Speakers Evening

In the absence of President Irene Brownless at an RIBI focus group, the virtual meeting of the Rotary Club of South Queensferry on Thursday 10th December was hosted by Vice President Derek Clerk. Rotarian Sybille Handley-Schachler introduced speaker Arif Anis Malik, whose talk to the club on 8th October was cut short because of communication problems. Arif continued the inspiring story of the creation of the charity One Million Meals.

In early March this year, Arif contracted COVID-19 when no-one knew very much about the illness. Hospitals were not taking admissions. He discovered the ambulance crew who arrived to help him had eaten nothing but a bag of crisps all day as everything, including hospital canteens, was closed. When he recovered, Arif and two friends, the owner of several restaurants and  a colleague from LSE, decided to supply meals for NHS staff, ambulance crews, police and key workers. The LSE colleague donated £10,000 and very quickly public donations built up. Their volunteers set up a website where orders for meals and drinks could be placed. These would then be delivered. High profile people endorsed their work and by June, 130,000 meals and drinks had been ordered online and delivered in England, Wales and Scotland.

Scottish people were quick off the mark to support the campaign. The Proclaimers gave permission for their song Five Hundred Miles to be adapted to One Million Meals for a You Tube campaign. As the course of the pandemic has progressed, One million Meals has broadened its focus to include vulnerable people and the homeless. 

The Proclaimers gave the Charity permission to reword their song '500 Miles'. Please follow this link to listen to this version.