Being a signpost!

It amazes me that, although our friends and family often make up the core supporters of Hanna's Orphanage, we get lots of people contacting us out of the blue who have heard of us from a friend or have found us via this blog or our website.

This week we were contacted by a film production company! They are looking for stories of girls who have turned their life around and are becoming vital and active parts of their communities. Obviously we don't run the orphanage on a day to day basis and so don't have as much knowledge about the children as Hanna does, but I know I can think of at least two young women off of the top of my head who are achieving great things despite serious hardships in their lives.

In fact, nearly all the girls in the orphanage are incredibly articulate, conscientious, intelligent, self possessed and ambitious. They work hard in their studies and have strong opinions on all aspects of life and their country, from the role of women in society, to job prospects, the economy and the latest changes to the law! Some of them are now starting to go on to further education and I have absolutely no doubt that they will achieve what they want to. They impress every single visitor we take to the orphanage!

The girls' attitude and success is hugely down to how nurturing and well run the orphanage is. Hanna and her staff make sure that the children have the same opportunities as everyone else (hopefully helped by our financial support), and they have very high aspirations for them. They teach them to believe they are capable of being anything they want to be. There are limitations of reality, we all know that, but they are encouraged and supported to aim high. I think this makes such a difference.

So I hope the production company will find some inspiring girls at the orphanage. Of course, the individual stories of the children are not mine to tell (I've learnt this the hard way!), so I have offered to put the production company in touch with Hanna.

A little part of me does think 'well, I hope they mention us! We could do with the publicity!'. But, actually, what's the point of us, unless to help the orphanage? If we put the production company in touch with the orphanage, they do a great short film about them and people donate to the orphanage and get involved directly, well, that's what we want, right? Does it matter if we aren't mentioned or 'funnel' the donations? Absolutely not!


I'm ashamed to say sometimes my ego forgets this. Sometimes I get so caught up in trying to raise the profile of Hanna's Orphanage, of encouraging people to donate, of trying to get people involved and to fundraise, I forget that our job is to be a 'signpost' to the orphanage. It doesn't matter if you never remember our name, really, just as long as the orphanage benefits. I forget that, really, if we do our job properly, we should pretty much become obsolete!

I'll keep you updated on the film :-)

Happy Christmas and New Year from all at Hanna’s Orphanage! We’ve all been enjoying time with our families over the break, but we’re back and ready to look at the exciting things that are going to be happening in 2011!

2010 was a great year for Hanna’s Orphanage, not least in our partnerships with Cass Business School. Last year’s Cass Business School volunteers - Charleane, Donal and Michael – taught at the summer school for two weeks in August and spent a huge amount of time and effort in the UK raising money and awareness. They raised around £6500 between them and introduced Hanna’s Orphanage to a whole new group of people! Supported by everyone at Cass Business School, they held events throughout the year, from raffles to concerts, and found ways to help Hanna’s Orphanage whenever they could.

They weren’t the only people fundraising for Hanna’s Orphanage this year. There have been cake stalls in Suffolk (thanks Sandra, Anne-marie and Beryl!), busking outside supermarkets (thanks Danyele and all her music buddies), people jumping out of aeroplanes (thanks Anthony, Danyele and Amie!), and music gigs in London (thanks Maria, Football Action, Smoke Feathers, Looks Like Rain, and Front Covers!). We’ve even had people who have asked their wedding guests to donate to Hanna’s Orphanage instead of giving them wedding gifts (thanks David and Anne-marie)! So many people have given up their time and energy to help us fundraise, and we are incredibly grateful to all of them.

We’ve also been blessed to have received donations that have – for us – come completely out of the blue. These are from people who have come across us through the Charities Aid Foundation (http://www.cafonline.org/) or have researched various charities to donate to, and have decided on us. Others have been from word of mouth, through people who are really impressed with what we’re doing. It’s really great that more and more people are hearing about us and are liking what we do!

The annual report and the accounts should be available for people to see by the end of January, but as a general picture, the money you have raised this year has been spent on:

House rent for the Addis Ababa branch of the orphanage
Food for the children
Refurbishing the kitchen in the Addis Ababa orphanage
House rent for Wolita House (South Ethiopia)
Household expenses for Wolita House (South Ethiopia)
Part salaries for 2 Project Workers
Annual ‘registration fee’ that children must pay to start school in Addis Ababa
Materials for clubs and recreations during the summer and weekends

In terms of where the money goes, we try to be as transparent as we possibly can. We aim to be able to tell you exactly where your donation has gone, whether it was £10 or £1000! We also want to make sure that your donation reaches the people you want it to. We all see money being wasted in our day to day life, and I’m really, really passionate about making sure that doesn’t happen. The maximum amount of money we raise goes straight to the orphanage.

So thank you again for all your hard work! It’s been a really brilliant year and we’ve more than doubled the amount we sent to Hanna Orphans’ Home last year!

I’ll post about the exciting plans for 2011 – and how you can get involved! – in a few days!

Christmas at Cass Business School

Cass Business School have been supporting Hanna's Orphanage since December 2009 and have been brilliant - not only have they helped us raise double what we did last year, they provided 3 volunteers to teach at the orphanage's summer school this summer and will be doing the same next year!

The money Cass and their volunteers raised this year have helped the orphanage survive a very difficult finacial situation, and have paid for proper tables and chairs (made by an Ethiopian carpenter just down the road from the orphanage, so money going into the economy) so that children from the local community as well as the orphanage children can study properly. Added to that, they've really raised the profile of the orphanage with people who normally wouldn't have heard of us, and are always around to provide support and advice. It's all a bit wonderful and we're very grateful!

I've spent the last two evenings interviewing and selecting Cass students and staff for our trip to Ethiopia in 2011. A decision should be made on Monday and then the fundraising, preparing and training will start!

At the Cass campus, I got to see the Christmas card that the University have had made for Hanna Orphans Home. People can donate money to Hanna's Orphanage to be able to sign it and leave a message. It looks fantastic!



Is it providing any concrete benefit to the orphanage? Well, the money people are donating will of course go directly to the orphanage, probably to help pay rent. The actual card? Not really. However, I think it's a great idea and have told the orphanage about it. They're excited to receive it - I can also think of lots of the children who I taught and spent time with while I was over there who will love it! Sometimes I guess it's okay to do something purely to make people smile! :-)

Football Action

Football Action is a new organisation currently in the process of registering as a charity. They have the simple aim of using football to encourage students to attend school and re-engage with learning, and this year they worked with Hanna's Orphanage and LEAP (see previous newsletter for details!!).

Despite completely exhausting me, the trip was amazing, and it's always lovely for me to be able to introduce everyone to the beauty of Ethiopia and all the people who made my stay such an amazing experience.

We worked really hard to make sure the trip was sustainable and that it wasn't just a case of turning up, playing football a bit and then going home. The teachers in our team delivered teacher training and skill sharing sessions, while the teachers were involved in the football coaching sessions so that they can continue with the games and activities during the year (one of the teachers is really keen on setting up an inter-school football tournament too, and this will definitely help with that!). The team also raised the money to build a proper football pitch on the school compound and replace the wooden goals that were being eaten by termites.

Both the school and the orphanage got lots of footballs, which is what they kept asking me for! :-)

Have a look at the fantastic video of the trip to give you an idea of what a great time everyone had (including the students at the orphanage and at the school!!!)

Hanna's Orphanage October Newsletter

Welcome to the October 2010 Hanna's Orphanage newsletter.

It's been a really busy and successful summer, with our first Cass Business School volunteers visiting the orphanage, and some of supporters jumping out of an aeroplane to raise money for us!

Fundraising has been amazing, and we've raised our biggest ever amount of money for the orphanage! Thank you so much. Your generosity has ensured that despite the economic situation, the orphanage is still able to provide shelter, education, food, clothing and toys to over 200 children.

Thank you so much!

Jenny and the Hanna’s Team



Cass Business School

Cass Business School in London (cass.city.ac.uk) have partnered with Hanna's Orphanage and this year sent three volunteers to teach at the orphanage's summer school.

Charleane Smith, Donal O'Shea and Michael Feeney arrived in August, laden with clothes, pens, books and toys, and spent two weeks teaching English, exploring the country and generally entertaining the children!



Volunteers teaching at summer school not only gives the students access to native English speakers, but it also exposes them to a different type of teaching. Schooling in Ethiopia is often based on 'rote learning' with the children memorising rather than actually understanding the material.

Volunteers sent over by Hanna's Orphanage focus on 'active learning' which involves the students learning in a visual, audio and kinaesthetic way.

Consequently, during the summer school we saw Donal teaching prepositions using suitcases and tennis balls, and Charleane teaching the clothing vocabulary using a washing line across the classroom! There were also games of Blockbuster, hangman and an enthusiastic chorus of 'Molly Malone'.




Before they travelled to Ethiopia, the volunteers put a lot of effort into fundraising and have so far managed to raise well over £6,000 which is incredible! Some of the money has been used to get more good quality wooden chairs and tables for the classrooms, whilst the rest of it has gone towards covering the running costs of the orphanage.

The recession has hit Ethiopia hard, with rental prices and food prices rocketing, and the money raised by Cass Business School came at just the right time to enable us to help the orphanage.

After the success of this year, we hope to do it again next year with new volunteers and continue to build the partnership.

A huge thank you to Cass!



Where your money has gone!

The money you have raised has been a lifeline to the orphanage this summer. It has gone towards supporting the day-to-day costs of the orphanage, particularly the rent of the houses the children live in. This is one of the orphanage's biggest expenditures and we can help so much by supporting them with it!

Money has also gone towards setting up a sewing room and an IT classroom. Computer skills are important for employability in Ethiopia, and now the orphanage children have access to 5 computers and a computer skills teacher.



The staff at the orphanage are also able to take some classes, and it's open to students in the local community who have dropped out of school. It's a really important resource!



Football Action

Football Action, a group of teachers, musicians and football players, also spent some of the summer in Ethiopia and visited the orphanage.

Nikki and Jenny spent some time with the younger ones at the main orphanage, then the whole team visited the Shiro Meda house. The boys in the orphanage were thrilled that they had people to play football with, and there was some music making going on in the corner too!



When they left Ethiopia, the Football Action team donated to Shiro Meda a football kit for each boy (and a few spare), lots of footballs, a couple of pumps and a cricket set.

They also raised £500 which will go towards buying something for the Shiro Meda house.


Skydive!

At the end of July, Jenny, Anthony and Danyele Higgins and Amie Liddle were attached to men with parachutes and thrown out of a plane, all to raise money for Hanna's Orphanage!

The skydive took place at Beccles Airfield in Suffolk and after a 5 hour wait for the rain and cloud to clear, the four of them went up on the last flight of the day. All successfully completed their skydive, despite some last minute nerves!

There were big smiles afterwards, particularly because they raised over £1,200 for Hanna's Orphanage between them!



Thanks also to Anne-Marie Higgins and Kate Horner who hung around at the airfield to show their support and take some fabulous photos and video.


Unfortunately, James Cockburn was unable to do the jump due to illness, but will do as soon as he's back to full health!


Christmas gig!

Hanna's Orphanage Music Nights are back! This time we're teaming up with Football Action to throw a huge Christmas party at Vibe Bar, Brick Lane on 4th December 2010.

Come along to listen to some fantastic live music from Looks Like Rain, Front Covers and Smoke Feathers, win some great prizes in our raffle and then dance the night away to a DJ.

Tickets are £10 and any other donations are very welcome. All money will be split between Football Action and Hanna's Orphanage.

If you'd like more information, please contact Maria on maria@blueskyonline.co.uk.


Twitter and Facebook!

Join us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/hannasorphanage) or Facebook (Hanna's Orphanage). Tell all your friends! The more people who know about us, the more fundraising we can do!

Tandem Skydive!

On July 31st 2010, 5 people are going to be throwing themselves out of an aeroplane to raise money for Hanna’s Orphanage (parachutes will be attached!). One of those people will be me, so I know that we would appreciate any support (and money!) you can give!

Here are the links to our fundraising pages:

www.justgiving.com/pushjames

www.justgiving.com/jennyjumpsoutofaplane

www.justgiving.com/danyelehiggins

www.justgiving.com/anthonyhiggins

www.justgiving.com/amieliddle

Most of us are paying for the jump entirely ourselves, so 100% of the money raised will go to the orphanage – money well spent, I think you’ll agree!

To Do Lists

It’s a busy, busy, busy time at the moment. Where does time go? Time feels like it flies by and I spend my life putting things on my ‘to do’ list and then never getting round to doing them (of course, this is also because I am the Queen of Procrastination).

When I’m in Ethiopia, time seems to have a completely different rhythm, a completely different meaning. Time stretches forever – or that’s what it feels like! – and you can take ages doing little things. I remember K and I climbing Asherton Mountain when we were first in Lalibela, having breakfast and then going to have a nap ... and discovering it was only 11am! We were convinced the clock was wrong. It felt like we’d done a full day’s activities and yet it wasn’t even lunchtime!

It was the same during those endless afternoons while I sat on my little wooden veranda, creating teaching resources or reading a book , and drinking tea. The day stretched on forever and everything around me was peaceful, unhurried and calm.

Of course, this is totally romanticising everything, I know. And – as usual – I wasn’t so good at appreciating it at the time. I was too busy thinking of all the exhibitions I’d go to back in London, all the books I’d read, the friends I’d see, the plays I’d watch. I missed my busy life in the UK and really looked forward to returning to the buzz of things.

But actually, when I relaxed into it, I loved the stillness and the slowness. I learnt so much from living like that and from the attitudes of my friends in Lalibela: a lot about living in the moment (as cheesy as that sounds), about enjoying simply spending time sitting with friends and about not being scared of the silence and the space.

I have bought some of that home with me. I move slower now, I spend more time just sitting, and I no longer sit on a train whilst reading a book, listening to music and texting, all at the same time. Of course, the rest of London is still manically busy, which occasionally causes a problem ... but generally I’ve reached some kind of equilibrium.

Which, I suppose, is a roundabout, self centred way of saying that things are busy with Hanna’s Orphanage! We’ve had quite a few donations, so we’re busy sending out thank you letters, and I have a backlog of emails from people requesting information about Hanna’s Orphanage, Ethiopia and what they can do to help. Meanwhile, supporters in Sudbury, Suffolk, are preparing for the cake sale and stall on 19th June – if you want to get involved, please email riewhs@hotmail.com

We are also in the middle of recruiting and selecting two volunteers to teach English at the summer school at the orphanage. Sending volunteers to Ethiopia has never been something we planned to do – we simply don’t have the money or capacity to support people there. However, we are currently working in partnership with Cass Business School and sending two of their students over in August. It’s looking really positive at the moment and we’re all really hopeful!

We are also working on getting the word out about the 5 people who are doing tandem parachute jumps to raise money for the orphanage (see next blog for details!). Any money you can donate will be much appreciated!

So, it’s about 7pm on a Sunday evening, and I have a huge to do list sitting on the sofa next to me. I’m determined to stop procrastinating and get this all done, so I can curl up in bed later with a book, and enjoy the rest of the evening ...