Dear Members Matopos Alpine Club

The Matopos Alpine Club has been in existence for some years supporting not only Zimbabwean Skiers, but also a lot of other antipodeans; providing recreation, competition and a lot of fun.

The honorary club home of the Matopos Alpine Club (Camp Dwala, in the Matobo Hills) is nearing completion and looks forward to welcoming many members and friends of the club in the future. Efforts to get the required white stuff onto the ski slopes are proving problematic as the tropical climate just will not drop down to anything close to freezing, so alternative skiing options may have to be tried. Options such as board skiing down solid granite rock, and as the Matobo Hills is about to become a world heritage site we ask you not to mark the "Dwala" and clean up afterwards.

Now to a more serious aspect. This year the Matopos Alpine Club will be supporting worthy causes. These are firstly the Matobo Conservation Society and the Matabeleland Hockey Trust.

The Matobo Conservation Society (MCS) is an organistaion that has spearheaded the World Heritage nomination and is active within the Hills. It is committed to sustainable conservation within the Matobo Hills area. During times of natural disaster (cyclones, droughts etc) the MCS has supported local communities. The drought and current farming crisis in Zimbabwe has left villages in the area in a state of near starvation. It is hoped that we will be able to assist those such as the elderly and the AIDS orphans. This is a massive task but even a small amount of support will go a long way with these people.

The Matabeleland Hockey Trust is aimed at assisting with the maintenance of the Khumalo Hockey Stadium and the development of hockey in the province. The stadium benefits the younger generation enormously but receives very limited government support. Due to the severe foreign currency shortages in the country and inflation rates that are surging ahead, the ability of the hockey community to maintain the fine facility, which is so pivotal to the development of hockey is seriously stretched. Again even a little support goes a long way.