Initiative aims to raise funds for the construction of a school in Madagascar, Africa.
By Marco Antonio Cruz – FWB Press Office
With the objective of raising funds for the construction of a school in Madagascar, within Madagascar Action project, from the humanitarian organization Fraternity Without Borders (FWB), volunteer Lena Stehlik, a Brazilian living in Germany, promoted an action of selling typical traditional Brazilian cheese bread. She sold 78 kg of cheese bread and her initiative intends to continue in three German cities and another one in Austria.
“In 2020 we sold some cheese bread, and the proceeds went to Madagascar. Last year, in December, a friend from Austria and I were planning to participate in the Christmas market on the border of Germany and Austria. At this market, I intended to sell cheese bread and Christmas decorations to help in the construction of a school in Madagascar. But Austria went in lockdown, the borders were closed, and the Christmas market was cancelled”, she recalls.
According to the volunteer, two of her friends were already making the breads dough and freezing it when they had to change their plans and started to offer the product among friends. Lena said a volunteer group with 40 members was created – the Kette der Liebe, means “Chain of Love” in English.
Some of them are Lena in the city of Regensburg and Maeli and Tercilia in Passau, Larene, Ingrid, and Silvia in Trier, all in Gemany, and Marilia in Suben, Austria.
“Things doesn’t happen just because. We had a friend who was unemployed due to the pandemic, and he started making the typical traditional Brazilian cheese bread to sell. I made an ad throughout our group of friends to sell it. But he ended up moving to England, sold us the tapioca flower and gave us his wonderful recipe. The biggest cost for us to make the cheese breads is the “polvilho” – the tapioca flower,”says the volunteer.
The intention now is to follow through with this action to build a school in Madagascar. The functions will be divided in each city with two groups. One to produce the breads, in charge to get donation of the ingredients, make the dough and bake the breads. The other group will oversee sales and delivery.
“The public we want to reach are Brazilian and Germans. Because the Brazilian cheese bread is very appreciated by Germans. My husband get together with a group of friend and take the cheese breads, and they all love it. We will pick a date to make a common event at the same period. I’ve been talking to a friend that sells Brazilian products on-line and she’ll try to get the “polvilho” cheaper or donated. My slogan is “Isssss cheese”
