by Phil Grindley
This is the story of a box that has brought more joy, dignity, hope and love to a group of young men that I have witnessed over the past 5 months. It is a box that is filled with kindness, extreme generosity and packed with such thought and care.
The box has had its own exciting ride, as you can tell by the number of layers of repacking tape that it went through.
In early January, we took 27 young men (mainly 8 -11 year olds) down to the local pool. It was an absolute scorcher. Now these boys are very special to myself and Anna, as they are boys that we have been asked to look after at Ministerio Arco-Iris, a Children’s Centre at Zimpeto. To them I am Papafil, and my wife is Mana Anna. While I won’t pretend that we can be a substitute to these boys of who their mums and dad would (in most cases) have been as parents, I have a great amount of love for them.
We arrived at the pool that January afternoon and, in the same way I would ask my own two children, I asked the boys to go and get changed into their swimmers. It was there that we realized that these boys did not have swimmers and simply stripped down to their knickers and jumped in.
We had a fun time that afternoon, don’t get me wrong, but I could not help notice that the boys were been laughed and stared at, and as their Dorm Parents even we were subject of quizzical glares. I mean who would send their own children to a public swimming pool in their underpants. My wife, Anna, came home and had a dream that perhaps we could raise some funds. These poor boys who have had a rough start to life had already suffered enough in having things that every child deserves – loving parents – and their dignity had literally been stripped bare.
To try and cut a long story short, the connection was made with seven time world champion surfer, Layne Beachley who in turn asked her friends at swimwear labels Funky Trunks and Funkita if they could help the boys. I woke one morning to a series of emails passed from person to person and ending with Funky Trunks saying that they would be ‘excited to help with togs for the boys’. It was clear to me that they genuinely wanted to help (the absolute opposite to begrudgingly helping), and in fact have done some amazing work in Vietnam, Tonga and PNG.
So shortly after the box above left Australia, full of hope, love and dreams of giving these boys back some dignity. The story gets better though. DHL Australia were moved by what Funky Trunks were up to and waived freight costs (just another incredible aspect of the generosity shown).
Then the box landed in Mozambique….
I had heard stories of customs (some really bad ones), and I was scared as to what they may do to these beautiful swimmers that had been hand-picked and sorted for the boys. Would they agree to the factory cost of the swimmers or apply their own price?
Then I saw the waybill. Funky Trunks had gone over and above. They could have stopped at swim shorts and I would have been overwhelmed. But they didn’t. They provided swimwear to go with the shorts. They provided each of the boys with a new pair of underpants. They provided frisbees and beach balls – but what would this all mean for customs?
It took 4 days before I could go to visit customs. Just enough time to hear all the stories about how it could cost hundreds if not a thousand dollars to clear. Just enough time to read into that if we did not pay, customs would auction off the swimmers. Yet I knew that these boys needed the swimmers and that the wave of love that had brought these so close to our grasp had to crash on our shores.
So we went in hoping for the best. It was an interesting experience. It was clear that the box had been opened previously and was to be opened again with me present in front of a customs officer and a guard. The box opened and I had to control my excitement when I saw the amazing gift inside. I was asked who these items were for, and I replied for the children. Immediately the box was taped up and the price on the waybill was accepted.
It took 3 hours to clear customs, but returning to the car with the box intact was mixed emotions of relief, joy and utter excitement for what was about to happen. So at 4:15 pm on the same day we walked the re-taped box up to the boys, and here are some of the reactions.
Boys playing at dorm
As you could probably imagine the rest of the afternoon was spent trying on their new wears and throwing Funky Trunk frisbees all over the playground outside their dormitory. The smiles, laughter and excitement that afternoon are things I will cherish for a life time, but then the inevitable question was asked: “Papafil, when can we go back to the pool?”
Luckily, the next day was a Saturday with an expected top of 36. So we piled as many boys into the back of our Ford Ranger and took another mini-van down the road to the pool. Again, pictures tell a thousand words…
The afternoon at the pool was incredible. Our boys were able not only to feel the love in their new swimwear, beach balls and frisbees, but even better than that… they were able to share the love as well! I think everyone at the pool that day had a chance to throw a frisbee and punch a beach ball. New friends were made that day, and the boys dignity and self-esteem received a massive boost.
Let me finish by saying thank you once again to Steve Osborne, Layne Beachley, Funky Trunks and DHL Australia. This is humanity at its best, and my prayer is simple that you will know the blessing and reward you shall receive when you clothe those in need.
Thanks to Funky Trunks for providing this feature story.
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See the Funkita range on SwimOutlet.com here.
Swimming News is courtesy of Funky Trunks, a SwimSwam ad partner.
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