Sylvia's Children Invitation - January, 2013

REMEMBER A LOVED ONE THIS VALENTINE'S DAY WITH DOVE CHOCOLATES!

 

You are invited to Sylvia's house on Saturday, February 2 at 7:00 pm for a chocolate party!  Great tasting party (even chocolate martinis and chocolate fondue!) and 25% of your purchase price goes to help Sylvia's Children!  The address is 89 Middletown Road, Holmdel, NJ 07733 

RSVP to Sylvia @ 732-241-1144.

Can't make it?  Just follow the instructions below ... you can still enjoy the delicious chocolates and help Sylvia's Children!  Dove Chocolate Discoveries Valentine's Day Fundraiser for Sylvia's Children

The exclusive line of chocolate products is made just for Dove Chocolate Discoveries by MARS, Inc. and is not found in any stores is a perfect gift to show somebody how special they are to you.  Order by February 3 to ensure delivery by the 14th. Placing an online order is quick and easy, by just following a few simple steps.

1. Go to my personal website:
www.myDCDsite.com/rachel

View a full catalog on the bottom right side or main page or view the products on the online shopping site.

  

2. Click "Shop Online".

  

3. Shop by category, adding all of the products to your shopping bag that you would like to purchase.

a. Each month there is a promotion; make sure you take advantage of the Valentine's Day specials for the month of January only.

b. Valentine's Day specials are under "Specials" towards the bottom of the page.

c. Although Dove Chocolate Discoveries officially supports the Make-a-Wish Foundation on its order forms you can ignore that at the bottom of the form - when you follow directions 4, 5, 6,7 and 8 your purchase will go specifically to support Sylvia's Children.

  

4. When you are finished shopping, click "Proceed to Checkout."

  

5. At the next screen, click "Order Check Out."

  

6. The next screen asks "Were You invited to a Tasting Party or Event?" - click "Yes, Help Me Find My Host."

  

7. First Name - Sylvia; Last Name - Allen

  

8. Click on the box before the Host's name, then "Accept My Host."

  

9. Options for Shipping

a. Choose "Direct Ship" and your order will ship directly to the address of your choice. You will be charged a FedEx two-day shipping charge and items can
ship anywhere in the lower 48 states.

b. Please note that the price on the Valentine's Day Promotions includes the price of shipping and includes an option to write a message to the recipient.

  

10. Proceed to payment options and place the order. Visa and MasterCard are accepted.

Thank you for your order and for supporting Sylvia's Children.

If you have a question, please do not hesitate to contact me directly.

Rachel L. MacAulay

Senior Team Leader, Dove Chocolate Discoveries

(732) 970-4645

rdmacaulay@optonline.net

www.myDCDsite.com/rachel

POP INTERVIEW: Sylvia Allen on How She Helps African Children Live Normal Lives

Like many of you, I have never been to Africa, nor do I comprehend half of what is happening in that part of the world without having visited. It is difficult to imagine what that world must be like in real life separate from what I have seen in quick news stories or heard from politicians, who briefly mention their own African voyages during campaign pit stops. 

Sylvia Allen is the founder of Sylvia’s Children, a non-profit charity devoted to helping Ugandan children attain things we take for granted in the modern world, like water, education, health care and books, and e-mailed responses regarding her experiences working with her “children,” as well as chatting the ins and outs of heading the charity and its volunteer work with her biological son and daughter. 

 

To people here, Africa is this far away place few people visit. The most some people ever experience Africa is from seeing the tour advertised now and then in the Neiman Marcus vacation catalogue. People like Angelina Jolie demonstrate philanthropy’s glamorous aspects. We see the fundraising events and hear people discuss how buying a Feed tote bag is going to help people somewhere else in the world. 

But what is actually working in this environment like? It can’t all be pleasant photo ops. Working in this environment is stimulating, exciting, nerve-wracking, frustrating, challenging, awesome and invigorating. We are changing people’s lives! It is also frustrating because of what you list above. 

What is the real Africa? It is people, like you and like me, with families, homes, jobs, and lives but they are living in primitive conditions because they don’t have CLEAN, running water, proper sanitary facilities and electricity is “iffy” at best. They deserve to have the same amenities that we do. Everyone is fascinated by a certain culture. Your university education focused on Africa. 

What made you originally take an interest in African life before you ever set foot on African soil?  My University experience was having to study the African culture during one semester while working on my Masters at Empire State College. In fact, that was “just a class.” It wasn’t until one of my students at NYU invited me to Africa that I got goosebumps because I had studied the country and the culture. It did help that one of my mother’s best friends was a missionary in Africa in the 1930s and ‘40s. 

In a place like Uganda, with its extreme poverty levels, how does anyone experience happiness? What do people appreciate there that we don’t in our country? Is there anything positive to be found at all in the sadness? The sadness is for us. They do everything as a village, caring for each other and sharing what they have. They are not burdened by possessions, status, by “stuff.” Think of the dramatic difference there would be in the world if we worried about each other and feelings instead of “how much can I accumulate.” My only hope is that we can learn from them. 

How are you working to change education in Uganda?  We are following the Ugandan Education Authority agenda (because it is a good one) while, at the same time, introducing electives and encouraging creative thinking. For example, we have a building with 24 sewing machines where students can choose to study tailoring. This has never been offered before. They have started a soccer club, a net ball club, a commerce club, a science club, an arts and crafts club … this they did all on their own. 

How can people over here help your cause?  As always they can donate money. We currently have 1,005 children in our school (up to P-7), of which 250 are orphans (only 117 are sponsored). $1/day will provide an orphan with lodging, food, clothing, health care, and education. And, we have 68 children in secondary school, of which only 29 are sponsored. That fee for the same benefits is only $1.50 a day! 

They can go to our website (sylviaschildren.org) and make a donation. They can come on a trip and work with us … we do a medical trip in the spring, a “worker bee” trip in the summer, and then we put on a Christmas party in November (before their school year ends). 

They can collect the things we need for Christmas … crayons, sun glasses, stickers, pencils, candy, sun visors …or, they can help us raise money. We need another $29,168 to finish the clinic … every little bit helps! 

What is the one thing you’ve accomplished so far in Uganda that you feel the most proud of? And how did you feel after you had accomplished it? The first accomplishment was to get the chicken farm so each child gets one egg, a week. The second accomplishment is happening right now … completion of another chicken coop so the children get two eggs a week, and completion of a 6,000- square-foot clinic that will serve both the school and the village. They are on their way to independence. You’re halfway through constructing a medical clinic, which won’t be used solely for the school, but also for the village. 

What will make this medical clinic different from other clinics in Ugandan villages? Because there aren’t that many clinics in the villages! The closest clinic right now doesn’t even have a doctor and it is 15 miles away. When your mode of transportation is your feet and you are sick, 15 miles is very L O N G. 

Without much electricity and therefore, Internet access, there – how do most people in small villages stay in touch with what is going on in the country’s capital, Kampala? Is there a major disconnect?  Everyone has a cellphone and they have 4G service (which is better than I found in Southeast Florida!). I can leave Kampala and by the time I get to the Equator (100 miles away), they already know I am coming! It’s amazing! A few times a year, you bring people, mostly from America, to join you in Uganda, and at the Mbiriizi Advanced Primary and Day Care School, where you are working. 

What are these trips like? What has been one of the most profound statements one of your volunteers has said upon being there and viewing it firsthand? It is impossible to describe these trips because they are like riding a roller coaster … happiness and sadness all in one trip. You work very hard but it is so exhilarating when you see you are making a difference. Most of the people, after going, tell me I have changed their lives and the trip was beyond their imagination. How do you describe 1,000 children, ages 2 to 14, greeting you as you pull up to the school, singing a song they wrote just for you? It gives you chills and tears. 

What do you need to accomplish next, before your work in the village is complete? Then what? Ideally I would like to build a secondary school so that we have the children from 2 to 18. This will take a minimum of $250,000 but would make a wonderful difference in our children’s lives. I only hope that other people get to have the same wonderful opportunity and experience the joy that these children have brought into my life!

Sylvia's Children News Update - January, 2013

Happy new year!  It has been just since November 2012 that we sent a newsletter and yet so much has happened I feel like a year has gone by!             

Christmas trip

We had a wonderful time on the Christmas trip ... each girl got a new dress and each boy a new shirt.  And, we had a party with cake, meat sauce and rice and soda!  In addition, each child got a "goody bag" that had "sweets" (Thanks to Monica Guarnaccia pulling off a post-Halloween collection in two days!), sunglasses (thanks to Joanne Pinto from Pinto Novelties), Mardi Gras beads, a kazoo, stickers, crayons and other small items that would fit into the equivalent of a lunch bag.   They love this stuff!  And, it is so heartwarming to be able to give them a Christmas ... helps us realize the TRUE meaning of Christmas.

Starbucks

Since September 2010, through the largesse of ten Starbucks' stores we have generated $20,000 for the school.  And, interestingly, people really want it all year but we have found that twice a year, in a certain set cycle, generates more.  HOWEVER, if you have clothing, stuffed toys, anything fabric or leather, and you want to donate it I will come and pick it up (as long as it is in New Jersey!).  We just keep filling the pod in the driveway and making money for the school!

Thank you notes

I took a "breather" between Christmas and New Years and, hopefully, got caught up on thank you notes to everyone.  If I missed you please know how much I appreciate your support.  Hopefully, thanks to our wonderful volunteer-Karen Swift-we will be able to get letters to sponsors of children for tax purposes by the end of January.

Chobani/Robobank

I was in New Berlin, New York December 21 to make a presentation to approximately 200 Chobani staff.  Of course, it was a snowstorm and my car decided to run into a tree (not fun!).  However, Chobani came with a four wheel vehicle, I was able to present and the wonderful Chobani folks bought almost $1,200 worth of baskets and other wonderful crafts made by the children.  And, Robobank gave us $10,000 because they wanted to support Chobani's efforts!

By the way, our solar installation that was paid for by Chobani is in the process RIGHT NOW of being installed in the clinic!!!!

Hope for the City

Megan Doyle, who is the founder of Hope For the City, is graciously donating all the medical equipment we need for our clinic!  All we have to do is pay for the shipping ... it will be another $15,000 (we have sent her $10,000 already) but when you think of ALL that we are getting this is a miracle.  When someone is this gracious it is hard to find the right words to express our heartfelt thanks.

Florence leaving

Miss Florence, who has been the headmistress for many years, has left and started her own school in Mbiriizi.  She has been a definite asset over the years and contributed much to the growth of the school and the many extra curricular programs in the school were begun by her.  We wish her the best of luck.

Playground

Thanks to the fundraising efforts of Emily Hamilton from the Joseph J. Catena School in Freehold Township and Tom Bridges a new playground is being installed while the children are on break (they come back January 28).  In addition, the current playground equipment is being upgraded and strengthened.

The children will be so excited and thrilled to have a real playground with lots of stuff for them to play on.

Water preservation

In order to preserve water in the dry season we need gutters and catchment basins for all the buildings (we have 17!).  It turns out that the estimate is higher than last reported ... more like $25,000 USD!

Child sponsorship

We now have 250 orphans at the school in grades baby class, top class and P-1 to P-7 and 68 who are in secondary school (S-1 to S-6).  I hope you can find it in your heart to sponsor a child ... in the primary school it is only $1.00 a day and in secondary school it is $1.50 a day.  Please help us make a difference in these children's lives by taking them out of poverty.

Chicken Coop

And, thanks to Marilou Brill, we are in the process of building a second chicken coop and will have 400 more chickens.  This way the children can now have two eggs a week and we still have some eggs we can sell at market.  Thanks, Marilou, for your kind and generous heart.

Upcoming trips

The first one is the medical trip which will be March 14-26.  If you are a doctor, a nurse, a physician's assistant, a nurse practitioner, a physical therapist ... we need you!  I already have five people interested but will need to have firm commitment by February 1 to ensure that we get a good price on airlines, you have time to get your shots and, more importantly, your VISA.  The total cost is $3,500 and includes all expenses (air fare, hotel, food, car and driver, and safari).  Your only additional expense is the VISA which is $50 and our tips to hotel staff and our driver.

Then, the summer trip is June 13-25 and this will be our 10th anniversary celebration of the founding of Sylvia's Children.  I know my daughter, Michele, is planning on going ... who else will be joining us?  Same format, same dollar amounts.

Clinic

Lastly, we have run into a shortfall for the clinic due to two things: 

1. We are on wetlands and $20,000 USD had to be spent to bring in sand so we could build the foundation and

2. The Ugandan economy has seen a 25% inflation factor.

As a result we need to raise $29,164 to complete the clinic.  If anyone can step forward and help us it would be great.

Ronnie, our guide

And, yes, I went to Ronnie and Jess's wedding.  Lots of people, lots of fun and we wish them much happiness in their new life together.

Thank you ALL for your wonderful support of Sylvia's Children.

With your help we are making a difference!

     

Sylvia's Children

89 Middletown Road, Holmdel, NJ 07733

www.sylviaschildren.org        sylvia@sylviaschildren.org  

http://www.sylviaschildren.blogspot.com 

732-946-2711/Sylvia's cell 732-241-1144