After a great event during the past years, the 3rd edition of Challenge for a Smile in aid for Puttinu Cares Children’s Cancer Foundation at Rainbow Ward in Mater Dei Hospital, will be held on the 8th of December 2008
In view of the various press releases issued recently, and comments by several journalists on the local media, the committee of the Puttinu Cares Foundation, who were totally responsible for the purchase, furnishing and for setting up the whole opening ceremony of the three Sutton apartments, would like to point out that:
Puttinu Cares Children’s Cancer Foundation is a totally independent NGO with no other association or relationship with any other group.
HSBC is one of the many sponsors of our organisation and they have pledged to donate €4,666 per year to Puttinu Cares.
The three Sutton apartments in London were bought and are being paid from the donations of the Maltese and Gozitan people during their participation in activities organised by our committee.
During these activities both the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition and other members of parliament together with our religious leaders were always invited and we were always honoured by their presence.
To buy these apartments a loan of € 896, 000 was acquired from HSBC at an interest rate of 6.1% per annum and repayable over a ten year period. This means that this year we will pay €55,000 in interest and a grand total of €350,000 interest over the whole period.
Contrary to what was written in the newspapers we would like to point out that Dr. Victor Calvagna is the chairperson for Puttinu Cares Children’s Cancer Foundation while Mrs. Kate Gonzi is the chairperson of HSBC Cares for Children Fund. These are two completely different entities with different aims. It is also important to point out that neither HSBC nor the HSBC Cares for Children Fund had anything to do with the purchasing of the Sutton apartments. This venture was solely the initiative of Puttinu Cares and HSBC happens to be the bank that loaned us the money.
Mrs Kate Gonzi is a charismatic person who is liked and respected by the entire Maltese nation. She also happens to be the prime minister’s wife and has close links with HSBC. Mrs Gonzi has inaugurated a number of our previous events and she is a strong advocate for all children with special needs. Because of these excellent qualities we asked her to officially inaugurate the three Sutton apartments. We have always been honoured by her presence and the families of the children in Rainbow Ward appreciate and value her presence.
Mrs. Michelle Muscat was officially invited by the Puttinu Cares Committee and we were also honoured by her presence. We wanted to show the Maltese nation that partisan politics had no place in the work that we do and it is a shame that some people are using such a noble cause for their own pet hates. It is important to point out that at no time did Mrs. Muscat ever overstep her invitation.
Our activities and events depend significantly on the media for publicity and raising awareness. We have always gladly accepted the help and support from those willing to facilitate our mission of collecting funds to help the families of children suffering from cancer. This was always done with no obligations or conditions imposed on us and no pound of flesh was ever taken in return.
The production team of Bla Agenda gave us an excellent and fair deal to cover the official inauguration of the Sutton Apartments. It would have been a shame to miss out on such an opportunity because of the prejudices of some people, who should actually know better. It is true that Bla Agenda covered the whole event but a journalist/cameraman from Net TV was also present throughout the whole visit to Sutton and the opening ceremony of the apartments.
It was the committees’ and families’ wish to have His Excellency the Mgr. Archbishop Paul Cremona bless the apartments and visit the families.
Puttinu Cares aims to reduce the suffering experienced by families with children who have cancer that need treatment locally and/or abroad. During the past three years about a hundred families had to go abroad with their children for further treatment and Puttinu Cares has always done its utmost to cover all the extra-medical expenses incurred. We also tried to give dignity and respect to all the families and children undergoing cancer treatment irrespective of their social and political background. Therefore, for the love of God and if you have the welfare of these children close to your hearts, don’t use our noble initiatives as your football ground.
The Committee - Puttinu Cares Childrens Cancer Foundation
Puttinu Cares Children’s Cancer Foundation would like to thank you for your generous contribution of books for our library. However, we would like to inform you that now we have an adequate amount of books and thus we cannot accept anymore due to lack of space. So please share this email around and stop sending books to Rainbow Ward.
Also, kindly ignore and delete any emails which are not authorised by the committee of Puttinu Cares. Please help us stop this circulation. Any activities or donation gathering should always be authorised by the committee.
On the 24, 25, 26 April 2009 we will be organizing the 5th Football marathon. We will be requiring volunteers in the animation and entertainment section so that we will be able to make these three days more colourful for the children. Those who are interested kindly send email on: rennie.zerafa@gov.mt
Thanks for your co-operation
Rennie Zerafa
Activities Co-ordinator
Puttinu Children's Cancer Foundation
