Hope for Children

On a sunny Wednesday afternoon in Addis, Hope for Children had two surprise visitors. No ordinary visitors, these two guests were Wayne Swan (former Deputy PM of Australia) and Tanya Plibersek (current Deputy Leader of the Opposition).

Mr Swan and Ms Plibersek were in Addis this week for a Financing for Development Conference, and managed to find time to visit our Head Office on their last afternoon in Ethiopia.

With only a few hours to organise activities, children from the Youth Center sprung into action, rehearsing drama performances and traditional dance. When our guests' car pulled up, it was a hive of activity and excitement in the compound. We showed our guests into the library, where we showed a short video then five students performed a traditional dance, and another group acted out a hilarious skit on traditional healing methods which had the room in fits of laughter!

Ms Plibersek brought a huge bag of bananas to share with the children - a much needed snack after two hours of English classes with Mr Venour.

Our project leads presented beautifully on their respective programs, and we enjoyed sipping some of Waynee's freshly brewed coffee. It was a very exciting and humbling afternoon for the staff and beneficiaries at HFC.