The Sunday News
Sibongile Ndiweni and Valencia Ndhlovu, Sunday News Reporters
THE Rotary Club of Bulawayo, in partnership with the Bulawayo City Council is set to host a Carols by Candlelight Event on Wednesday to mark the beginning of a number of festivities hosted by the city as part of festive season celebrations.
Carols by Candlelight is an annual event which has been held annually for more than 65 years by the Rotary Club of Bulawayo as part of the City of Bulawayo’s Christmas festivities but had to take a three year break due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This comes as the Bulawayo mayor’s Christmas Cheer Fund will this year widen its scope to include capacity training for the youth so as to equip them with self-sustenance skills.
The mayor’s Christmas Cheer Fund is meant to raise donations in cash and kind to cheer up the underprivileged during the festive season. Last year the cheer fund touched the lives of 12 institutions and homes and made donations of food hampers to 1 300 families who were registered through the social welfare offices. The target for this year’s cheer fund has been set at US$100 000.
Self-sustenance is this year’s goal for the Mayor’s cheer fund as they hope to have partners who will assist with skills training for the local youths. The city’s Mayor, Councillor Solomon Mguni said issues to do with drug abuse had led them to decide on adding a self-empowerment thrust to this year’s festivities.
“Council, through the help of the housing community services department, will be offering skills training which will equip youths with skills in building, ark, carpentry, jewelry, cutting and designing, home economics and painting. The Cheer Fund board of trustees also noted that there is need to encourage young people to take up these skills in the need to reduce drug abuse in the community and for them to be able to sustain themselves and their families,” said the Mayor.
Meanwhile, all is set for this year’s carols by candlelight with the event set for Wednesday at the Amphitheatre starting at 6.30pm. Bulawayo Rotary club president, Mrs Lorna Nyoni said this year they have three school choirs participating in the event, supported by an adult choir lead by the Salvation Army Band. The proceedings of the event will be used for charity.
“The Rotary Club of Bulawayo has chosen King George VI School for disabled children as beneficiaries of this event and we are therefore asking for donations in cash and kind to support this worthy cause,” said Mrs Nyoni.
Mrs Nesisa Mpofu
BCC corporate communications manager, Mrs Nesisa Mpofu said the carols by candlelight event is one of the events being held for the 2022 Calendar and that other events include the switching on of the Christmas Lights at Nketa Park in Mpopoma as well as the switching on of the Christmas Lights at Central and Centenary Park and the Nativity Play at the Amphitheatre on 21 December 2022.
“The city has also partnered with other organisations for activities at the park which will include children’s entertainment from 21 December 2022 to 1 January 2022 and these will be at a nominal fee,” she added.
