A University of Wollongong PhD graduate says he is overwhelmed by the outpouring of generosity from the community to assist in collecting 10,000 books for a remote village in Zimbabwe - but the task is not over.
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Dr Alfred Chidembo, who now lives in the Illawarra, wanted to give back to his home town of Mavhurazi and set up a library at the primary school because books "give kids the chance to dream".
Boxes of donations have come in from every corner of the Illawarra, including UOW, childcare centres, primary schools and charity groups, with the target reached above and beyond. However, Dr Chidembo admitted some new road blocks have popped up, including how to store the books, and the need for a shipping container.
"All of the books they are just scattered all over the place, some of them at my friend's house in his spare bedroom. Many people have been willing to help and opened up their homes," he said.
"But it would be good if we could find a central place where we can store the books. By the end of October we should be able to ship them back to Zimbabwe and by then I hope we would have gotten a container."
If you can help, contact Dr Chidembo via email: alfchid@mail.com.
