Aid For Vietnam Orphans

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31681, 17 May 1968, Page 2

Aid For Vietnam Orphans

Nearly 100 army wives at Bumham Military Camp have formed a social aid club to help Vietnamese orphans.

About 1500 children’s garments, sewn by members of the club, have been handed to the Red Cross and are packed ready to send to orphanages in Vietnam. The club was formed about two months ago by the Roman Catholic and Anglican chap-

lalns at the camp, Father J. Carde and the Rev. H. Vercoe, who thought something should be done for the refugees in Vietnam. They called a meeting and a committee of three —Mesdames J. Harding (president), E. Hill and G. Seal—took

over from there. Mrs Harding is the wife of the Camp Commandant. The club’s membership Is made up of about two-thirds of the wives at Bumham, some of whose husbands have served in Vietnam. The materials are donated by Christchurch firms, warehouses and factories. They are cut out by members and taken to the homes of 45 members who have volunteered to do the sewing. Several of the W.R.A.C.S at Bumham have also helped. To ensure that the correct sizes and styles are produced, two South Vietnamese students, Mr Luong Binh Nguyen, from Lincoln College, and Miss Danielle Le Chong, from Ham University, have attended club meetings to assist the designers. The club has had three meetings so far. “The idea is to cut out too much talk and have plenty of action,” Father Carde said yesterday. The picture shows Mesdames E. Hill, D. Vercoe and J. McCabe discussing the club’s book of patterns and deciding on appropriate materials.