 I am writing on behalf of the ‘Kits for Kumuls’ appeal that was
officially launched on 27th May 2010.
Sheffield Eagles’ player Menzie Yere has set up a charity to
donate used football boots and rugby shirts and other kit (shorts, balls,
training gear, etc) to impoverished players in his home country of Papua New
Guinea.
Papua New Guinea is classed as a third world country and is the
only country in the world where Rugby League is the national sport.
The idea came from Menzie last season when each month from his
wage he would buy a couple of pairs of football boots and send them back to
his home village in PNG. By the end of the season, he’d collected enough used
kit from teammates to more than fill his luggage allocation on the long
flight home. In fact, it was double his allowance; a director of Sheffield
Eagles RLFC paid for the balance to be forwarded onto PNG by courier, after
the airline wanted £485 in excess baggage!
We are asking that your club support this
appeal (which the RFL are also kindly backing), by donating as much used or
new kit and pairs of boots as you have available. In
return we would hope that the recipients in PNG would take notice of your
clubs name and support your team from a distance. We will also include your
club / individuals name (if requested) on our ‘Roll of Honour’ on our website
www.kits4kumuls.com
We would also ask that your club becomes a
collection point for this appeal where people can bring their used shirts,
boots and kit to, for us to collect from you at a time to suit yourselves.
Please email as soon as possible if you can do this, so we can put it on our
website.
The kits, boots, etc will be distributed by the Rotary Club
based in Port Moresby, which is the capital of Papua New Guines.
Due to the high costs in shipping, we would be extremely
grateful if you could donate any memorabilia (signed shirt, in fact anything
that we could auction to put towards these costs).
If you require any further information, please do not hesitate
to contact us.
Thank you for any support you can give.
Best Regards
Chris Noble, MBE
Director, Sheffield Eagles RLFC | 
