Sunday, April 3, 2011

Fundraising ... in Swaziland too!


This Saturday was a special day for Project 23.3. Fundraising efforts are just starting to get rolling in America as the word is spreading. But this weekend was unique because funds were being raised IN Swaziland for the preschool too! And not just by Americans living there ...

Seven Swazi teenagers gave up their whole Saturday and held a car wash in Mbabane (Swaziland's capital). They know Alex's brother Eric through some after-school mentoring and sports activities. They heard about Project 23.3 and came up with a way to help.



They held a car wash at Eric's house from 10am-3pm. Lots of co-workers, church members, and other Americans in Swaziland were told about it. Some of the money was given to the teens: they themselves are vulnerable youth who all come from very impoverished neighborhoods. They each ended up taking home 95 emalangeni (about $14) and that was more than any of them had ever made in a day -- even though some of them have worked full-time before!




The rest went directly to Project 23.3. Besides the money that was raised, a bigger accomplishment of the day was the unity that was created. Swazi teens from a struggling city neighborhood in the capital city joined together with a teenager in Michigan to build a desperately needed preschool in a village none of them has ever seen. What could be greater than that?




After the car wash was complete, everybody got on Skype together to talk with Alex in Michigan. It was an exciting moment in technology for most of them who had never seen anything like Skype before! They got to share with her the amount that was raised. She was able to share her appreciation for their help, plans for Project 23.3's next steps, and some fun discussions. By the boys' request she even went outside and fetched some Michigan snow to show them through the camera. It was a big hit; none of them had ever seen snow before!



Big thanks to Thando, Menzie, Mduduzi, Bhabha, Sakhile, Samanga, and Celumusa for all their hard work and for joining our efforts for Ntjanini's children. Thanks to everyone who came out to get their cars washed, and for those who contributed even if they we're getting a wash. Project 23.3 is now about 10% of the way to the total fundraising goal. With great partnerships like this, we're confident that we'll make it all the way!



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