"Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine he sees all day."

Beginning in late November 2008, I will be living in Meru, Kenya, a town just five miles north of the equator at the base of Mt. Kenya. I will be volunteering/interning for International Peace Initiatives, a non-profit working mainly with AIDS orphans and vulnerable women. I know my experience will be rewarding, if not a little bit jarring and unpredictable along the way. I have been wanting to do something like this for as long as I can remember. I'm so thankful for being given the chance to bring a helping hand to an area of our world that needs some extra love. I fully look forward to sharing my Kenyan adventures with all of you.

Peace and love,
Em

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

My, my how time flies - departure is in sight!

I've been a busy lady of late. As is the norm before I'm about to pick up my life and fly off somewhere, I'm in complete procrastination mode--especially in the packing department. I hate packing and luckily have managed to yet again enlist the help of my super-organized cousin Amanda. Some people just have a gift.

What I really want to share is that I've started a charity fund for the holiday season at my local Citizens Bank. I've dubbed it "Emily's Spare Change for Kenya Fund". All donations will be directly wired to the IPI account in Meru. With that money, we will be able to buy Christmas presents for the local orphans and their new community home (currently being completed by IPI staff and volunteers). I can't think of a more deserving group of children. I haven't even met them yet but I know they will appreciate these gifts and supplies. Just think—most of them can’t even afford a pencil to bring to school, let alone buy backpacks, socks, shoes, calculators and other basic necessities we take for granted. And I'm sure the DVD player and TV I'd like to buy for the home will go over big.

I've written a letter in two of my local papers about this endeavor and been met with lots of support by my friends and family. If you want to help out, here is the address:

Emily’s Spare Change for Kenya Fund
Attention Deborah Fauth, Branch Manager I
Citizens Bank
115 Indian Rock Road NH-473
Windham, NH 03087

Anything you can give will go a long way. Thanks so much! OK, I think that's it for now. I'm getting REALLY excited...

xxEM
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2 comments:

  1. AnonymousNovember 22, 2008 at 5:31 PM

    Can't tell you how impressed and PROUD I am of you for taking on this huge challenge!
    ~Deb Wilmarth~

    ReplyDelete
  2. CarmenNovember 26, 2008 at 5:49 AM

    Hi Emily. I saw your letter in the newspaper and brought it to work. Good luck! What an adventure you'll have.

    ReplyDelete

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