Blessed Gérard's Pre-Primary School and Crèche - Postage Stamp of the Order of Malta

Exciting news:

The Sovereign Military Order of Malta
has issued a postage stamp depicting

Blessed Gérard's Pre-Primary School & Crèche

in oWhebede, kwaZulu/Natal, Republic of South Africa, on 23 September 2009

The postage stamp

The First-Day cancellation stamp

First Day Cover (FDC)

It had been most exciting news when we got a phone call on 17 April 2009 directly from the Grand Magistry of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in Rome informing us that they had chosen our photo from Blessed Gérard's Pre-Primary School & Crèche, which they had found on our homepage, to represent the Medical and humanitarian activities of the Order on one of three stamps in this series (stamp issue No. 395).

We consider this an enormous honour and privilege!

We agreed most happily and gave the necessary copyright.
That was easy as Father Gérard himself had taken this picture.

The postage stamp was finally issued on 23 September 2009.

The official "bulletin" of the Order of Malta describes the stamp as follows:

The Brotherhood of Blessed Gérard, named after the founder of the Order, is the relief organisation of the Order of Malta in South Africa. Founded in 1992 at Mandeni (north of Durban) along the South African East Coast it has its seat at Blessed Gérard's Care Centre, a multi-purpose institution, which is especially dedicated to the fight against AIDS. Apart from activities of Disaster Relief and interventions in case of severe emergencies, the Brotherhood of Blessed Gérard promotes diverse health programmes with particular attention towards prevention against the spread of HIV. It provides free treatment with antiretroviral medication for needy patients and educational bursaries for quite deserving students, has different programmes of prevention, care and help for the children. Since 2002 a palliative care department for chronic patients and the terminally sick is operational.

South Africa / Whebede
Pre-Primary School & Crèche

The Brotherhood of Blessed Gérard opened a pre-primary school & crèche in 1995 for the children of Whebede, a rural community of the Mangete Parish in the Diocese of Eshowe. Whebede is to be found about 100 km from Durban, along the coast, and is a very poor area afflicted by unemployment. The centre, which was initially aimed at accommodating 30 small guests, looked after 58 children in 2008 offering the services of a crèche, pre-primary school and nutrition.

Data di emissione: 23 Settembre 2009
Valori: francobollo da € 1,40
Soggetto:
€ 1,40 asilo nido e scuola materna a Whebede (Sud Africa) Confraternita del Beato Gerardo - Corpo di Soccorso del Sovrano Militare Ordine di Malta.
Formato francobolli: serie mm 40 x 48
Dentellatura: 14
Tiratura: dodicimila serie complete
Foglio: da dodici esemplari
Stampa: offset. I.P.Z.S. SPA - Roma
Carta: fluorescente non filigranata
Fotocolor: Foto Padre Gérard Tonque Lagleder, O.S.B. per asilo nido e scuola materna di Whebede (Sud Africa)

Date of issue: 23 September 2009
Value: stamp for € 1.40
Motif: € 1.40 Crèche and Pre-Primary School at Whebede (South Africa) Brotherhood of Blessed Gérard - Relief Organisation of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
Stamp format: serial mm 40 x 48
Dentation: 14
Volume: 12000 complete series
page: with 12 stamps
Printers: offset. I.P.Z.S. SPA - Rome
Paper: fluorescent non watermarked
Foto: Father Gérard Tonque Lagleder O.S.B. for the crèche and Pre-Primary School of Whebede (South Africa)

This is the original photo taken by Father Gérard on 18 October 2006 at 10:21 a.m.

Our educator Zanele Zikhali colouring in with our children

For more information about the project go directly to the homepage of
Blessed Gérard's Pre-Primary School & Crèche

The Sovereign Military Order of Malta
and its Magistral Post Office

The Sovereign Order of Malta is a sovereign subject of international law.

The Order - which is based in Rome, in via Condotti - has its own Government, an independent magistracy, bilateral diplomatic relations with 103 countries and is granted the status of Permanent Observer in many international organisations, such as the United Nations.

Its operational activities are managed by the six Grand Priories, six Subpriories and 47 National Associations of Knights in the five continents.

The Order issues its own passports and stamps and creates public institutions, endowed with independent juridical personality.

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Mail stamped with Sovereign Order of Malta stamps can be sent to the countries listed below, provided it is posted at the Magistral Post Office, Via Bocca di Leone 68, Rome.

Countries where there is a postal agreement in force:

Argentina
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