Warm greetings. Highlighted, in this newsletter are 4 stories... Disaster, Smile, Inspiration and Success.
Disaster - Roof of CAPEC School Removed By Storm -
Please Help Us Replace It
Disaster Hits The School: A few days ago, we were saddened to hear of a disaster at the CAPEC School in Cameroon, a school that we help support. Here is an excerpt from the email received from the school: “We had a terrible accident in school last week. Heavy rains accompanied with severe winds removed all the roof at school. We are just stuck.”
We were sadenned to see the photo. As a partner with the school, we desperately need to help get the roof back on the school. We need your kind assistance. Could you make a special donation today towards the replacement of the roof? Please help us make this disaster work out for good. When making your donation, simply choose the "Disaster Relief" category. Thanks for your support.
A Big "Thank You" to all Books and School Supplies Donors - We Appreciate Your Support
On an on-going basis, we receive supplies from children, students, adults, businesses, schools and all types of organizations and groups that are doing a phenomenal job - collecting books and school supplies for children in Africa. We extend our deep gratitude to each and every one of you for your kind assistance. Because of your support we are able to provide these supplies free. Here is a partial list of some of the groups / organizations that have sent supplies in the past months
West Seneca East Key Club
Brownie Scout Troop 306
East Ridge Academy
Faith Lutheran Church
Centri Kids
Hungerford School
Rama Lotus Yoga Centre
Florida Atlantic University Housing
East Islip High School
South Shore Education Center
Meet Smiling Thomasia - A Scholarship Beneficiary
Meet Thomasia - As you can see in the photo, Thomasia is smiling .. and she has something to smile about. Thomasia has been a recipient of scholarship funds from Develop Africa for 3 years now. She is doing great and is making steady progress in school. The assistance we have provided together has helped cover her school related costs. She and her mother are happy because this has brought a big relief to them.
In order to ensure that funds invested into the education of Thomasia and other girls are not wasted, we follow up regularly with their academic and overall progress. They are required to maintain good grades and maintain academic progress - in order to receive on-going support. They provide their academic report cards to us on a regular basis. This has helped motivate them to work hard at school - to ensure they can maintain the scholarship. The benefit to this is that good grades and progress in school directly helps their individual growth and development. You can see a copy of Thomasia’s academic report card here
Below is a thank you video from Thomasia (recorded last year). Thomasia and her mother are deeply grateful for your support.
A Dream Inspires Kennedy to Provide 10 Boxes of School Supplies
As told by Kenndy and her family:
"Kennedy is 7 years old and last December awoke from a dream stating that she wanted to help orphans from around the world. We found your site and loved the idea of sending school supplies. Kennedy spent much of her Christmas break making bookmarks and Christmas ornaments which she sold at her mom's dental office. She raised $600.00 in a matter of days. She had a blast shopping for school supplies. We were also fortunate to solicit a donation from two companies...Smilemakers (who donated pencils and toys) and Practicon (who donated toothbrushes!) We will be shipping over 10 boxes of school supplies!"
Thanks Kennedy and family for a tremendous effort and providing these supplies!
Meet Mary - A Microfinance Beneficiary - Who is More Successful Now - Thanks in Part to You
Mary is a single parent and she struggles to feed and educate her three children (2 boys, 1 girl), one in the university and two in high school. In addition to her three children Mary also has two wards. The responsibility of her family including school costs of books, school fees, uniforms, etc. rests squarely on Mary. She gets occasional assistance from her sister, but this is not enough to meet the daily needs of her family. Though a civil servant (a third grade clerk) Mary’s salary, which is less than $100 a month is pitifully insufficient to maintain her family.
Mary sells various items (ice, cold water, soft drinks, palm oil, wood and blended). She has been in this business for over 10 years to augment her income and take care of her family and educate her children. Mary makes a profit of about $20 per month. She sells her items in a nearby school which shares boundary with her house. The low profit margin threatens the sustainability of her business.
Mary therefore needed micro finance to expand her business to maximize profit, which she can plough back into the business for sustainability and to support her children, especially the two that will be entering university in October 2011. Mary is very grateful to Develop Africa and its partners for supporting her with microfinance to enhance her business and support her family.
Vision 2011 - Expand Our Impact, Invest in Lives - How You Can Help
Thanks again for helping make all this and more happen! We deeply appreciate you.
Here's how we can do more together:
1. Help us re-roof the CAPEC school
2. Commit to donating monthly. This would help us significantly. Please consider signing up for a monthly or quarterly recurring donation of $10, $25, $50 or more or more.
With the best of wishes...
Sylvester Renner and The Develop Africa Team
Families in Sierra Leone face unprecedented challenges due to rising costs. Inflation makes it difficult for them to afford basic food staples such as rice, cooking oil, and onions.
Extending a helping hand can alleviate a significant burden and provide essential relief to the less fortunate.
has something to smile about. Thomasia has been a recipient of scholarship funds from Develop Africa for 3 years now. She is doing great and is making steady progress in school. The assistance we have provided together has helped cover her school related costs. She and her mother are happy because this has brought a big relief to them.
As told by Kenndy and her family:
