Orphans and Vulnerables Organisation

Welcome to the website of the Spiritan Zambia Orphan Fund. This charity was set up in Ireland in 2006 to raise funding to support the work of the Orphans and Vulnerables Organisation (OVO), Zambia. The OVO uses these funds to carry out invaluable work to improve the plight of children orphaned through AIDS in Zambia. The work of this organisation is coordinated by Fr. Michael Walsh, C.S.Sp., a native of Kinnitty, Co. Offaly, Ireland. For many years he was based in a town called Zimba in Southern Province, Zambia. In March 2013 he moved to Pemba, a small town (population of about 4,000) located in Choma District, approximately a two hour drive north of Zimba.

To find out more about the fund raising work of the SZOF in Ireland, and about the great work of the OVO which it supports, please check out the 'Our Work' section. Please also see the appeal letter written by Fr. Walsh  here  (see  page 1 ,  page 2  and  page 3  individually as images by clicking the page number).

This website aims, among other things, to provide you with detailed information about what we do, our history, where we are based, how you can become involved and how you can contact us. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions relating to the charity. There is an email address along with phone numbers for a select number of people in the 'Contact Us' section. We welcome any feedback or queries in relation to our charity and website.

You can see updates in relation to specific projects under the 'Projects' section of the website.

Fr. Michael Walsh has been working with children orphaned by HIV/AIDS in Zambia for many years. Fundraising to support his work was initiated by Monica and Pat McMahon following their trip to Zambia in 2001. The Spiritan Zambia Orphan Fund (SZOF) was later set up by a young student, Michael Kelly. Michael travelled to Zambia to do voluntary work with Fr. Walsh for six months after he had completed his Leaving Certificate in St. Finian’s College, Mullingar in 2007. The staff and students in his school raised €8,000 prior to his trip. He was delighted to be able to present this money to the Orphans and Vulnerables Organisation (OVO) on his arrival in Zambia.

He was so impressed by what he saw during his time in Zambia that he felt compelled to continue to support the work of the OVO on his return to Ireland in 2008. This website was later developed by him as part of his studies for a Master’s Degree in Computer Science in UCD in 2012.

The Spiritan Zambia Orphan Fund (SZOF) received charity status (CHY 17485) in 2007. It is currently funded mostly by donors in Ireland. It supports the work of a non-governmental organisation in Zambia called the Orphans and Vulnerables Organisation (OVO). The OVO was registered by the registrar of societies in Zambia in May 2011. Its registration number is ORS/102/47/841.

Our charity in Zambia receives generous support from Midland Grain Growers and the people of Kinnitty Parish in Co. Offaly. Generous donations are also received from a few individuals in the USA who are familiar with the valuable work being done by the OVO with orphaned children in Zambia.

Zambia has seen the deaths of thousands of people from HIV and AIDS, leaving in their wake a generation of orphaned children and vulnerable adults. The main aim of our organisation is to try and help as many of these as possible by organising access to counselling and education and by arranging food programmes to improve nutrition.

OVO Zambia operates from eight centres. These are located in Zimba, Fumbo, Kasiya, Pemba, Mukunka, Linda, Mwapona and Libala. Each district has a team of volunteers who administer the work at that centre. These volunteers are known locally as ‘Companions’. They live in the communities where the orphans and vulnerable beneficiaries come from and they liaise with the community leaders to identify and prioritize those most in need of assistance.

• In 2020, Covid 19 put a sudden end to church gate collections on which we depended over the years to generate a large percentage of our funds.
• We are continually appealing for financial support because the numbers of children in need of assistance is increasing on a daily basis and our funds are not capable of meeting the growing demands.
• We are also working on projects which we hope will enable us to generate funds in Zambia to support our work in future years.

In addition to money spent on projects in 2020, funding for school fees was distributed among the different centres as follows:

There were a total of 644 beneficiaries, 314 girls and 330 boys.

We have a number of programmes in place as follows:

OVO Zambia recognises the importance of access to education in helping orphaned and vulnerable children to achieve financial independence. We subsidise the cost of school fees, exam fees, books, etc. The children need to apply on a yearly basis for support with school fees. We subsidise these fees for children from Grade 1 to Grade 12. However, we can only guarantee funding on a yearly basis because we cannot predict from year to year the availability of sufficient funds in the charity’s account.

We would like to provide funding support for third level education for children who qualify for same; however this is an ongoing challenge due to the limited funding available to us.

It is not uncommon that the children have no school books and sometimes the only set of books in a classroom is that held by the teacher. Also, even basic sports equipment such as basketball rings, basketballs or footballs are not available. We have been fortunate to access project funding for provision of these basic provisions from donor organisations for some schools. In all cases, details of these projects are featured on our website.

The lack of provision of basic housing for teachers has also been identified as a problem. In cases where teachers’ homes are located long distances from schools, the availability of basic housing can be vitally important to attracting teachers to remote areas.

The Orphans and Vulnerables Organisation set up a programme for the training of counsellors (23 trained to date) to support children who have emotional and psychological problems. The work carried out by these councillors has been of enormous benefit to the children. These services are being provided in seven centres throughout Southern Province, Zambia.

Some months ago, our organization acquired a house, the purchase cost of which was funded by a generous donor. Despite its poor structural condition and because of the urgent need in the area, the building quickly commenced use as a multipurpose centre for support of young people from child-headed homes. Girls retrieved from early marriages come for counselling at this centre. Some stay for a while, so that they go to school while waiting to be accepted back to their relatives’ or foster parent’s homes. General counselling and emotional support sessions are provided at this centre every day. It is hoped over time to renovate and extend this building to make it suitable and comfortable for those availing of these essential services.

Food aid is provided to orphaned children and vulnerable individuals. Our food programme has brought about a considerable increase in school attendance and has raised the pupils’ level of concentration during school. Before the food programme was introduced, pupils did not attend school because of the need to forage for food.

• We provide a food programme at Mwapona Basic School (Choma) and Pemba Postulancy. A meal is currently provided every day at breakfast and lunchtime; in previous years the children only ate three times per week at lunchtime. Mwapona School feeds 1,125 children
• Pemba Postulancy has 89 old people and destitute adults who receive food aid. This centre also provides food and educational support to 150 orphaned children
• Food is distributed to 65 child-headed homes (these are children who take care of themselves after the deaths of both parents) at Mwapona OVO Centre
• In September 2020, 1,569 children were in receipt of school fees subsidised by OVO. A total of 1,279 benefited from the feeding programme
• Since the start of the COVID 19 pandemic, OVO Zambia donated mealie-meal and beans to the Hospice where HIV/AIDS positive children and youth are cared for
• In 2018/19 OVO Zambia provided food and shoes to Zimba, Kasiya, Makunka and Pemba OVO centres

In 2020, minimising spread of coronavirus infection was a priority. Therefore our organisation allocated some funding for provision of face masks, hand sanitizer, soap, Jik, buckets and wash hand basins in schools.

Every year OVO holds its annual general meeting on the first Saturday of December. The eight OVO centres are always represented. In 2019 there were 38 people in attendance at the AGM. The AGM is a meeting where issues are discussed and decisions are made for the organization to run smoothly. Issues include:

• Elections of office-bearers (board members)
• Board chairperson’s M.D, Treasurer, Project Manager and Companion’s reports
• Fundraising for the organization locally
• In-put on the mission and vision of OVO Zambia
• Reports of the activities from OVO centres
• Constitution amendments if applicable
• Discussions regarding number of beneficiaries from the Centres, food distribution and visitations by companions
• Monitoring and Evaluation findings by the OVO Zambia Executive Committee
• Teamwork, transparency and accountability within the organization
• OVO Zambia Founder, Fr. Michael Walsh, meets all the OVO members at the AGM. He always address a few words directly to OVO members: "take care of the Orphans and Vulnerable people, do not mistreat them, listen to them, be kind to them, love them, because you are their mothers and fathers"

OVO’s accounts are audited every year by: JNMA Chartered Accountants, Suite 702, 7th Floor, P.O. Box 35949, Lottie House, Cairo Road, Lusaka, +260 966 756188 / +260 979 856 188.

The audited reports are circulated to all the OVO Zambia members and other stakeholders.

Most of the funding required to finance programmes is sourced in Ireland. We are continually seeking donors to sponsor the education of orphaned children. We welcome donations, no matter how small. Ultimately, the more sponsorship we receive, the more people we can help. The committee in Ireland is working hard to source as much sponsorship as possible. As we have charity status (Registered Charity Status Number 20065171), we can claim tax refunds in relation to donations which is a great help in boosting funds.

The Spiritan Zambia Orphan Fund is run completely on a voluntary basis. Funds were formerly raised from annual church gate collections in Ireland. Covid 19 has ended this as a source of funds. Some generous donors provide on-going support but our funds are very much depleted.

Since none of the usual expenses (salaries, office accommodation etc) incurred by the larger charities apply in this case, all funds collected go directly to Zambia. Full details of our accounts are sent to the Charities Regulatory Authority each year and they are also available in the 'Documentation' section of our website.

We have completed many projects with funding from some amazing organizations. There are reports available for many of these as listed below. They are sorted from most recent to least recent based on their completion date:

•  2025 - ElectricAid - Water Borehole for new School at Habbongo 
•  2025 - Bank of Ireland Staff Charitable Fund - Habbongo Primary School Upgrades 
•  2022 - An Garda Síochána Third World Fund - Malama Project - Simweendengwe School Equipment 
•  2022 - World Mercy Fund - Hamanzongo Village Agriculture Project 
•  2021 - Combined Services Third World Fund - Refuge House Renovations 
•  2021 - Retired Teachers’ Association of Ireland - Provision of School Books and Sports Equipment at Hatontola School 
•  2019 - INTO Solidarity Fund - Provision of Piped Water for Mwapona Choma Primary School 
•  2019 - Retired Teachers’ Association of Ireland - School Fees Project 
•  2019 - Retired Teachers’ Association of Ireland - Library Furniture Project for Mwapona Primary School 
•  2017-2018 - Combined Services Third World Fund - Mwapona Choma Primary School - New Library and Toilets 
•  2017 - An Garda Síochána Third World Fund - Malama Project 
•  2017 - INTO Solidarity Fund - Malama Project 
•  2014-2015 - Combined Services Third World Fund - Mwapona Choma Primary School - Latrines 
•  2014 - INTO Solidarity Fund - Mwapona Project 
•  2014 - Rose Tighe’s Estate - Simwami Primary School Book Project 
•  2013-2014 - An Garda Síochána Third World Fund - Chali Project 
•  2013 - Irish Aid - Mwapona Project 
•  Ongoing - Midland Grain Growers and Kinnitty Parish - School Fees Project 

We are a small charity with a total income of less than €100,000 per year. One of the benefits of being a small charity is that we do not have large administration costs. We have no paid staff and all our fund-raising work in Ireland is carried out by volunteers. All administration and website maintenance is also done completely on a voluntary basis. Therefore, all money received from our donors goes directly to fund projects which will improve the lives of orphaned children in Zambia.

Our partner, OVO Zambia has given a guarantee to all participants and donors that 90% of all funds received by them will go directly to those for whom the funds are intended, to pay for school fees and food programmes. The remaining 10% will be used to cover the cost of training of councillors, office supplies, leadership meetings and other operational costs.

Our organisation is a signatory on the Dochas website. Dochas is an umbrella group of international development, humanitarian and global justice not-for-profit organisations who share a commitment to tackle poverty and inequality in the world. We are committed to ensuring that we adhere to all the principles associated with  Dochas' Code of Conduct on Images and Messages . Members of the public who would like to comment on our application of this Code are invited to email comments by clicking  here .

Our Irish committee is essentially responsible for fundraising, account-keeping and transferring funds to Zambia as required. The Irish committee is as follows:

Teresa Kelly is a retired Health Service Executive employee. She is married to Gerry, with three adult children. With the help of family and friends, she organises fund-raising events, mostly church gate collections, but also an occasional bag pack or table quiz. She also keeps the accounts and deals with much of the paperwork for the charity.

Joseph is a member of a Navan family which is well-known for its involvement in football and music. He works as an architect and teaches guitar in his spare time. He recently designed and drew plans (on a voluntary basis) for a building project in Zambia.

Monica McMahon lives in Kinvara with husband Pat. They both travelled to Zambia in 2001 and on their return, they became actively involved in fund-raising to support the work of OVO Zambia in assisting AIDS orphans.

Bio in development

Mikie Kelly is the youngest son of Teresa and Gerry Kelly. He spent six months in Zambia after his Leaving Certificate doing voluntary work. He developed the website for the charity and keeps it updated on a regular basis. Mikie plays hurling and football with Navan O'Mahonys and has played at county level.

• Maura Beggy
• Rachel Terry
• John Coyne
• Anne Marie Minnock
• Catherine O'Connor
• Michael Kelly

If you are interested in volunteering directly in Zambia for a few months, please ask for Mikie via the Contact Us page. Mikie spent six months there in 2007 and therefore could answer any questions you may have. Work that could be valuable includes teaching, administrative work, and counselling, but we are always open to suggestions.

We are always looking for volunteers throughout Ireland. We run a number of church gate collections every year. As you can imagine, trying to find people who will stand outside with buckets in the cold and rain can be quite difficult! We have church gate collections at the following locations once a year on the same Sunday of each year:

• Last weekend in January - Trim/Boardsmill, Co. Meath
• Third weekend in February - Dunboyne/Kilbride, Co. Meath
• Third weekend in February – Kilcormac/Mountbolus, Co. Offaly
• Third weekend in March - Navan/Johnstown, Co. Meath
• Third weekend in March - Kells/Girley, Co. Meath
• First weekend in April - Dunshaughlin/Culmullen, Co. Meath
• Second weekend in May - Athleague, Co. Roscommon
• Last weekend in May - Drogheda, Co. Louth (Ballsgrove and St. Mary's)
• Second weekend in June - Donaghamore/Ashbourne, Co. Meath
• Second weekend in July - Beauparc/Kilberry, Co. Meath
• Third weekend in July - Athleague, Co. Roscommon
• Third weekend in August - Mullingar, Co. Westmeath (Cathedral and St. Paul's)
• Last weekend in August - Ratoath, Co. Meath
• Second weekend in December - Moate, Co. Westmeath

As you will notice, these venues are all in Meath, Westmeath, Offaly, Roscommon and Louth. We are actively seeking volunteers who are prepared to organise a church gate collection in their locality, anywhere around the country. If you would like to help out, we will arrange to apply for the collection permit and will provide posters and collection buckets. PLEASE HELP!

If you would be willing to help us out with these collections, or would like to organise a collection in your own local area, please contact Teresa on 086-3946968 or 046-9029092.

Contact ask for Peter Sorge via our Contact Us page if you have any enquiries.

1.  Sponsor A Child's Education  (also please see below)
2.  School Non-Uniform Day  (also please see below)
3. Lodgment of a single donation directly to our bank account (Euro and US Dollar options available - see bank details below). Please see  Standing Order Instructions .
4. Organise your own fundraiser for the charity and lodge the proceeds to our bank account - see bank details below. Please ask for Teresa via the Contact Us section of our website
5. Volunteer to help at one of our church gate collections in Co. Meath. Please ask for Teresa via the Contact Us section of our website
6. Organise collectors for a church gate collection in your own town. (We will provide buckets and posters and apply for the permits). Please ask for Teresa via the Contact Us section of our website

This year, we have introduced two new initiatives as outlined below:

Click on the following link to see a full description of our latest promotion: Sponsor A Child's Education. This initiative encourages people to fund a child’s education for a year (€250). This amount can be paid as a single donation or by standing order as 12 monthly instalments of €21 each. Lesser donations are also very welcome from people who would like to help out but who are not in a position to fully fund a child’s education. All donations will be acknowledged and itemised in our annual accounts.

Because the Spiritan Zambia Orphan Fund has charity status, individual donations equal to or in excess of €250 are eligible for refund of tax. This has enormous benefits for the charity as it significantly increases the value of individual donations to the charity in the case of donors who are assessed under the PAYE system. It works differently in the case of companies and the self-employed - in these cases the tax is refunded to the donor, in effect reducing the cost to them of their donation. This is all explained in detail in the  Standing Order Form .

We are inviting schools to organise a non-uniform day to support education costs of less fortunate orphaned children in Zambia. Receipt of funds raised in this way will be acknowledged in writing to the school The following link contains details of the initiative:  School Non-Uniform Day .

• Bank Name and Address: Bank of Ireland, Market Sq., Navan, Co. Meath, Tel. +353 46 9021215
• Beneficiary Account Name: Spiritan Zambia Orphan Fund (Charity status reference: CHY 17485)
• Bank Account Number: 95055898
• Bank Sort Code: 903509
• Swift Code/BIC: BOFIIE2D
• IBAN: IE34BOFI90350995055898

• Beneficiary: Orphans and Vulnerables Organisation
• Bank: ABSA Bank Zambia PLC, Livingstone Road, Choma, PO Box 630018, Zambia
• Account Number: 005-1061748
• Sort Code: 021205
• Swift/Bic Code: BARCZMLX

Welcome to the Volunteer Blog. This is an area where any volunteers who have helped us can tell their stories about their experiences in Zambia and with the charity in general. It is in a forum type setup where you can see their names, their comments and the date they were made on. Hope you enjoy reading!

Zambia has numerous towns and villages. There are also many isolated bush communities located long distances from any urban areas. Most dwellings are temporary structures constructed of walls made of mud and poles covered by a grass roof. These often need to be rebuilt each year.

The people are very poor and they have to work hard to survive. They generally live in subsistence farming communities and from year to year, the climate dictates how successful or otherwise their harvests are. Severe drought can have a devastating effect. So also can a rainy season which sees excessive rain wash the crops away. Despite the extreme poverty, the Zambian people are incredibly happy and they count their blessings at every opportunity. They are warm and friendly. They have a fantastic sense of rhythm and love of music. They love to sing and dance and all major celebrations are brought alive by their big smiles, colourful attire and wonderful harmonies.

People often have to travel long distances to collect river water and transport it home in containers balanced on their heads or on sleighs or using oxen. In very lucky and rare cases, they might be provided with a borehole and hand pump. The drilling of boreholes is very costly and can only be carried out by professionals using specialised equipment. The provision of boreholes is a very ambitious project with very limited funding available, and one which is likely to take many years to realise without the support of externally sourced funding.

Often there is no electricity. People tend to work by day and sleep when it gets dark. The only possible means of provision of electric lighting in isolated communities is by solar energy. This is a luxury rarely seen in Zambia!

Head men in communities often meet to plan community development activities. For example, a goat project was initiated in Zimba, a small town north of Livingstone. Five goats were provided by the diocese for each of 10 families. The families will own their 5 goats after they have increased their stock and given 20 goats to other families. The head men are responsible for monitoring the scheme and ensure that strict care guidelines are complied with. Women’s clubs meet to learn sewing, crafts and to socialise.

Local communities are hugely supportive when required to provide improved facilities. They are prepared to dig foundations, collect stones, sand and gravel. They also burn the bricks which will be used in the building project, a very labour-intensive affair. They provide unskilled labour free. However, building projects can only be completed by professional builders. Funding is also needed to purchase cement, windows, doors and roofing materials. The provision of many of the construction materials and of free labour represents an enormous saving in the case of community building projects. However, without the help of outside funding, projects often take many years to complete as they can only progress as funding becomes available.

HIV is a big problem in Zambia but the availability of medication is helping people to enjoy better quality and longer lives.

Update Pending - please bear with us as we migrate to our new website.

If you would like to make a donation to our charity, please complete the standing order instruction below. The completed form can then be returned to Teresa Kelly, Gainstown, Navan, Co. Meath or dropped in to your bank manager. A receipt will be sent to you in respect of donations received if you contact Teresa Kelly at the above address or by telephone at +353 46 9029092 (Landline) or +353 86 3946968 (Mobile). Your generosity is very much appreciated.

 Standing Order Instructions 

There are 2 forms available depending on the donation type. Completion of these forms by the donor enables charities to receive an additional payment from the Revenue Commissioners in the case of donors who are taxpayers. This benefits the charity but does not cost the donor anything. It applies only in the case of annual donations of €250 or greater.

1. An  Enduring Certificate  is valid for a period of 5 years in respect of annual donations in excess of €250 (e.g. a single annual donation or monthly donation of €21 or more by standing order), unless you cancel it before the end of that period.
2. An  Annual Certificate  is completed in the case of donations in excess of €250 in any one year.

Our charity is acutely aware of the need for transparency and of its responsibility to its donors. For this reason, we have chosen to publish full details of all transactions on our accounts. This allows a donor to check that any particular donation was lodged to the charity account.

• Our Income and Expenditure Account provides a concise overview in respect of a particular year.
• The Cash Flow Account provides details of individual movements on the accounts throughout each year. It shows lodgements of individual donations without divulging names of the donors. It also shows all other sources of income, such as amounts collected at each church gate collection and amounts received as grant aid towards community and educational projects.

Expenditure mostly consists of transfer of funds to Zambia. The Orphans and Vulnerables Organisation (OVO) Zambia provides us with detailed annual accounts in relation to how funding received by them is utilised in Zambia.

•  Income and Expenditure 2024 
•  Cash Flow 2024 
•  Income and Expenditure 2023 
•  Cash Flow 2023 
•  Income and Expenditure 2022 
•  Cash Flow 2022 
•  Income and Expenditure 2021 
•  Cash Flow 2021 
•  Income and Expenditure 2020 
•  Cash Flow 2020 
•  Income and Expenditure 2019 
•  Cash Flow 2019 
•  Income and Expenditure 2018 
•  Cash Flow 2018 
•  Income and Expenditure 2017 
•  Cash Flow 2017 
•  Income and Expenditure 2016 
•  Cash Flow 2016 
•  Income and Expenditure 2015 
•  Cash Flow 2015 
•  Income and Expenditure 2014 
•  Cash Flow 2014 
•  Income and Expenditure 2013 
•  Cash Flow 2013 
•  Income and Expenditure 2012 
•  Cash Flow 2012 
•  Income and Expenditure 2011 
•  Cash Flow 2011 
•  Income and Expenditure 2010 
•  Cash Flow 2010 

Below is a copy of our constitution.

 Spiritan Zambia Orphan Fund Constitution 2013 

Please feel free to reach out to us using any options outlined below:

•  spiritanzambiaorphanfund@gmail.com 
•  +353 86 394 6968  (Teresa Kelly in Ireland)
•  +260 97 9949006  (Fr. Michael Walsh, C.S.Sp. in Zambia)
•  +1 609 221 3917  (Peter Sorge in United States)