Holiday Sponsorship Drive
Please consider giving a Gift of Education
2009 has been a year of incredible growth for the Tesfa Foundation! On September 23, 2009, Tesfa’s sixth school “Old Sarum” opened its doors in Addis Ababa Ethiopia.
 |
Kidus |
In the spring of 2010, Tesfa will open the Selam School in the village of Ekodaga in central Ethiopia, a school that will serve an expected 200 children. The Hope Academy in Debre Zeit expanded in September, to serve 60 of the poorest local families.
This is wonderful news for the Tesfa Foundation as well as for the children we serve - however the need for new child sponsors has also grown right along with us. We are asking supporters of Tesfa to please join in our 2009 Holiday Sponsorship Drive. Please consider giving a child sponsorship as a gift this year! You can also help us by spreading the word. Our target is 30 new sponsors by New Year's - a goal we can only achieve with your help!
 |
Mahlet |
Our schools are funded almost exclusively by the generous donations of child sponsors. For $21 per month, a sponsor funds one child’s education, and gets to learn firsthand about the lives of children in one of the world’s poorest nations. Most importantly, the child you sponsor would not be in school without your help!
The gift of a sponsorship is a gift of compassion, understanding, and hope. Every child deserves an early-years foundation in education. We’ve expanded in 2009 to support hundreds more children than we did last year. We desperately need support from donors new and old to keep the classroom doors open.
Sponsor children like Kidus or Mahlet - both from the town of Debre Zeit, where there were no opportunities for early childhood education for disadvantaged children before the Tesfa Foundation arrived. Families in Debre Zeit, Shiro Meda and Ekodaga may live in extreme need, but thanks to Tesfa's generous Child Sponsors, their communities now have hope. Their children are in Tesfa schools and this goes a LONG way toward helping the children AND the communities in which they live. Your support really does make a huge difference in many people's lives.
Thank you kindly for providing these children with the tools they need to succeed. Please visit our websites at tesfa.org or tesfa-uk.org to find out more about gifting child sponsorships.
A New Start in Debre Zeit
 |
The children of the Hope Academy |
The Hope Academy in Debre Zeit has expanded its kindergarten program, reaching out to 60 of the most disadvantaged families in the community. This is the first phase in a stepped expansion that will hopefully grow to an enrolment of 150 children within several years.
The Hope Academy was one of the Tesfa Foundation's earliest forays outside of Ethiopia's capital city, Addis Ababa, beginning as a small and experimental early-years program. The school was a quiet success, and the Foundation has decided to fund an expansion. Opportunities for early-years education in Ethiopia’s small towns are extremely limited.
This year, we ask our donors to get to know this program and the children being served. Please sign up to sponsor one of the new children being offered a chance at a strong head-start in life.
Ekodaga!
Project Selam is ready for launch
The land has been granted by local authorities. Plans have been drawn for the school buildings. The airline tickets have been bought. Project Selam is ready for launch, and the donors to Tesfa's newest school project are ready to travel.
 |
The site of the Ekodaga School |
In January, Mike Schumacher from Green Bay, Wisconsin, along with family members and supporters, will fly to Ethiopia in order to participate in the construction of the Selam School's first classrooms! Mike has taken the lead in making this project happen, and has done a marvelous job gathering support and resources for the children of Ekodaga. This January, he gets to see the fruits of his labor as the school buildings go up and he meets the children and families who will be served by his generous donation.
Ekodaga is a farming village in central Ethiopia that until now has had no school of its own. The Selam School, opening in the spring of 2010, will serve 200 children with primary education in an informal format that adapts to families' farming schedules. In the long term, this project will also endeavor to provide adult education for parents, and to bring light and water to the school and community.
Watch Tesfa's spring newsletter for more news about the Foundation's seventh school project in Ethiopia!
Announcements
Twin Cities Marathon 2010
Plan now to run the Twin Cities Marathon in October, 2010 as a part of the Tesfa Foundation's fundraising team. The 2009 team raised over $4,000 for school programs in Ethiopia. Challenge yourself to complete a marathon, and make education possible for needy children in Ethiopia. 'Team Tesfa' will provide you with the training and fundraising resources to help you meet your goals. Write us for more information at run@tesfa.org
Dana taking a Bath!
Tesfa Foundation executive director and founder Dana Roskey has committed himself to completing the Bath Half Marathon in March, 2010. A hardy group of runners has been running the half marathon in Bath, England for three years, raising funds for schools in Ethiopia. This year, Dana shows solidarity with the dedicated crew there, and has launched a fundraising effort to raise $1,500 on this run. You can support him in this heroic effort by donating at www.firstgiving.org/droskey. Good luck, Dana!
Team Tesfa Update
- another U of M visitor!
Nine athletes from Team Tesfa traveled this month to compete in an important cross country meet in Asela, Ethiopia. Congratulations to Adanech, Merron, Workinesh, and Bekelech for their outstanding performance in the women’s 6K race.
The team prepares to welcome their second visitor from the University of Minnesota Women’s Cross Country squad. In January, Jamie Cheever will arrive in Addis Ababa, and will begin training side by side with Team Tesfa athletes. She will spend six weeks in Ethiopia, learning about the lives of these hard-working athletes.
Have a wonderful time, Jamie. The Team Tesfa girls cannot wait to meet you!
Team Tesfa is a program designed to support women and teenage girl athletes at risk in Addis Ababa. For more than two years it has provided safe housing, education, and training to girls and young women who would like to compete as long-distance runners but who are living in highly at-risk conditions.
Meanwhile, the Team Tesfa Café continues its successful run, adding to its menu and building clientele among neighbors in Addis Ababa. The team girls and women are enjoying themselves, while at the same time learning about small business management. The café program provides them with nutrition for their training and with business and leadership skills for later in life.
Remember, the next time you are in Addis Ababa, drop by the Team Tesfa Cafe for a buna (an Ethiopian coffee) and say hello to the team.
 |
The Tesfa Foundation wishes everyone a very safe and happy Holiday season! |
| 
