Administrator of St. Christopher’s Children Home, Margaret Stevens
Monies donated through the annual St. Christopher Children’s Home Fundraising Walk/Run contribute to 90 percent of the home’s budget, according to officials from the St. Christopher Home.
During a recent (Sept 14) edition of “Working For You,” Vice Chair of the St. Christopher’s Children Home Board, Naeema Hazelle, stressed the importance of the annual fundraising walk/run scheduled for October 1.
“Without the money from the walk/run and the participation of the corporate sponsors and the public, we wouldn’t be able to run the children’s home,” Hazelle said.
Administrator of the Home, Margaret Stevens, also highlighted the importance of the fundraiser, noting that without it, there probably would not be a children’s home.
“If we didn’t have the walk/run, then there wouldn’t be a children’s home. There couldn’t be one because we wouldn’t have any other avenue in getting money,” Stevens said. “The run/walk is so instrumental of the ethos of the children’s home. Even the walk itself indicates what the run is about,” she said.
The annual fundraising walk/run has the support of the St. Kitts Marriott Resort and Casino, which has made available the golf course as part of the walk/run course; the resort and casino is also helping to organize the event.
“We get a lot of support from the Marriott and the Marriot Casino. They run everything like a well-oiled machine,” Stevens explained. “I have seen it grow and I have seen it get better and stronger and my hope is that seven years from now we can sit and say oh my gosh we overcame the world,” she added.
Registration for the fundraising walk/run is at 3pm on October 1 and tickets can be bought on that day. Tickets for adults are $50EC or $US20; $25EC for children (6-12); and children under 6 years of age participate for free.
Meanwhile, the Home’s officials noted that the 15 children housed at the home are involved in a myriad of activities including zip-lining, birthday parties, movies, horse riding, sailing, cricket and much more.
“If they tell me there is something that they are interested in and they are really passionate about, I try to encourage them like your own child,” Stevens said.