Stevenage charity Kadoma Kidz has chosen a safe pair of hands to publicise its change of name. Eight-year-old goalkeeper Zach Vernon, who plays for Stevenage FC, is friends with Stacy and Phil Gibb who run the charity, and came up with the idea to have its new ‘kidz 2911’ name emblazoned on his goalie gloves.
The charity which has a shop in Willows Link in Broadwater wanted to change its name to reach a wider audience.
Stacy said: “It’s just a lovely thing to do for us, it’s just really sweet.
“He’s such a lovely young man and he loves football, and he always comes in to talk about football with my husband.
“I’m always saying to him that when he signs for Arsenal, he shouldn’t forget about us.
“It’s great to officially have our new name and we just need to get people to know where we are a bit more as we are a little tucked away here.”
Kidz 2911 currently sponsors the education of about 50 children in Stevenage’s Zimbabwean twin town of Kadoma and the much more rural village of Chakari.
Last week the charity purchased a house which will become a children’s home for youngsters aged two to 18 that have either been orphaned or victims of abuse.
The house will cater for eight orphans and a team from the charity will travel to Africa in August to kit it out, welcome the children and help them settle in. The project is entirely funded by people in Hertfordshire who sponsor the children and will pay for the upkeep of the house.
Stacy said: “It’s blown us away how well everything is going and the amount of support we’ve received from the local community has been amazing.
“It’s all thanks to the lovely people who have sponsored children and have donated stock to our shop.”
On Saturday, June 4, the charity is holding a fun day at its shop which will feature a bouncy castle, a Shetland pony, a cafe, and a wide range of stalls.
The shop is still looking for volunteers and there is a need for more people to come forward to sponsor children. For more information on the project visit Facebook and search for KIDZ 2911.
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