Funding/Projects
July 2007: Red Ribbon Rider for Young Heroes
Once again this year, Jack Conrad will battle the heat and his own muscles on behalf of Young Heroes. From July 19-22, he'll ride his bicycle 300 miles across the state of Minnesota to raise funds for our program.
Jack is a board member of the Friends of Swaziland, and remains committed to helping the Kingdom and its children. Just as FOS did last year — when it raised $3,500 for Young Heroes — FOS is now collecting pledges to support Jack's participation in the Red Ribbon Ride, which benefits HIV/AIDS causes.
Learn more about the ride.
To support Jack, send e-mail messages to Friends of Swaziland President John von Reyn and Treasurer Scott Lewis with your pledge.
Siyabonga,
FOS Board
Background information — Young Heroes
Friends:
Swaziland has the highest rate of HIV infection in the world, reaching
nearly 40% of its adult population. As a generation of young adults sickens
and dies, a new generation of children is being left orphaned. It's estimated
that within the next five years, over 10% of the country's population will
be children who have lost at least one parent to the epidemic.
Most of these orphans are left in the care of aging grandparents who have reached the time of life when, traditionally, they themselves would be cared for by their families. But many orphans are left to fend for themselves — and to raise their younger brothers and sisters alone. All of these children are malnourished, impoverished and vulnerable to exploitation.
Young Heroes was created in early 2006 to help them by linking them with sponsors who provide funds for food, clothing, and other necessities. Our goal is to keep these children alive, healthy, and living together on their family homesteads in their communities, where they have the greatest sense of safety and security.
After 16 months in operation, Young Heroes now supports 437 children. Because our operations are underwritten by Swaziland's National Emergency Response Council on HIV/AIDS (NERCHA), 100% of the donations we receive go directly to the orphans.
In addition, we have received 501(c)(3) status from the IRS, and Young Heroes was independently presented to UNICEF's Global Orphan Alliance as a best practice that other countries should adopt.
This success is due to entirely to sponsors like those who supported Jack Conrad in last year's Red Ribbon Ride. Their contribution of $3,500 meant that for this entire year, 10 families representing 26 children have had food to eat every day, and new clothing and warm blankets for winter; and the funds provided have freed up other household money to pay for school fees, medicine and other necessities. Just as important, they also have the hope that comes from knowing that someone cares and is looking after their welfare.
With your help again this year, we can work together to continue making this vital difference in the lives of these children.
Steve Kallaugher
Director, Young Heroes Program
www.YoungHeroes.org.sz
Friends of Swaziland Red Ribbon Ride Campaign for Swaziland's Young Heroes Program
In mid-July, 2006, Friends of Swaziland raised over $3,500 for the Swaziland-based Young Heroes Program. This was accomplished through Swaziland RPCV Jack Conrad (1984-87) and his participation in the 2006 Red Ribbon Ride. Over the course of four days, from July 13th through July 16th, when temperatures in the upper Midwest topped 100 degrees, Jack bicycled 300 miles across southeastern Minnesota to raise funds for Young Heroes, whose mission is to help the Kingdom's AIDs orphans.
In the weeks leading up to the event, Jack solicited sponsors through Friends of Swaziland, his family, friends, and workmates. 100% of the funds raised have been directly shared with the Young Heroes organization, which in turn will use the monies to assist orphans whose parents have succumbed to AIDs. Funds typically help pay for food, clothing, and school fees.
September 2006
Friends of Swaziland has agreed to provide matching funds for a Peace Corps Partnership project in Swaziland. The project was submitted by PCV Blia Yang for the Nyanyali Sewing Scheme Association. To see more detail about the project, see www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.donors.projdetail&projdesc=645-049.
Blia has been contacting friends, family and organizations to raise the additional funds. After FOS's assistance, approximately $1400 dollars will still be needed before the project can go forward. Please consider a contribution before the matching funds expire at the end of September. Checks should be sent to the Peace Corps Partnership program.
Here's some additional information about Blia and her project that was published in the PC/Swaziland Newsletter and is posted on this website at www.friendsofswaziland.org/docs/ss-2006-07.pdf.
July 2005
Friends of Swaziland has contributed $500 towards funding the "World Map Project," a project proposed by current Swaziland PCVs Christina Granberg and Luke Fiordalis and vetted by the Peace Corps Partnership program. For more information on the project, view the project proposal or visit the Peace Corps Partnership website.
There is still a balance of $486 needed before the project can go forward, so please consider a contribution.
February 2005
Friends of Swaziland recently provided nearly $3,000 to support a media project by active Peace Corps Volunteers. See the February 2005 newsletter for more details.
May 2003
Friends of Swaziland is initiating a fund-raising drive aimed at raising money so that FOS may fund programs and activities targeting Swaziland. The AIDS crisis is an obvious first choice for group funds, although the FOS Board of Directors will make funding decisions reflecting the wishes of FOS membership.
[According to the UN Integrated Regional Information Network Swaziland may now have the worst HIV infection rate in the world. The UN estimates that 38.6% of Swazi adults are HIV positive, and even this figure may be out of date and understate the infection rate.]
FOS passed a milestone on March 13, 2003, when the IRS granted FOS tax-exempt status as an organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The practical benefit of this new status is that donations to FOS are now tax-deductible.
Shortly after achieving this status FOS members Guy and Susan Wroble donated $2000 to FOS to support general operations of the group. This helps tremendously because FOS must maintain a minimum balance in its checking account as well as defray expenses of mailing out the newsletter, paying affiliation dues to the National Peace Corps Association, etc.
The Wrobles have in addition announced a $2000 challenge grant to FOS members!! What this means is that Guy and Susan will match donations "dollar for dollar" up to a total of $2000. With this extremely generous gesture the Wrobles will make it possible for FOS to rapidly begin raising funds for worthy projects in Swaziland.
More details were provided in the June 2003 newsletter.
Donations may be sent to:
Friends of Swaziland
c/o Scott Lewis, Treasurer
1310 N. Danville St.
Arlington, VA 22201