Chengetanai Old People\u2019s Home in Chinhoyi now has a fresh look after medical insurer, Premier Service Medical Aid Society (PSMAS), helped spruce up the centre and in the process putting back the smile on the faces of 25 inmates currently housed at the institution.<\/p>\n
Chengetanai was established in 1983 by the late Florence Rudhenya Howard, who was touched by senior citizens stranded at Chinhoyi bus terminus after being dumped by white commercial farmers.<\/p>\n
The elderly were former farm labourers from regional countries like Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique, who could not find their way back to their countries of
\norigin.<\/p>\n
Touched by the plight of the current inmates and in order to ensure that Rudhenya Howard smiles from her grave, PSMAS, under its sports and social committee,
\nraised thousands of dollars for the upkeep of the senior citizens and refurbishment works.<\/p>\n
PSMAS vice-chairperson Fatima Chauruka said the medical insurer sourced money to buy groceries, clothes as well as materials for the office and hostels.<\/p>\n
The organisation renovated, among others, floor tiles, roof ceiling, dining rooms, kitchen, walking pavements and also repainted the centre.<\/p>\n
\u2018\u2018We are grateful to our team that was behind raising funds for this project. We are delighted that we are part of a happy moment for our elderly at
\nChengetanai Old People\u2019s Home,\u201d Chauruka said during the handover ceremony.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are indebted to these elderlies who are part of the communities that raised us all. We, therefore, need to give back to the community through the one-good-
\nturn deserves-another principle of dignity and humanity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chengetanai Old People\u2019s Home programmes manager Lucky Nyanda paid tribute to the late Rudhenya-Howard.<\/p>\n
\u2018\u2018She started feeding these elderly people by cooking food from her house in Coldstream suburb and delivering it to them at the terminus everyday. She endured
\nfor a year and later on she sold her house, the only property she had and bought this place which is now called Chengetanai Old People\u2019s Home within the
\nHunyani section,\u201d Nyanda said.<\/p>\n
Nyanda said Rudhenya-Howard was now happy as her dream had been \u2018achieved in a small, but big way after PSMAS uplifted the centre.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the record, the late founder Rudhenya was touched by the elderly who were no longer able to work on the farms. So, the package they were getting after
\nsuch long years of being farm employees was to be vulnerable destitutes,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Rudhenya-Howard died in 2015.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur elderly\u2019s beds were replaced with new ones. The centre is now in good shape,\u201d Nyanda said.<\/p>\n
He, however, appealed for a vehicle to use at the centre.<\/p>\n
\u201cWater is also a problem since we are using council water that is erratic due to the power cuts affecting the whole country,\u201d Nyanda said.<\/p>\n
He appealed for assistance to drill a borehole so that they can venture into various income-generating projects for sustainability.<\/p>\n
\u2018If we have enough water, we can start fish farming and market gardening. This will go a long way in sustaining the centre,\u201d Nyanda said.<\/p>\n
\u2018\u2018Accessing medicine is one of our challenges as the Department of Social Welfare. The medical aid fraternity has its limitations and our public hospitals must
\naccept that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Anne Mercy Senzanje, a sister to the late Rudhenya-Howard, took over as the director and secretary of the board and commented the gesture by PMSAS.<\/p>\n
\u2018\u2018We face numerous challenges, but what PSMAS has done to us gives us comfort that we are part of the community. Some major stake holders are playing great
\nroles to uplift the centre,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Seventy-eight year old Mbuya Nyoni, who joined the centre in 1994, said: \u201cI am grateful that some people think about us as some of us can\u2019t trace our
\nrelatives.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eighteen-nine-year old Romeo Banda, nicknamed Sekuru Kambeva, said he will be enjoying his time watching news after two television sets were donated by PSMAS.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are not living in isolation and will be in touch with what is happening around the country,\u201d he chuckled.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Chengetanai Old People\u2019s Home in Chinhoyi now has a fresh look after medical insurer, Premier Service Medical Aid Society (PSMAS), helped spruce up the centre and in the process putting back the smile on the faces of 25 inmates currently housed at the institution. Chengetanai was established in 1983 by the late Florence Rudhenya Howard, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":11669,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[128,70,361,166],"class_list":["post-11667","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","tag-community","tag-death","tag-health","tag-hospital"],"yoast_head":"\n