Pennies 4 Kenya

Great news for Collecting 4 Kenya!  Eden and Grayson (my two oldest children) have invited their friends from ECOLE JOE CLARK SCHOOL (in High River, Alberta) to become more involved in their global community.  Starting in June, a campaign called PENNIES 4 KENYA will begin.  Students will bring their pennies to the school, and everything collected will be put toward sustainable projects in Kenya.

As a special jump start to the campaign, Ecole Joe Clark School has graciously donated this week's funds from the school's recycling program!

During June, I will be going to each classroom and doing a special presentation about Kenya. The children will learn about the culture, communities and people that they are saving their pennies for. It will be a great way for the kids to become more aware of our world, and the beauty and sometimes struggles of the people in it.

As the Canadian penny will soon be out of circulation, this will be a great way to make use of your pennies that will otherwise, soon become worthless. These pennies can still make a difference for children who need it, so let's start looking between those couch cushions and breaking out those penny jars. 

 LET YOUR PENNIES MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!

p.s. Special thanks to Mrs. Shannon Colbert and especially Mrs. Peggy Gerrard for all your help developing and carrying out the beginning stages of Pennies 4 Kenya!

*If you happen to be visiting Ecole Joe Clark School, be sure to visit the display case near the front office to see artifacts and photos directly from Kenya. 

Christmas in Kenya

Here's a new video I'm so excited to share with everybody!  Collecting 4 Kenya, and some anonymous donors came together to provide food for Selena's Village on Christmas Day.  My friend Lucy was sent the donation money, then shopped for and arranged the delivery of all the food.  She also made all the arrangements for cooking, distributing etc.  Lucy also went the extra mile by collecting clothes from some of her friends, and distributing them to those who needed it in the village.  She also made a great effort to take and send these photos.  Thank-you so much Lucy!!  This wouldn't have happened without you! 

I have been so touched by this paticular project. Thanks to all of you who continue to donate your bottles etc.  This gift directly affected at least 200 people in the village, and quite honestly, made my Christmas one of the best ever. 

Good News from Kenya!

So after 6 months...(that's right, I said 6!) the soccer equipment finally arrived at Al-Huda Primary school in Kenya!  Mid-September I received a phone call from Mr. Musa, the principal.  He said he had good news...which was a surprise in itself!  Sure enough, both packages had arrived, with all of their contents! 

I can't even tell you how excited I was!  I had really almost completely lost hope of them getting there at all, wondering if the contents had been stolen.  But HALF OF A YEAR, and many, many prayers later...the boxes finally did arrive.  A miracle in my books!

  I am told that the kids are very excited.  From the pictures...it's hard to tell.  They are not really smiling...but I learned while I was there, that this is quite normal.  Almost everyone poses for pictures in Kenya, with a very serious face.  

One of the things I loved while I was there, was seeing these people who had literally only the worn, simple clothes on their backs (if they were lucky), smiling and laughing and playing like they were missing nothing. I wanted to capture that in my photos.  I wanted to show others who these people are, not just their circumstances. 

So when it came to picture time, there was often a little prompting from me, "Come on you guys!  SMILE!  I'm not taking the picture until I see you SMILE!!" More often than not, they would crack, revealing these great, genuine laughs.  Even thinking of it now just makes me happy :) 

So, as I was not there to prompt these smiles, the kids are mostly smile-less.  But I have kindly requested smiles for next time ;) 

I just want to again, thank all of you for your support throughout all this.  The things we are doing with Collecting 4 Kenya make a difference, even if it's small.  All of you are helping me to do something I could definately not do on my own.  Thank-you for that. 

Mr. Musa and Al-Huda Primary, have asked me to thank-you, but I think I'll just end by letting you read the message he sent me today: 

"Pass our regards to all your friends who contributed to the school.  We are really praying for you people and looking (for) them soon (to) visit our school.  You are great friends.  The boys and the entire school were very grateful and praying for you all.  They are all excited and the parents have also sent their warm regards during this festive season."

p.s.  Mark off March 10th, 2012 on your calenders!  Collecting 4 Kenya will be having a benefit concert and small silent auction to raise the rest of the money for the Poultry Project, and hopefully even more to contribute to new projects with some of Kenya's orphans.  Stay tuned...

Water Tank Project Photos!!!

Hey Guys!  Here are some photos from the water tank project!  Finally!!! 

This is Selena's village in Karen, Kenya.  The people that live here are squatters that have been allowed to live on private land.  They came to this area about 9 years ago, being forced by drought to find new grazing area for their herds.  Because of the fact that they do not own this land, we had to come up with a water solution that did not include any permanent structures, so that if they are ever forced off the land, they could take everything with them. Hence, the water tank.

 A platform needed to be built to properly support the 5000 litre water tank (essentially a giant rain barrel). 

Izzo, from Marafiki Community (above in the Plaid fedora) ran the project for me.  He brought in volunteers and hired locals to build the platform and put the project together.

I loved seeing these pictures.  I love seeing the village members come out to be a part of the project, and seeing the excitement in the people's eyes.

 Putting in the footings for the platform.

 I love seeing the villagers getting involved, working with the volunteers.  It's impressive each time I see them wanting to help, doing what they can to improve the quality of life for their friends and family.  There's something amazing about seeing people who need so much, giving everything they can to help each other.

The water tank!  There was an existing church building in the village, so an eaves trough system was created to direct rain water into the tank.  There are two main rainy seasons in Kenya; a short one in November and a longer one from about March to May.  Rain collection is a very common practise, as the water stored during the rainy seasons can be used during the rest of the year.  Ideally, we would have more than just the one tank, but that will come in time.  The platform could easily handle another tank, so hopefully sooner than later. 

I'm not 100% sure, but I am guessing that these are the elders of the village at the end of the project.  From the reports from Lucy (Selena's daughter), the people in the village are very happy with the project, and seeing the pictures for myself...I am happy with it too.  I can't wait to go back, and visit with these people and be in the village again.  Thank-you so much to all of you who helped to make this project possible!  It definitely could not have happened without all of you!  Please know that you are making a real difference in these people's lives.  Such small acts like yours, really do make a huge difference for these people.  I'm so grateful to all of you, and I can't wait to get started on the next one!  Make sure to check out my earlier post, "The Poultry Project and the Inadequacies of Canada Post" to learn about the new project.  Let's keep this going guys!

The Poultry Project...and the Inadequacy of Canada Post

So it's been a while...and honestly with good reason.  I kept hoping to come back with some fantastic news, or great pictures to display of the projects I've been working on...but really, I have little of that.  The good news is that because of the money raised in the past months, a water tank project was finished successfully in Selena's village.  Hiring locals, and using volunteers, a cement platform was built next to an existing building in the village, eaves trough were installed, and a 5000 litre tank was set up to collect rain water during the rainy seasons.  This will provide much needed clean water for the village.  Really great news!  The bad news, despite efforts, I still have no visual proof of the project for your viewing, or mine.  Really frustrating actually.  But, Selena's daughter has been out to the village, has seen the project, and has assured me that it is complete, and that the villagers are very happy with the outcome.  Now if only it would rain...
And now for the not so good news...
The two boxes of sporting equipment I sent to Al-Huda Primary School via Canada Post have still not arrived.  They said it would take 3-6 weeks...and I sent them on March 19th so you would think (nearly 5 months later) they would be there.  But no.  And when I put in an official inquiry, their response was, "An agent will contact you in 60-90 days."  "Will contact you"...not, will have tracked down and delivered the packages, just "contact" me.  And guess who went on strike 3 days later?  So I received a letter in the mail today, stating that "Sarah from Kenya"...says that it takes "3-6 MONTHS for a ground package to be delivered from Canada to Kenya".  Well... I'm so glad that Canada Post has insider information from people like "Sarah from Kenya".  Now I can rest easy!  So now Canada Post will only let me make another inquiry after September 2011, because of the new 3-6 month timeline they are now allowing for.  Fantastic.  Because if I knew it was going to take 6 months, I would have taken my chances, strapped the packages to a blind, one-legged monkey, pointed him in the general direction of Kenya, and he probably still would have gotten the packages there before Canada Post... Are you picking up on the bitter sarcasm?  'cause I'm laying it on pretty thick.  Moving on...
So I am developing a new project for Al-Huda Primary School.  (Thanks to my sister Dana, who came up with the fantastic idea in the first place.)  The goal is to build and run a small poultry farm at the school.  The students will learn and be a part of raising and selling the chickens and/or eggs as a part of the school curriculum.  This has the potential to provide the school with money to build a sustainable farm, provide food for the children and their families, as well as giving students relevant training and skills for future use.  I have the Principal of Al-Huda, Ahamed Musa, as well as Lucy (a teacher at the school) working with me on this one to make this project sustainable and successful.  The initial projections for the cost was around $6000 CAD, but I have asked Mr. Musa and Lucy if we can begin on a smaller scale, so we can raise the money and begin the project sooner.  I have approx. $1200 still in the Collecting 4 Kenya fund, so at least that's a start.  But once again I am calling on all of you for help.  Bottles, cans, any beverage container...I will come and pick them up from you!  I will also be accepting cash donations for the project, realizing that it would take a collection of 48,000 small beverage containers to make up what I lack in funds. That could take longer to collect than it takes Canada Post to deliver a package!
It is important to me that this project gets put into action quickly.  The famine in East Africa is affecting millions, Kenya included.  I ache for these people, and hope that this can in some way, help at least some.  Sustainability is the key, and I think this poultry project has the potential to help not only the nearly 1000 students at the school, but their families (present and future) and potentially the whole town of Kajiado.  Let's do something guys!

Ditch-Pickers Anonymous

Hello.  My name is Tiffany...and I'm a ditch-picker. 
In efforts to reach our recycling goal which ended yesterday, last Friday after school, the kids and I did a little "activity".  Yes...ditch-picking.  You may have seen two red-heads holding black garbage bags bouncing around the ditches outside of Okotoks, followed closely by me in our van.  Slave labor?  Maybe.  But effective...surprizingly yes :)  Eden and Grayson walked/ran about 5km, racing to see who could find the most cans and bottles.  It was actually a lot of fun :)  Grayson kept yelling, "This is SO AWESOME!" as they scoured the ditches, finding 2 bags worth of recyclables to add to the effort. Grayson even asked me yesterday if we could do it again this week :)

So, as you probably remember, Collecting 4 Kenya was given an incredible opportunity in February by Chris's Uncle Don, that would match every dollar raised in recycling until March 20th.  Realizing the potential of the offer, I made collecting bottles my obsession.  Obnoxious amounts of facebook promoting, blog entries, ditch-picking, begging... shamless, but effective ;)  So effective in fact, that Chris's uncle was forced to change the offer to match the first $1000 raised.  Still, obviously an incredible opportunity!

With all that said, and March 20th come and gone, here are the results:
      
Funds raised in Recycling:  $1161.70

Total raised (incl. recycling, donations, Etsy Shop purchases etc.):  $1622.45

These totals do not include the contributions from Uncle Don.

Well guys, it's been an amazing 30 days.  Crazy busy...but amazing.  I'm so grateful for the interest, efforts and support from so many!  And remember, this is not the end...but it sure is a great beginning :)

Jazz Flautists 4 Kenya.

The boxes went out today!  But don't hold your breath.  The slow boat doesn't get to Kenya for another 4-6 weeks.  Why the slow boat? Because I would have had to put a second mortgage on the house if I sent it by air.  I had to moonlight as a back-up interpretive dancer for a local theatre group just to save up to send it on the slow boat.  Wait a second, what?  Okay, so I didn't moonlight as a back-up interpretive dancer...but I probably should have.  I mean, I do have a black unitard, and that extra cash sure would have helped out on such expensive shipping costs.  Plus, I hear back-up interpretive dancing is where the money is.  That, or becoming a jazz flautist.  Both of which I should seriously look into before attempting to raise money to ship expensive packages again.  And we're moving on...

Interested to know what we sent to Al-Huda Muslim School?
              - 35 balls (some basket balls and volley balls included as well)
              - 64 jerseys (enough for 5 teams)
              - 23 pairs of shorts (to match 2 sets of jerseys, enough for 2 teams)
              - 5 goalie jerseys, and 1 pair of goalie pants
              - 2 pairs of goalie gloves
              - 2 ball bags
              - 1 equipment bag
              - 2 extra t-shirts (to match one set of uniforms, could be for the coaches I guess)
              - 2 inflation needles
              - 1 extra ball (for Shadrack, one of my favourite boys in Selena's village)

                                                                     Shadrack and I


So... 4-6 weeks.  I can't wait.  And I've said it before...but definitely worth saying again...What I wouldn't do to be there!  Love those kids :)

A huge THANK-YOU! to the soccer clubs (Foothills SC, Calgary Blizzards, and Darrel Dowhaniuk -formerly Okotoks Dynasty) who so willingly donated so much to these kids.  It will brighten their lives in a way we can't even imagine :)

And there are more projects to come!  Check back Monday when I'll give the results for the 30 day recycling blitz and plans for up-coming projects.

So good you guys!!  Can't get the smile off my face :)                   

Bend it like Beckham

I've been searching for a music reference to name this post.  But really, how many recognizable music references are about soccer?  So, in place of a music reference...a cliche soccer reference to get us started...

About 6-7 months ago, I sent a few packages out to Kenya.  I included a couple of soccer balls for Al-Huda Muslim School.  As far as I know, this brought their total soccer ball count up to...well, 2.  In a school with around 1000 students, that doesn't quite seem sufficient. 
A couple of weeks ago, I received a phone call from Mr. Musa, the principal of Al-Huda.  I asked him what they REALLY needed at the school, just so I am making myself aware of the real needs of these kids, rather than just having my own agenda (which is surprizingly flawed sometimes...what's up with that?)
He talked about building latrines.  If I remember correctly, there are only a couple of latrines for 1000 kids.  Not okay.  But he told me that they would cost about $1500 Canadian to build just one.  $1500 each...wow. So...let's just say that that might be a future project.  But he also mentioned that the school had been practising with the soccer balls that I had sent, and are now entering competitions. This definitely made me smile.  What they lacked however, were soccer uniforms, shoes and more balls.  Now I know that this is not necessarily a "need", but I thought I'd look into it anyway.
I ended up contacting like 10 soccer clubs in Calgary, and telling them briefly of the situation, and asking them if they happened to have any extra jerseys laying around.  The response was fantastic!  I have had 5 sets of jerseys donated, 2 equipment bags, 27 balls, and we are going to pick more up today!  I cannot tell you how happy this has made me!  I was beaming every time I thought about it last week.  What I wouldn't do to be there when they open this package.  The kids are going to go crazy :)

So guys, good things continue to happen, and it's all because of you!  People are being so generous.  There are only 4 days left for us to raise $1000 in recycling, so PLEASE LET ME STEAL YOUR CANS!!!  Wait..that doesn't sound right.
But don't think of March 20th as the end, this is definitely an on-going fundraiser.  These efforts will continue long after March 20th.  And if you're willing, please continue to designate your recycling to Collecting 4 Kenya for as long as possible... forever would be ideal ;)

Asante Sana :)

Collecting 4 Kenya Slideshow - music by Kurt Bestor

The Final Countdown!

Nothing like a little 80's Synth Rock.  But to be honest, my love of the song actually stems from Arrested Development.  Love the Magician named GOB :)  Classic.

But seriously, we are down to the last 18 days guys!  Luckily I just finished my last paper for my class in International Community Development, so I can completely focus on this.

This past week has been great for fundraising.  On Sunday, I had a ton of feed back from people in my church offering to give me their cans, so I will be making a big pick-up tomorrow, as well as a large corporate pick-up on Friday.

So far this week, I have made two trips to the bottle depot, that have brought in $251.00! YAY!!  The employees at the bottle depot know me and the kids well now, and are always ready with suckers for the kids, and to help me carry in the myriad of bags filled with recyclables.  They've even contributed to the cause :)

I have been in contact with Izzo, the head of Marafiki Community, several times now.  He has volunteers working on a cost list, so I have a better idea of where to put the money we've raised.  He has also been in contact with Selena's daughter, Lucy (the woman I stayed with most of the time in Kenya).  Izzo and Lucy are going out to Selena's village on the weekend, and Izzo is considering starting up some projects with the village as well! The village has been encountering shortages of food, as well as water.  I'm excited to have Izzo and Marafiki Community involved with this village, as they can be the local eyes and ears on a community that means so much to me.

Great things are happening!  Keep your support coming guys, the next 18 days are going to be great.
Thanks again for everything you are doing!

Under Pressure

I've decided to keep the musical quotes going for a while...and who couldn't use a little Freddie Mercury once in a while right?  And if you don't know who Freddie Mercury is... you are Stone Cold Crazy.  Who Wants To Live Forever, when it's a life without Queen?  You'd just be trying to Keep Yourself Alive, and eventually, after this Bicycle Race we call life is coming to an end, all the Fat Bottomed Girls would point and say, Another One Bites The Dust.   Too much?  eeeeeyah.  Moving on...

Update...The pressure is on to get in as many cans as possible with our March 20th deadline, but don't worry, you guys are stepping up.  I've had tons of help from family and friends to get this going.  People are offering to collect as well as collect from their neighbours.  People are collecting from work, and I am working on getting some schools to collect as well.  Just since last Friday, where we made $78 at the bottle depot, I've made two trips back, that helped raise $164.35!  I've made some sales from my Etsy shop as well, which brings us up to $385.10! Pretty good for less than two weeks running :)

Keep it up guys, I am so excited!  Thank-you all once again for all your support :)

Another Miracle!

So Chris's Uncle just sent him a message that I need to share:


"Hi Chris - This is your uncle down in Portland, Oregon. I like Tiffany's project in Kenya. Gracie and I would like to encourage all to give to this great endeavor. We'll match dollar for dollar all the recycling money she can raise in the next 30 days! Let's make a difference!"

You guys!!!  This is amazing!!  Please help this fantastic cause by giving me your recycling and encourage your friends to do the same!  What a fantastic opportunity you guys.  WE HAVE UNTIL MARCH 20TH!!!!!!  Anyone who would like to help me put together a bottle drive (or more than one) is also welcome to contact me, I might not be able to do this all on my own!  Thanks guys, LET"S MAKE THIS COUNT!!

Ain't Too Proud to Beg!

Okay,
So after my first attempt at asking people for their recyclables, I had two people let me come get them. My dad, and Chris's aunt.  Kind of sad really. So realizing that I might have to resort to extreme measures, begging and bribery came into the picture.  Hey, I ain't too proud to beg!  See what I did there?
So after the begging and bribery attempts, I very quickly got 4 more offers.  Plus, I had some offers from Toronto, Newfoundland and Ottawa.  So I'm planning a trip to go out east to pick up their cans!  Okay, no...I'm not going to do that.  But still, more people who were willing :) Who knew that begging would work so well?  If I knew that this tactic was so useful, I definitely would have found a use for it before now, believe me!
Results from the bottle depot were miraculous!  Even the employees kept thanking me for such a huge order.  We ended up coming out of there with $78!  How often do you come out of the bottle depot with $78?  Like never.  Miracle:)
So with the infamous $8.65 that started us out, the $78 from Friday, $14.10 from an earlier bottle depot visit in the week, plus an anonymous $10 donation from a family member with a strange bottle fetish, we're up to $110.75!  So excited you guys.  Even such a small amount can make a difference for these people.
So what's next?  I will continue to beg for more recyclables. I really want this to be an on-going thing.  The recycling, not necessarily the begging ;)  I've also posted new Africa pictures in my Etsy store, so go check those out.  I'm in the process of making greeting cards with my photos on them to sell at local businesses, and I have a few other ideas in the works.  If anyone else has other ideas on how to raise more money, let me know. 
My sister also wants me to start posting stories from Africa, so get ready for that.
A huge thank-you for everyone that helped out this week, either with their recyclables, or just their encouragement.  I really appreciate it.
And since I started out with the legendary lyrics of the Temptations, I might as well end with them...

If I have to sleep on your doorstep
All night and day just to keep you from recycling those cans
Let your friends laugh, even this I can stand
Because I want to keep your refundable cans.

I think those are the words anyways.  Who knew the Temptations were such weird can stalkers?

Here we go!

Hey guys!
So after returning from a volunteering trip to Kenya last summer, I have struggled to come up with a world changing idea to make a difference in the lives of the people I visited.  After much thought and stressing, I have NOT come up with anything world changing (surprise, surprise) but have settled on what little I can do at the moment.  I started collecting my cans, milk bottles etc. to take to the bottle depot, rather than just putting them into recycling.  Not a new idea by any means, but it's something easy, that will get me doing something, rather than waiting for the big idea to come, and doing nothing in the mean time.  Because let's be honest... I could be waiting a long time!
So today I took my bin of collectables to the bottle depot and ended up with a whopping $8.65! "WWWOW!" you say very sarchastically.  Don't worry, so do I.  So maybe I need to step this up a bit. 
I've decided to offer to collect your money-worthy recyclables.  I will drop off a bin, and collect it's contents once a week.  Probably on Fridays.  So, if you live in the Okotoks area, and are willing to let me steal your cans etc., for a great cause, let me know@ collecting4kenya@gmail.com.