Cole Farm, a community in the west of Freetown, has on Sunday, December 27, 2020 officially launched Pekin Foundation, a charity with the purpose of helping less privileged children within the community. The Foundation also used the launching program to celebrate the first anniversary since its creation in a programme themed: ‘Dream Cam True’.
The foundation was established in September 2019 with the goals of developing, structuring and changing the face of the community and its neighbors, and promoting development through self-help with monthly contributions from among its members.
Chairlady of the Foundation, Ramatu Conteh, said that the launching and annual celebration was aimed at showcasing the hard work they had been doing and their dedication to the community.
She emphasized, “The children at Cole Farm brought up the idea of establishing the foundation in order to develop the community and its residents. We have seen that the government could try its best in development, but could not do all what we may need. So we thought it fit that by creating this Foundation we could help ourselves and our community.”
She stated that the Foundation has reconstructed a road which had been in a bad shape thereby positively impacting residents of and visitors to the community. According to Conteh, drivers could now use that particular road within the community when there are hold ups on the main route.
She added that the Foundation had also carried out a cleaning exercise within the community recently. “Our next agenda is to endorse electricity supply in the community,” she added.
Conteh explained that they were determined to prove wrong the views of some community stakeholders who are contending that, Cole Farm community will never develop.
She appealed for support from people in the Cole Farm community and also advised community youths elsewhere in the country to generate innovative ways of fostering development through self-help.
In his statement, Sulaiman M. Conteh, Honorable of Constituency 130 described a community as a group of people that comes together for a common purpose. They unify themselves under a common vision aiming at its development. He commended the effort, time and money which the Foundation is giving to the community and commented that it is very much important because it could bring development.
“Above all, respect for one another and togetherness are the contributing factors that would foster development in any society.
He promised that he would closely work with the Cole farm Pekin Foundation in order to see that their dreams are achieved, saying “I believe that the foundation is on the right track by working for themselves. And I will advise you not to over promise and under perform. When you have taken a challenge on one project you make sure that it is completed before embarking on another.”
At the end of his speech, he donated one million Leones as his own contribution to help develop the Community and promised to do more in the future. “If we all could work together we will be able to conquer what we are fighting,” he concluded.
By Ibrahim S.Bangura
6/01/2021. ISSUE NO:7973