Dear Editor - Please support VSO this World AIDS Day, December 1.Earlier this year I was lucky enough to travel to Zambia with the international development charity VSO.
For Tanya Turner, the character I played in Footballers’ Wives, accepting an invitation from VSO to witness its work with people living with HIV and AIDS would not have been top of her ‘to do’ list.
But my parents volunteered with VSO back in the 1970s, so when the charity gave me the chance to see for myself the work they do, I could not say no.
In Zambia, I visited VK Home-Based Care, one of the projects VSO supports.
Based in one of Zambia’s poorest districts, the project serves over 100,000 people, one-in-five of whom are infected with HIV and AIDS.
For many people, going to hospital or visiting a doctor is not an option, as they simply cannot afford it. Increasingly, those who fall ill rely on women in the community to care for them.
One of these carers is Lomanzi Phiri, a 44-year-old woman who has lost both her son and husband to HIV and AIDS.
I met Lomanzi, who is now a volunteer carer with VK Home-Based Care, and accompanied her on her daily round visiting patients in their homes.
Lomanzi provides basic medical care and offers emotional support to people in their darkest hour.
The work she does, along with thousands of other women in Zambia, is inspiring and without doubt vital in helping the country cope with the devastating impact of HIV and AIDS.
Carers like Lomanzi are on the frontline of the response to the HIV and AIDS pandemic but without the support of VSO, who provide skilled volunteers and financial support, Lomanzi and her colleagues would not be able to continue their work.
This World AIDS Day, please spare a thought for Lomanzi and her community.
By volunteering your skills with VSO or making a small donation to support their work you could be playing your part in the response to the global catastrophe that is HIV and AIDS.
Please visit http://www.vso.org.uk/ to find out more.
Zoe Lucker
Actress
- Photo shows Zoe Lucker meeting Lomanzi Phiri and her grandchildren in Zambia. Photo submitted.
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