is made into a delicious porridge which can keep a child healthy and well fed with only two servings a day.”

Since Bhante was familiar with the people and conditions of the region, he was able to respond quickly. Through the aid of Bhante’s contacts in Nairobi and the support of Triple Gem Society, Bhante was able to donate 800kg of UNIMIX enough to feed 1000 children for a whole month.

Bhante reported that Dr. Dolan received the 800kg of UNIMIX from Atula Shah, who represented the Triple Gem Society. In his report to Triple Gem Society, Bhante said, “We are grateful to Dr. Dolan, who was responsible for the distribution of the food and the feeding of the children.”