Knights of Columbus recognized for outreach to Tanzanian children

 

Efforts to improve the lives of Tanzanian children by Columbia-area Knights of Columbus were recognized Sept. 28.

The National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers presented an award to Timothy Lynch for his leadership in the Tanzanian Children’s Project, a non-profit organization supported by Knights of Columbus Council No. 7559 in Columbia.

A member of the Knight’s council and a parishioner of St. John the Evangelist in Columbia, Lynch is president and a founder of the Tanzanian Children’s Project, which fundraises for development projects benefitting children and the community of Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church in Mahida, Tanzania.

According to the Tanzanian Children’s Project, it seeks to provide health care access, supplement existing water sources, offer education and help the area’s large orphan population. Most of its projects’ funding has come from the Columbia area.

In the past three years, the organization has raised funds for a new medical clinic and now plans to build a Catholic primary school.

Lynch, who works as a program manager for the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services in Woodlawn, has served as president for the Tanzanian Children’s Project for three years.

According to the organization, Lynch is a “key link” between the council and Sacred Heart of Jesus’ pastor, as well as the health and education leaders of the Moshi Diocese, which includes the parish. With the help of Catholic Relief Services, Lynch has ensured correct funding appropriation and recently traveled to Tanzania to visit the new clinic.