Dawna, Amy, and I recently attended a conference celebrating women, who we are, and how we are. And learning to be resilient.
There was specific focus that evening on women’s resilience. In hearing stories of some of the ladies in the audience, their hard times, and how they emerged from them, I couldn’t help but reflect on the strength and endurance the three of us have shared with one another over the past nine+ years. We have had personal struggles with sickness, death, disappointment, and overwhelm. We have also come back from those hard times together as we figuratively and literally climbed those tall mountains that feel completely unsurmountable.
When Covid hit our Tanzanian friends for years with the stop of tourism and the end of their income source, they were truly defeated. Meanwhile, in our neck of the woods, the inability to be with our people during that time was emotionally taxing to us. In the middle of it all and being resilient, Amy found a way to help lift up our African family economically and to feed her soul through the founding of Kilimanjaro Kidz Education Foundation (KKEF).
In his New York Times bestseller titled Resilience: Hard-Won Wisdom for Living a Better Life, Eric Greitens wrote, “We all have battles to fight. And it’s often in those battles that we are most alive: it’s on the frontlines of our lives that we earn wisdom, create joy, forge friendships, discover happiness, find love, and do purposeful work.”
I am grateful for the time that Amy, Dawna, and I get to spend celebrating our resilience from a conference, to hiking up a mountain, while sipping coffee after kickboxing, or when enjoying bacon and bourbon with our other strong friends. And we want to thank and recognize you all for the way you’ve taken hard times and disappointment as well as love and friendship and turned it into “purposeful work.” including your sponsorship and support of Kilimanjaro Kidz Education Foundation.
Stephanie Buchanan, KKEF Secretary
Meet the Kidz
Jambo! My name is Emanuel. I am 8 years old, and I go to Uswaa English Medium School. My father, Datius, took care of helping Miss Amy to finish each day and go to her tent when they climbed the mountain. I am very quiet, but I am always thinking, and I like to dress up.
Click the image to watch my video.
Here is a picture of Emanuel, his parents, and Amy.
Emanuel Datius and parents and Amy 20232024 Funding…We Hope Two Steps Forward
The last quarter of 2023 was difficult for many and we had some sponsors step away. By the grace of God, several folks stepped up to bridge the gap and keep ALL of our students in school!
NOW, we seek to replace those sponsors so that our current students keep moving forward and we hold the hope that we can also find sponsors for the children lining up on the waitlist.
$900 per year, just $75/month, covers not only the tuition for the year, but also health insurance, school supplies, uniforms, books, transportation to and from school, and two meals each day. If you want to help, but don’t feel that amount is achievable right now, we’ve ADDED OPTIONS for partial sponsorships for as little as $25 per month. And we continue to welcome one-time donations in ANY amount, as they contribute to the whole of what we do.
If you haven’t yet sponsored and would like to, or you are a sponsor and want to give an extra one-time contribution, please visit the How You Can Help page and donate today! Our students, who range in age from 4 to 19, are so thankful for having their education secured, and removing a huge burden from their family’s daily concerns.
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