Running a not-for-profit college on one of the poorest counries in the world is a recipe for regular challenges.
Funds come from student fees, from donations, and from fund-raising efforts, and contacts overseas, and – when things are desperate – a call may go out to the ‘mother organisation’ – The Salvation Army.
Maintaining property, replacing equipment, and providing upgraded resources are all necessary for the effective running of the collge. Often major expenses cannot be met from within the on-going budget. Efforts have been made to establish income generating activites to supplement collge income, but even setting up these ventures costs money that is not readily available.
Landrover
A current need is to replace and aging and ailing landrover. This vehicle is part of the equipment needed for the running of the collge, and is also used for some other projects that support the surrounding communities. It will cost approxiately A$10,000 to replace the vehicle with a second hand equivalent. It has been gratifying to see the responses of my local church (Preston Salvation Army), Camberwell Salvos, and my service club (The Rotary Club of Preston) as they have responded to the need of Shukrani. Hopefully a more reliable vehicle can be found that will support the work at Shukrani.
