Barrhead footballers have pitched in to support a charity which transforms the lives of underprivileged children in Africa.

Players from Barrhead Youth Football Club donated strips to Mary’s Meals, which is currently working in 19 countries across the world to support kids who are hungry and struggle to access education.

The charity will now distribute the kit to youngsters in Malawi, in south-east Africa, who have very few possessions of their own.

Blair McMillan, who coaches the 2013s team at Barrhead Youth Football Club, said: “We have lots of lovely kids here and I was asking them for ideas on what we could do to help others.

“I already had the idea of donating the football strips but hadn’t said anything to them but one of the kids mentioned it, so we ran with that.

“There’s so much waste in the world, we’re such a throwaway society. It’s nice that the kids over there are getting the chance to have these strips.”

The club, which was founded in 1972, runs teams for children and young people aged from four to 21.

Karen Gray, of Mary’s Meals, has thanked the club for its donation.
She said: “We’re so grateful that Barrhead Youth Football Club thought of us by donating their strips.

“These items can be put to great use by Mary’s Meals as part of our Backpack Project, which donates school bags filled with essentials to give children in Malawi a chance to get the most out of their education.

“It is wonderful to see the immense joy these bags bring to every child who receives one.

“The promise of a daily meal in school attracts impoverished children to the classroom, where they can gain an education that will one day be their ladder out of poverty.”

Donated backpacks can be filled with various items, such as pens, notebooks, t-shirts, sandals and towels.

For more information or to support the charity’s work, visit Mary's Meals.