Grandmothers Helping Grandmothers raises $3,000 for African counterparts
June 18, 2010
The Daily Gleaner , by Nicole Veerman
Thirty-five Fredericton grandmothers walked together Thursday to show their support for African grandmothers with grandchildren orphaned by HIV/AIDS.
The women of the Grandmothers to Grandmothers group walked from the Delta Fredericton Hotel to city hall, raising about $3,000 for the Stephen Lewis Foundation, which supports grassroots organizations in Africa.
Carol Anne Daigle, a grandmother of two, led the women along the river, singing a song she learned while she was in Africa in May for first international All-African Grandmothers' Gathering.
"The goal (of the walk) was to make people aware of the Grandmothers in Africa who are caring for children orphaned by AIDS and to show that we're standing in solidarity with them," she said.
According to the World Health Organization, sub-Saharan Africa accounted for 67 per cent of HIV/AIDS infections worldwide in 2008.
There are more than 1.4 million children there who have lost one or both parents to HIV/AIDS.
The money raised by the campaign goes towards community grassroots groups that provide grandmothers with support such as food, housing grants, school fees for their grandchildren and grief counselling.
There are 220 grandmother groups in Canada, most of whom walked last weekend, said Daigle.
The Fredericton group, which formed in 2006, decided to wait until Thursday because Stephen Lewis was in town to speak.
At his address, Lewis applauded the grandmothers and joked that he wouldn't be walking alongside them because he's accustomed to a sloth-like lifestyle.
Marie Cashion, the founder of the Fredericton group and a grandmother of four, said she was pleased with the work the group has done.
"I think it's been a really big success. We've raised over $45,000."
Deputy mayor Dan Keenan and Roxanne Reeves, Premier Shawn Graham's wife, met the women at city hall to applaud them for their efforts.
"You don't want to underestimate grandmothers, I know that," said Keenan.
"When you put your minds to something, I know that it will come to fruition for you."
Reeves, who has been involved with Grandmothers to Grandmothers events in the past, saluted the women for their fundraising efforts and their advocacy work.
"You really are as a group of women a sign of what can be done."