A Heart for Africa

You Are Making A Difference

2007-09-19T15:06:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to send a thank you to everyone who has participated so far in the backpack project! Many of you have sent in backpacks filled with supplies and many of you have sent in cash donations. As you can see I have been busy shopping and this is a picture of the back of my truck filled with backpacks!!! I feel like Target is my second home these days! So keep checking the stores and keep the backpacks coming....and most importantly, thank you so much for making a difference in the life of a child! Be Blessed!

Lori

Backpacks Needed.....new and used!

2007-08-29T10:37:00.000-05:00

A big thanks to all of the people who have responded to this project of raising backpacks for the kids in Africa through Children's Cup!! Although we are underway, there is still a long way to go!! I talked to Vicki at Children's Cup and they are also accepting used backpacks. So gather all of your kids used backpacks that you just don't know what to do with and donate them to this wonderful cause! Children's Cup has a warehouse that they will store everything in until they are ready to ship the items over to Africa. You can give your backpacks to me and I will drop them off at Children's Cup or you can contact someone there if you would rather drop the items off directly. That website is www.chidrenscup.org Listed on this page is a list of items that you could put in the backpacks. And of course, all back to school items are going on major sale right now, so now is a great time to hit the stores!! Thanks for making a difference!

Lori

Supplies and Backpacks

2007-08-08T11:25:00.000-05:00

A simple backpack filled with school supplies is enough to make a child's year in Africa! What a difference such a small thing can make. If you would like to help, please let me know by responding to this blog. You can either purchase the items yourself or make a donation and we will purchase the items for you. If you know of anyone else that would like to get involved, please forward this to them. Thanks so much!

Backpack
crayons
pencils
large lined notebook
round tipped scissors
glue stick (not liquid glue)
markers
folder
construction paper
warm hat
gloves

You can also add items such as:

toothbrush
bar of soap
washcloth

With the school year just starting, these items are so cheap right now at various stores such as Wal Mart, Target, Dollar General, Dollar Tree and Big Lots. You can really get a lot for your money! Make it a fun project to do with your kids, and teachers....this would be a great class project. Just think of the lessons you can teach with this! Anything that you can do is so appreciated!! As always, you can check out www.childrenscup.org for more info. Thanks!!

Backpacks for Kids

2007-08-07T15:22:00.000-05:00

It has been almost a month since we have been back home from Africa. I can't stop thinking about those kids and what I can do to somehow make a difference in their lives. One thing that really affected me was the eduction for the children. The government schools are different in Africa, meaning that there are still fees to be paid for a public education and supplies to be bought for school. This of course means that many of the children don't get to go to school at all because even the smallest of fees can't be paid by many of the caretakers of these children. The supplies we could buy on one trip to Wal Mart or Target would take them a year to save up for and buy. When we got home, I knew there had to be something to do about this. As God would have it, Children's Cup is just launching a program called "Engage". This program has various projects listed where one can get involved. One such project would be under the education section entitled "backpacks". This is just up my alley! So I am on the team to try and raise 5,000 backpacks filled with school supplies to be shipped to the Carepoints in Africa in early 2008. If you would like to get involved, please let me know. Right now, school supplies are so cheap and you can get a backpack and supplies for under $30 or even cheaper! That's only a week without your Starbucks! Please go to www.childrenscup.org/v2/engage/?p=16 if you want to find out more. You can either purchase these items yourself or make a donation and we will purchase the items for you. I will post a list of some ideas for things to go in the backpacks. Thanks!!!

Swaziland and Kenya

2007-07-29T14:40:00.000-05:00

As many of you know, Pat and I had the awesome opportunity to travel to Swaziland and Kenya with Go Global Missions and work with an organization called Children's Cup. The purpose of Children's Cup is to take humanitarian and spiritual aid into the hard places where war, natural disasters and disease epidemics have devastated societies. While we were there, we were able to show the love of Jesus in a hand's on way. We were able to work with various Carepoints. A CarePoint can be looked at as a school, a medical clinic, a cafeteria, or a meeting place. No matter what program is going on at a CarePoint, each is most definitely a safe haven for hundreds of orphans and vulnerable children that are in such desperate need of hope. We experienced so many emotions while on this trip, and of course you come home constantly wondering what you can do to continue to help. I feel like I am still processing all that I saw and was a part of in the short time I was there. The Lord has placed such a tender spot in our hearts for the wonderful people of this country. I am excited about what is next. Check out the pictures from our trip at this website http://picasaweb.google.com/kristishack/GoGlobalTrip