There were two spare standing frames at the Romanian centre which fitted into the cars of the Moldovans. Two days later they were in use! Before receiving the equipment, neither child had the experience of standing.

The little girl was very happy with the result and her mum was amazed! They took the stander home with them and will be followed up in two months.

The little boy can now access all areas of the rehabilitation centre in the stander, and can reach and play much more than he could when he was lying down.

“Thank you for this amazing gift!” was the response from the paediatrician Dr. Gincota.

“In July 2023, I met a real gentleman named Harry Franks. He told me about the wonderful charity in which he is involved and the work they are doing to get equipment to where it is most needed. I was interested and very happy to respond. However, I had absolutely no idea, of the scope of work, nor of the commitment and dedication of its volunteers.

We continued corresponding, and while I was with my husband on sabbatical in the UK Harry offered to present our NGO, Khethiwe Rehab Centre, to the board. This was followed by confirmation that PhysioNet would ship a container to South Africa for Khethiwe and the other organisations that we work with. I honestly do not think that the reality of this gift dawned on me until I saw the word container, it is just too large to take in. When you have spent over 30 years working in vastly underserved areas and making do with whatever comes to hand, such generosity is almost beyond belief.

Now here we are, the container has arrived and I can hardly believe my eyes. My staff are just speechless because they cannot believe so much equipment could ever come our way. Are we really getting all this equipment? This is way beyond our wildest dreams. After all, some of our clients live in shocking conditions in single rooms or shacks, often with no water or electricity… They are all poor and struggling to make ends meet, but characterised by the fierce self-sacrificial love that a mother has for her child with disabilities. They will all be delighted to be blessed in a way they never imagined and we will be filled with joy and laughter when we distribute this incredible gift.

Thank you seems inadequate for what you, at PhysioNet are doing for us and thousands of others who are among the most marginalised in society; and living with a child who has a disability. Do you even know what an amazing blessing you are to those who benefit from your efforts?

On behalf of the team at Khethiwe, and the kiddies and their families that we serve, our delighted thanks and huge excitement as we wait to see what this huge container has in store for us. With our delighted thanks and anticipation.”

Glenys Ross; Andiswa Zukulu and the Khethiwe Team

From our perspective TDAI and the tight-knit Tigray community in the UK constitute an ideal recipient. The photo below includes a good number of Tigray people, some of whom had come from London and Edinburgh, proudly waving their flag.

‘Muscle’ provided by half-a-dozen Tigray men proved invaluable as the container, which had been pre-loaded from a facility in Leeds, needed to be partially unloaded before being filled with the most suitable equipment.

A challenging journey lies ahead. North Yorkshire to a UK port. Then, because of problems in the Red Sea, the long way round by sea via the Cape to Djibouti. Finally the 660km overland to Makelle. It is not surprising then that this, and the two previous shipments, cost nearly £30k! (These costs were paid promptly by a Tigray charity in London.)

The photo above shows Dr. Abraha Derso and his wife Sharon, cutting a special cake. The cake was our way of expressing our appreciation for them mobilising Tigrayan support in UK and also for their contacts in Makelle, essential for getting the first consignment safely to destination. Without their help these shipments simply would not have happened.

Ukraine: The first of two consignments, was loaded on 28th October from Yorkshire. Destination a military hospital in Zaporizhzhia.

South Africa: The first consignment to this country since May 2022, was loaded from Yorkshire on 2nd December. The destination was the town of White River and a mixed paediatric/adult load for Paediatric Care Africa and the local Rotary club. Funding came from the recipients

South Africa: The second consignment to South Africa, was loaded from PhysioNet (SW) on 9th December. The destination was Durban and another mixed paediatric/adult load for Khetiwe (Rehabilitation Centre for Children with Disabilities) and the Chatsworth Rotary club. A donor in UK covered the shipping costs.

Zimbabwe: This the thirteenth consignment to Zimbabwe, was loaded from Yorkshire on 20th January. Destination Harare and another mixed paediatric/adult load for RESCU and St. Christopher’s Home. As before the costs to destination were met by an international charity with links to Zimbabwe.

Ukraine: This the second Ukraine consignment was finally loaded from PhysioNet (SE) on 27th January, again for Zaporizhzhia. Loading was delayed for over a month, as the trucking company reported problems at the border with long queues of vehicles waiting to enter Ukraine.

Ethiopia: The first consignment to Ethiopia was loaded from Yorkshire on 15th July 2023 and should have been reported in the last Newsletter. It arrived safely, but only after coping with many bureaucratic problems. This, the second consignment was again loaded from Yorkshire on 24th February destined for the Tigray Development Association International (TDAI) in Makelle. A challenging loading in UK, but with fewer problems in Ethiopia than the first consignment.

Kenya: A 20ft non-returnable container was loaded on 9th March from Yorkshire, although the vessel only sailed on 23rd March. As before the consignment was partly funded by the British Army with the recipient being a charity near Eldoret.

Ethiopia: The third of these consignments was loaded on 23rd March from Yorkshire, again destined for TDAI in Makelle. It was PhysioNet’s 150th load and is described in more detail on page one.

Third party shipments: A modest four collections totalling 29 items, were collected from Yorkshire for Ghana, Malawi, Yemen and Zambia.