Our Projects: Progress / Results

Project Goal: Renovate a home/school for returning youth refugees
Location: Robertsport, Liberia

The renovations have begun! The once dilapidated structure that is soon to become the Strongheart House in Robertsport, Liberia will serve as a hub for many young refugees wishing to develop their entrepreneurial spirit in a safe and supportive environment.

Some of the building supplies have been purchased from local vendors and the Strongheart team in Liberia is recruiting and employing local skilled laborers and volunteers to work on the renovations of the house. While construction is underway, Lovetta Conto and other orphaned children are patiently waiting to have a place to call home and be able to participate in Strongheart's uniquely crafted curriculum that encompasses a mind, body and spirit approach that will help them actualize their potential as successful entrepreneurs. When the renovations are complete fourteen children will have access to the infrastructure and the resources needed to become Liberia's next generation of problem-solvers in rebuilding their country.

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Project Goal: Purchase educational toys and nutritious supplements
Location: Changsha and Hengshan, rural China

Educational toys and nutritious meals and supplements have been ordered and will be delivered as needed to foster families caring for orphaned children, many who have developmental and physical disabilities. Educational toys and a nutritious diet help develop the foundation of a strong, smart and confident child. Thanks to the GO Community's efforts, babies living with foster families will grow-up equipped to be able to start school with their peers.

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Project Goal: Provide caretakers' salaries and support adoptive parent trainings
Location: Changsha and Hengshan, rural China

Thanks to donations from the GO community, Nurse Meng has been able to continue her weekly visits with new foster families. Her visits have made a tremendous difference in the families' capacity to be able to properly care for their new babies. And, Dr. Tong is now available to help foster families with medical emergencies and cope with severe illness. In addition, Pearl River Outreach has been able to offer parent trainings that have proven to be a valuable resource for the new foster parents and other parents from the Changsha and Hengshan communities in rural China.

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Project Goal: Renovate a school and build classrooms
Location: Huama, Peru

Repairs have been completed on a handful of classrooms at the Huama Community School in the remote mountainous Andes region inhabited by the indigenous Quechua people. Fortunately, the repairs were completed prior to the torrential rains that have caused havoc in the region. Rain and flooding have caused the building of new classrooms to be postponed until our partner can adequately assess the most sustainable way to proceed.

The rain will subside and the skies will become clear again, but the impact of the severe flooding will have lasting affects, just as the new classrooms and renovations will have a lasting effect on the community's school children once they are completed.

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Project Goal: Build classroom and provide education essentials to HIV positive children
Location: Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania

With GO's grant of $13,891, the GO Community funded the building of a kindergarten classroom in Moshi, in the rural area of Mabogini, where 68 new kindergarteners are now enrolled. Unlike most of the other classrooms, this classroom has windows, cement walls and a brand new roof! This grant also provided the young students with uniforms, school supplies and the daily necessities they need.

While many schools in the area discriminate against students who are HIV positive but this school in Moshi does not which makes it possible for ten HIV positive kindergartners to attend school. Already, four kindergartners have graduated and are attending government primary school -- we commend their great accomplishment!

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Project Goal: Support an organized youth soccer program
Location: Kigali, Rwanda

Team 'Imirasire', which means sun-ray, won the Kigali city soccer tournament! No doubt their new uniforms and cleats, cohesive communication, team spirit and snacks received during practice and the games gave them the boost they needed to become champions. Our GO Community can also take pride in their win! The head of the Ministry of Gender attended the tournament and recognized Humura House as a leader in promoting gender equality and helping youth stay off the streets.

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Project Goal: Build a library and study room
Location: Chigumula, Malawi

The materials to construct a library and study room for students at Jacaranda School have been purchased -- including 35,000 bricks for the foundation! Jacaranda was able to secure additional funding so that the library and study hall will become a two-story building to include a physics and science lab. Construction will begin after the rainy season and they expect that the building will be complete by the end of summer. Eric, the foreman for the project informed GO that the team of builders is happy to be able to help their community.

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Project Goal: Fund a leadership program for disadvantaged teens
Location: Guatemala City, Guatemala

The GO-funded leadership program held in two detention centers near Guatemala City helped transform the lives of teenage boys living in the centers. The program, led and organized by Eleazar de Jesus Rodriquez and a team of social workers and volunteers, included discussions and activities that fostered a positive self-image, instilled leadership skills and taught the teens how to have a healthy and safe lifestyle. Educational materials were created and distributed to help the boys retain the lessons learned and educate others thus becoming positive peer-to-peer role models.

Seventeen-year-old Elvis C. participated in the leadership program and told GO: "It's good that people want to help us. I am grateful that Eleazar teaches us how we can have a better life. We can help others like us and give them hope."

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Project Goal: Provide caregiver salaries to nurture and educate children
Location: Phnom Penh, Cambodia

With a grant of $7,960, the GO Community made it possible for CCH to pay the annual salaries of four caregivers who work tirelessly caring for the children who call CCH home.

Prak Sokha teaches the children Khmer and is helping to develop a vocational training program CCH graduating students who are unable to go on to higher education; Pho Phanny cooks the children's meals and does the food shopping; and Pho Phanet and Chum Sitha manage and take care of the administrative needs of CCH.

Thanks to these caregivers' dedication, the 150 children living at CCH feel loved and will have the knowledge and skills to be able to attend government schools and break the cycle of poverty.

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Project Goal: Provide a full year of nutritious meals to school children
Location: Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Thanks to the GO Community, the $7,000 grant is providing the 150 children living at CCH with warm, nutritious meals including cabbage, tofu, fried fish and/or eggs every day for a full year. These nutritious meals are an essential part of the children's ability to concentrate and do well in school. Our photo gallery shows the children eating meals that your donations provided!

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Project Goal: Provide lifesaving support, education and shelter to orphans and street children
Location: Arusha, Tanzania

"We thank all people who enabled [us] to live in a safe place at Tuseme shelter. We used to sleep under tables or besides the river escaping bad people who harass us. Now we have beds and mattresses and eat nutritious food." ~ Teenager living at Tuseme

Dominic Balama, Executive Director of TUCET, tells GO that he believes there are at least 1200 orphans and children living on the streets in his small town of Arusha. His mission in life is to help every orphan who needs a home. Child by child, the GO Community is helping Dominic improve the lives of so many, reassuring them that someone cares about them.

The GO Community has been able to improve the lives of more than 160 children often living on the brink of life. With GO's grant of $26,560 TUCET accomplishments include:

• Providing a home and a safe environment for 120 children now comfortably sleep and play.
• Helped 42 children who once lived at TUCET return to live with their extended families.
• Cultivating a vegetable garden and poultry pen that now provides 160 children with healthy food.
• Paid government school fees for 16 children and supplied them with the required uniforms, shoes and school materials in addition to enrolling 3 students in vocational training classes for mechanics.
• Helped orphans claim their inheritance by paying their legal fees and supporting them through the process.
• Educated community and government leaders, police and social workers about their responsibility to help orphans and vulnerable children.

Yasin Gaspe, 12 years old, who lives at TUCET sent this message to GO supporters: I thanks you all for helping me from the streets and send me to Government school, giving me food and clothes. I would like to promise positive success in my studies.

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Project Goal: Kick-start youth-led micro-business
Location: Arusha, Tanzania

Teaching teenagers and young adults a skill that will enable them to provide for themselves is one of the best ways to help them and their community.

GO's grant of $8,050 provided TUCET with the seed money to establish a bicycle repair business. The grant paid for the construction of a garage hut, all the necessary tools to start the business and two new bicycles to help train the students how to repair bikes.

This micro-business will not only generate needed income, but it will provide the youth with valuable vocational training, helping them acquire employable skills for their future and help instill pride.

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Project Goal: Provide children with disabilities access to education
Location: Mitaboni Village, Kenya

The GO Community provided school uniforms to 100 children living with disabilities in rural Kenya. Without uniforms, these special needs children would not be able to attend school.

For the children living at Mitaboni Special Unit Project (MSUP), being able to attend a government school plays a key role in their physical and mental development. Not only are they learning basic education, but attending school also gives them the opportunity to play with their peers and gives their self-confidence a much-needed boost. Education is a key factor in breaking the cycle of poverty. As a result of attending school, these 100 children will be better positioned to contribute to their family and help improve their communities.

"Our plan to clothe the children was very successful! They were shining like stars. The children were extremely happy and their teachers, caretakers and also the entire management. In fact you portrayed a very good gesture in Kenya and everybody thanked you so much."

~ Jonathan Ndambuki, a marathon winner and avid supporter of MSUP

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Project Goal: Provide emergency aid and promote reconciliation opportunities
Location: Nairobi, Kenya

GO Campaign provided uniforms, meals, medical assistance and sponsored a reconciliation seminar for the children and devastated community in Kenya in the aftermath of the 2008 political violence.

Augustine Githaiga, Director of Kawangware Street Children and Youth Project (KSCYP), told GO "Ethnically charged violence following the election rocked our country leaving many children out of school and hungry. The essence of our nation was destroyed...we urgently need to build peace and provide our youth and children with basic life support." In response, GO Campaign's LifeSavers grant provided KSCYP with:

New and repaired school uniforms for 24 children: As a result of the violence, many children's uniforms (a requirement for attending school) were torn and unable to be worn. Now, these students are attending school and continuing their studies.

Hot lunch for 11 weeks for more than 60 children: Concentrating and excelling in school is difficult while going hungry. GO funding provided nutritious meals to more than 60 school children, as a KSCYP student commented: "My mum can't afford to cook chapatti. That's why I was not #1 in my class. But, I have eaten 3 chapattis (and soup) today, and now I will be #1!" It's easy to make chapattis! See below for details.

Basic medical assistance: GO funds helped provide immediate medical attention to several children and youth who suffered injuries from the election violence. One such youth, Peter Kahara, whose chronic chest pains worsened through the violence, was able to get the appropriate medical attention for his condition and his health continues to improve.

Peace building and reconciliation seminar: To help build long-term peace, KSCYP organized a seminar bringing together law-enforcement officials and members from all tribes for a community dialogue on living together peacefully as one unified community. Three presenters spoke to 72 participants about the economic ramifications of violence, the moral and legal responsibilities of youth, and how different ethnicities co-existed to build the region. The seminar was followed by an open discussion that ended with a communal declaration, "Together forever, divided we fall!"

FUN ACTIVITY!

Chapatti, cooked round flat bread, is similar to tortillas. Kenyans dip it in tea or eat it with traditional dishes like Kunde (black-eyed peas & tomatoes) or Sukuma Wiki (collard green stew). However, sometimes a chapatti is the only hot thing a child will eat all day. Organize a special Chapatti Bake Sale to raise money for KSCYP's "Hope in the Slum" project.

Recipe for Chapati: http://kenya.rcbowen.com/recipes/chapati.html

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Project Goal: Purchase student textbooks
Location: Kware slum, Nairobi

Textbooks for forty students at Bright Junior School have been purchased and delivered! In 2008 Wambui and Mary Wamaitha founded the informal one-room school in the Kware slum near Nairobi to provide primary education to children aged three to ten unable to attend one of the few overcrowded and run-down free government schools because they cannot afford the required school uniform. Bright Junior Schools is registered with the government and Wambui and Mary continue to run the school with occasional help from qualified volunteers and part-time teachers.

The textbooks purchased by the GO Community will significantly enhance the students' ability to learn, retain information and help them pass the entry exams required to attend public schools in the hopes that someday their parents will be able afford the required school uniform.

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Project Goal: Renovate school cafeteria
Location: Monrovia, Liberia

As one of the only tuition-free private schools in Liberia, the Carolyn A. Miller Elementary School (CAMES) provides free education to over 600 primary and secondary school children - war affected youth, primarily orphans, returnee-refugees and abandoned children.

The GO Getter Prize awarded to CAMES enabled them to renovate the school's cafeteria, purchase the necessary cookware and run the school-wide Niapele Project School Nutrition Program for a year. This program ensures that the students receive all the necessary nutrients for healthy physical and intellectual development, allowing them to focus in class, thereby increasing learning capacity, and, ultimately, the quality of education.

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Project Goal: Fund mobile education unit for street children
Location: Kinshasa, DR Congo

Oneworld Works and their partner Espoir Pour Tous, a Kinshasa, DRC based NGO, operates a Mobile School Program for street children and former child soldiers. The street children are some of the most vulnerable victims of the wars that have been going on in the country for the past ten years. The program operates in five districts in Kinshasa, but prior to GO's involvement, there were no full time workers.

The $4,800 GO Getter Prize awarded to Oneworld Works paid the annual salaries of Albert Ngoy, a Street Educator who teaches street children basic literacy and survivor skills and of Micheline Lowa, a child therapist who talks to the children about getting off the street and helps them receive basic health care. On average, Albert and Micheline help 50 street children a day. Albert and Micheline also organized a Cultural Day where over 40 street kids participated in art and therapy classes and learned some basic French and English.

"We are so grateful for the good works of the GO Campaign. Your grant for our mobile School Program in Kinshasha, Democratic Republic of Congo will help us serve many more children and make the program more stable. Again, thank you for all that you do to help others. I sincerely believe that working together we can really bring about positive changes in the lives of street kids in Kinshasa".
~ Ira Simmons, President Oneworld Works

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Project Goal: Fund tree-planting and environmental awareness program
Location: Windhoek, Namibia

GO awarded GAWA a $4,900 GO Getter Prize that enabled 15 schools in Namibia to plant and grow organic orange trees on campus which helped to raise awareness on the importance of living in a "green" community that promotes environmental sustainability.

This grant paid for the orange trees, fertilizer, compost and necessary equipment to care for the trees. In addition, students and teachers were taught how to properly care for the trees and GAWA used this opportunity to discuss with the students the environmental social problems plaguing the community, such as the lack of clean water.

In addition to the beatification of 15 schools, the process of planting these 120 trees galvanized the Green Movement in Windhoek, which has been dubbed the "concrete jungle" of Namibia.

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Project Goal: Fund organic garden
Location: Siem Reap Angkor, Cambodia

LHA operates the Children's Development Village (CDV), a home for 43 impoverished and vulnerable Cambodian children. It is here that the children receive their basic needs including a loving, secure environment.

The GO Getter Prize awarded to LHA went a long way in their agricultural program including employing an agriculturalist, purchasing agriculture and compost-making tools and the creation of an organic nursery. This organic garden continues to produce some of the food that feeds the children and has enriched both their minds and the bodies.

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Project Goal: Purchase school desks and chairs
Location: Huama, Peru

Imagine trying to concentrate while sitting, all day, on a cold mud floor. This was the case for students attending school in the remote Peruvian Andes Mountains. Thanks to the $4,400 "GO Getter Prize" awarded to GO partner Comunidad Campesina de Huama, over 100 students are better equipped to do well in school because they now have chairs and desks.

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Project Goal: Construct girl's bathroom facility
Location: Chigumula, Malawi

How many bricks does it take to build a bathroom facility for girls in Malawi?

35,000! Now, for the first time, the Jacaranda School has a suitable bathroom facility for girls who attend the school. The bathroom greatly increased attendance among the girls and they feel a great pride that they, like the boys, have access to this basic luxury.

You can see the bathrooms in this video that was, in part, filmed by teenage Sam Steinberger who visited Malawi in summer, 2009 after raising over $3,500 with his personal fundraising page!

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Project Goal: Teach income-generating skills to children with disabilities
Location: Arusha, Tanzania

Mtakuja Art Group is a community of talented Tanzanian artists from the small rural village of Mto wa Mbu in northern Tanzania.

They sell their professional artwork to tourists and as part of the group's mission, they teach at-risk youth, ages 6-13, about their cultural heritage and train them how to create quality pieces of artwork that can be sold in the Arusha city markets. Many of these students are living with physical disabilities, are orphans and/or live on the streets.

The Mtakuja Art Group values education and thus offers flexible hours to allow students to develop their artistic skills after school hours, during the weekend and on holidays. In addition, the adult artists teach students life skills and help them to manage their earnings. Thanks to the $2,500 "GO Getter Prize", Mtakuja Art Group now has 29 young graduates equipped with the artistic training, resources and skills to help them earn a sustainable living.

Click here to see more paintings or to order prints in support of these young Tanzanian artists!

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Project Goal: Extend an orphanage's usable space
Location: Mt. Meru, Arusha, Tanzania

Leaders of Tomorrow is a joy-filled orphanage nestled in the hills of Mt. Meru, Tanzania. The orphanage is part of a larger arts-based cultural and education center, and the children are encouraged to partake in communal activities such as dancing, singing, poetry, art, drumming, acrobatics, and more. GO has funded a roof-enclosed porch for the orphanage, giving the kids a safe place to come together and continue their learning during the country's famous rainy seasons.

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Project Goal: Provide basic living supplies for school children
Location: Provide basic living supplies for school children

GO Campaign purchased 2 tables, 9 chairs, 10 blankets, and 5 mattresses, totaling $1250, for school children from the small rural town of Berivotra in northwestern Madagascar.

The Berivotra community currently has ten students continuing their education in a secondary or vocational school. They were in need of basic supplies. During the rainy season, from November to April, it is common for the children to become sick and fall behind in their studies because they are studying on the ground and sleeping on the dirt floors of their homes or other community structures. But now, just in time to make a difference, the children are warmer and more comfortable, and their studying will be more productive.

Most of the people in the area are internally displaced refugees and make their living through subsistence farming. Very few families own livestock and those who do often end up selling it prematurely, before a profit-making herd can be established, in order to buy food. Others produce charcoal and sell it to nearby urban centers. The Berivotra community greatly values education, and we are happy to have been able to come to their aid.

GO thanks our partner The Madagascar Ankizy Fund for helping to facilitate the delivery and success of this project.

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Project Goal: Improve children's education
Location: Arusha & Moshi, Tanzania

In December 2008, GO Founder Scott Fifer traveled to Tanzania and visited Tuseme's center for street kids and orphans as well as their kindergarten. Tuseme was awarded a special "GO Getter Prize" to fulfill some pressing needs in addition to celebrating the holiday season like never before!

The timely grant allowed Tuseme Director Dominic Balama to host a Christmas feast of chicken, pilau (traditional rice dish) and soda, buy clothes for the children to give to each other in a gift-exchange and give a small bonus to the staff who care for the children. For everyone at Tuseme, it was a Christmas to remember!

Beyond the celebration, the majority of the grant went towards improving the children's education. Dominic combined GO's grant with some of Tuseme's savings to pay for:

• Uniforms for students so they were able to attend school in Moshi
• 40 new desks and benches for the school in Moshi so students don't have to sit on the floor
• Construction of an informal classroom where more children can study
• School fees for a few of the older street children to be able to attend school in Arusha

Fred, one of the children living at Tuseme, told Dominic, "Tunashukuru na Mungu atawalipa." meaning, "We are thankful and God will repay them."

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Project Goal: Build a water well
Location: Ntulya, Tanzania

The GO-supported water well continues to have a significant impact on the lives of those living in the town of Ntulya and the surrounding villages. The new well was drilled from a rich aquifer and is in constant use. The well provides the community with water used for mixing cement, curing bricks, drinking water, cooking and washing clothes. Communities with access to clean drinking water are better positioned to be able to care for their families and prosper, and we are thrilled to have been able to provide the water well for the Ntulya community.

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