Happy Christmas to All Our Supporters!
Dear All
It's been a busy few months, we've so much to tell you about and be thankful for. Find out in this newsletter about our new website, how the vocational classrooms are getting on at Uzima and a new GoFundMe campaign - #equipUzima - launched to raise funds to equip them, as well as a few refreshing ideas for Christmas gifts.
We wish you all a blessed Christmas time and thank you for all your help and support this year, without you we would have managed very little!
Mungu Akubariki,
Joy, Louise & Rachel x
We have some great news as well as another big challenge! The Vocational Classrooms are up, many of you helped raise funds over the last year or so to start the building work - you can see the roof has just gone on. To qualify for a local grant from the Kenyan Government (which would amazingly fund two new teachers for these new classrooms for a year) we needed to raise enough funds to finish the build by the end of the year. To be honest it seemed impossible. But thanks to a large donation at exactly the right time, we are managing to finish the work and secure the grant! It has been a huge encouragement and evidence to us that God's hand really is providing for His children.
The building is being finished and now we need to equip it to make it usable for the older children to learn skills to work their way out of poverty. You'll see on this link to our GoFundMe page, a list of items we need; everything from wheelbarrows and hammers to sewing machines and fabric. Could you help us by doing some of your Christmas shopping from this list?!
Please have a look at this link, and share it wherever you can using #equipUzima. Thank you!
Take a look at our new website!
www.uzimainourhands.org
Our website has had a makeover! We now have a shop - you could buy a friend or a relative something a bit different for Christmas this year, a giving gift! Maybe a football, an Uzima sweatshirt, or an animal for the Uzima farm and we'll send you, or the recipient, a certificate to say thank you.
We also have Tote bags for sale, so why not treat yourself to one of those (only £4, made by hand by our Uzima sewing team). We hope to set this project up on the Kenyan side too - the older children will soon be able to learn sewing skills in their new Vocational Classrooms (read more about this later) and one day set up their own small business to work their way out of poverty. Each bag you buy will help us, to help them, to be self sufficient!
Sponsored Climb It is surely no coincidence that all this climbing is going on at once? Hugh and Henry Harrison have just climbed Kilimanjaro in aid of Uzima and many people climbed many times to the top of the climbing wall at West Wight Sports and Community Centre in aid of the Sports Centre and Uzima. Huge thanks goes to all those who climbed or helped out on the day, including those who belayed for the climbers - Ian, Chris, Ewan, Caleb, Clare, George, Rachel, Joel, Dan & Angus. We also couldn't have done it without all the admin sorted by Jess, George, Michelle, Michele, Sue, Carole and Sue Lupton for the yummy food supplies. Biggest thanks however must go to Matt Ostler without whom this day would not and could not have happened. Uzima says - Mungu Akubariki (God bless you).
Party time! It's party time during our visit in February for all the children of Uzima, can you buy them a little packet of Haribo to enjoy?
We need lots of small packets to give out - one for each of the 316 children. Please give to Joy, Louise or Rachel, or hand in to reception at West Wight Sports and Community Centre. (Please don't post them to us).
We would also like to treat each of the teachers who work so very hard, to a notebook and pen set at the cost of £9. These can be purchased from Morrisons and given in as above, or by making a donation of £9 you can send Joy shopping! Last year we collected Christmas cracker toys and would like to do this again. The kids loved them all, so please hand them in to the Sports Centre or Joy, Louise or Rachel.
If you are a child sponsor, don't forget to get your letter to Joy by hand, via email or post before she visits at the end of January. If you wish to give the child's family an extra £10 then please include this too.
Many, many thanks to you all and have a truly blessed 2019.
