Kilimanjaro Kidz Archives - Kilimanjaro Kidz Education Foundation

The Promise of Spring

April 7, 2023 By Amy Stoehr Leave a Comment

Last month I was wishing for spring, and this month I’m celebrating its arrival!

In November of 2022, my husband and I planted tulips in honor of our Lucy dog who had passed away in the spring. This week, they started to pop up, and every day I find myself counting the new arrivals and speculating about what colors we put where and how many more might show up.

Today I had the chance for a walk in the sunshine with beautiful friends around MacIntosh Lake, a spot which many of us hold dear for different reasons. We came across free flowers on the path back home. Amy said that the gentleman who lives at this house along the greenway works at a local grocery store from where he brings home flowers at the end of the shift that would have otherwise been thrown away. We passed a young boy around age 16 carrying 2 bouquets while heading home from his dog walk. And each of us was happy to “save” one bunch of flowers to take a bit of sunshine to our houses.

Spring is my favorite season. I love the sun, the warmth and how we’re all coming out of hibernation and ready to enjoy life together. I hope that wherever you are, you are enjoying a world full of flowers, friends, and color. – Stephanie Thai Buchanan, Secretary of the Board

Meet the Kidz

Jambo! My name is Emanuel. I am 18 years old and I go to Tumaini Foundation School. I have a great desire to be a success in life; you can click the image below to watch my video.

We Need Your Help

We have added health insurance for every student for just $25 per year, and school fees have climbed in the last year. Some secondary schools are growing by substantial amounts. And yet, for just $75/month, you are able to cover these expenses, including school supplies, uniforms, books, and transportation to and from school! Not to mention the school fees themselves and two meals each day.

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 18, are so thankful for having their education secured, which includes two meals every school day, and removes a huge burden from their family’s daily concerns.

Please be sure to Like us on Facebook, invite your friends, and encourage them to sign up for the newsletter. Scroll to the bottom of our home page to subscribe!

More Than Wishful Thinking

March 3, 2023 By Amy Stoehr Leave a Comment

But what’s wrong with wishful thinking??

As I sit here writing to you, it is 8 degrees and snowing outside. I am tired of the cold. I am tired of snow. And I’m dreaming of longer days, tulips blooming, and hikes with friends. I realize that this is wishful thinking on my part as March is one of Colorado’s snowiest months!

Without wishful thinking, we would have never summited Mt. Kilimanjaro or celebrated on the top of Rainbow Mountain. Without wishful thinking we would have never crossed the Continental Divide in a day or endeavored to hike 110 miles around a very large European mountain (this year’s adventure).

Without wishful thinking, Amy would have never turned her desire to give back to our Tanzanian porters into founding Kilimanjaro Kidz Education Foundation. Without wishful thinking, KKEF would never have helped 60+ children and their families to achieve goals many of them never wished of before.

Seems like wishful thinking is pretty powerful! Maybe I’ll get the sunshine, budding flowers, and girlfriend treks soon after all. 💙You should try some wishful thinking too!

Our Kidz

Jambo! My name is Adela. I am 16 years old and I go to Kibo Secondary School. I am grateful for my sponsorship.

Adela with her father, Ajuna, and Founder Amy Stoehr

Click the image and you can watch my video below.

We Need Your Help

Please be sure to Like us on Facebook, invite your friends, and encourage them to sign up for this newsletter. Scroll to the bottom of our home page to subscribe!

Keeping the Faith

February 8, 2023 By Amy Stoehr Leave a Comment

The Big 3, as Amy, Dawna, and Stephanie affectionately refer to ourselves, have been listening, learning, and talking about faith this month.

It’s not a new topic of conversation for us. It comes up when we’re hiking those tall mountains, as well as when we’re laughing with girlfriends over bacon and bourbon. But it is a conversation we feel worthy of sharing with all of you. Imagine Dr. King’s metaphor as Amy took the first steps of turning her dream into a reality of quality, private education for our Tanzanian friends’ children through Kilimanjaro Kidz Education Foundation. The staircase has climbed over 60 steps high with each one representing a beautiful child whom you’ve helped so far.

Now the staircase has started to become circular as we’ve entered an economy where everything just costs more than it did even a year ago. The stairs are winding back around, and we’ve asked you to pay more toward the children’s private education ($900/year or $75/month) because the tuition prices have risen. We’ve also decided to put $25 of that money toward health insurance — $25 per child for a YEAR! – as we want our kiddos to have access to simple medications or procedures they may need in order to get well and get back to school asap.

We know that some of you may not have the means or the desire to put more money towards our cause. We certainly understand and respect that. But we do have FAITH that the children’s needs will continue to be met, and we look forward to heading up an even taller staircase with you in 2023.

Our Kidz

Jambo! My name is Grayson. I am 6-1/2 and I go to Winners primary school. I am the middle child of five. I started Grade 1 in January.

We Need Your Help

Please be sure to Like us on Facebook, invite your friends, and encourage them to sign up for the newsletter. Scroll to the bottom of our home page to subscribe!

Your Support, Our Kidz, Amazing Grace

January 9, 2023 By Amy Stoehr Leave a Comment

Our Kidz

Amy was fortunate to be able to travel in December to visit our families again. The school year ends in December in Tanzania, so it was a great time to reconnect, talk to the kidz, and even capture some of their thoughts on short videos! We are in the process of sending those videos to their respective sponsors, and we will be posting several up on the website as well.

Amy was able to visit two of our families at their homes. It’s amazing how much can be done with so little. The greatest joy, of course, is seeing the smiles on the faces of the children!

While there, Amy also saw some acreage that would be an ideal location for building a school. We have some steps to complete before we’re able to get that ball rolling, and, when God hands us additional clarity, we have a responsibility to take that and go forward.

Thank You!

Click the image below to play the video.

Amazing Grace

The pandemic, the war in Ukraine, world financial challenges, and a lengthy drought have put a strain on the country and everything from food to transportation to tuition has been impacted. So, the Board has decided to adjust the sponsorship amount to $900 annually ($75 per month) to offset some skyrocketing costs. If you would be willing to raise your sponsorship amount, contact us!

The Quest Continues

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, which includes two meals every school day, and removes a huge burden from their family’s daily concerns.

Donations to Kilimanjaro Kidz Education Foundation (a 501c3 foundation) are tax deductible. ANYTHING helps.

Happy Holidays!

December 10, 2022 By Amy Stoehr Leave a Comment

Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love.

What a beautiful thought!

Conspiring, plotting, scheming toward a common cause of LOVE – for those less fortunate, for those who are lonely, for those who are grieving, for those who are tired, for those who are happy, for those who make us happy, for those who love us back.

As her Christmas present to herself, Amy will be in Africa this month visiting with many of our students and their families in a conspiracy of love. Follow her visit with us on Facebook, and we’ll be sure to share plenty of pictures and stories from her trip in the new year.

Amy, Stephanie, Dawna, Jr, and Respicius wish you a wonderful holiday season.

We love engaging in this conspiracy of love the whole year through with all of you and can’t wait to continue it in 2023!

We are BEYOND Grateful

November 19, 2022 By Amy Stoehr Leave a Comment

As the holiday season approaches, we are filled with gratitude for the continuing generosity of all of you sponsoring!

What an amazing year it has been.

Goals that you all have helped us achieve, again! 🏫

Raising funds for private school education in Tanzania. 📖

Amy’s vision has been shared across the world over the past three years. 🌍

Twenty-two new children have been sponsored in 2022. ❤

Insight into the children’s families, schools and homes that Amy gained on her April return to Tanzania.✈

Thankful for friends, family, co-workers and strangers on a plane who have listened to our stories about our Tanzanian families and joined in the Kilimanjaro Kidz Education Foundation dream. 👂

United towards a common cause – kindness. 🤝

Deciding how we can help these children even more…will health insurance be next? 🏥

Enjoying the children’s joy, respect, hope and GRATITUDE for what you have shared with them.😊

We wish you all a wonderful month filled with gratitude for the blessings in your lives!

Meet the Kidz…

Jambo! My name is Ivana. I am 4-1/2 and I go to Hellow Pre and Primary school. I am lucky to start being sponsored at the beginning of my schooling. I will be in Standard 1 starting in January.

We Need Your Help

We had an amazing October and were able to reach our goal for sponsors in 2022 before the end of October! But we still need your help. We are adding health insurance for every student for just $25 per year. And school fees have climbed in the last year. Some secondary schools are growing by substantial amounts.