News from Ethiopia
Summer in Ethiopia is the Rainey season. As drought is affecting large areas of the Horn of Africa including Ethiopia we are hoping that this years rain does not fail and that it is not so severe that the topsoil is washed away. The community of Ejere is a subsistence farming community so they rely heavily on the pattern of rainfall to grow their crops to feed their family. they have no cash crop to fall back on.
Schools will be closing soon for summer. The rains make the roads difficult to navigate.
When Tigist and Ally went to visit in April they got to spend a lot of time with the girls. We believe in a wholistic support package, therefore providing resources for fun and exercise is just as important as uniforms and stationary. In the photo you can see the girls getting very competitive in a volleyball match.
The Toby’s house compound provides a safe space for the girls to be themselves and to take part in these activities without unwanted attention. Thank you for helping provide the safe environment to help the girls grow and advance their studies. 
Post high school
We are delighted to report that of the 6 girls who recently finished high school (delayed due to covid) 
  • 2 have got a space at a Government Run University
  • 2 are at private college
  • 1 is taking entrance exams for nursing
  • 1 is going to repeat her exams and is also studying accountancy at the weekend. 
We are delighted for each of them as they work so hard and struggled tremendously with the disruption covid 19 caused to their studies. We cant wait to see what is next for them. Thanks to the new post education fund created by the Great Ethiopian run last November,  we have been able to ensure the girls are supported in this next stage of their education

Three years ago work started on the planning for a big swing dance night to raise funds for the new girls education building Prudence House.  This building will allow us to double our capacity to allow girls from remote rural regions to complete high school.
Plans were in place, excitement was growing, then covid hit us resulting in two postponements (not fun at all).
The good news is that we are now ready to go full speed ahead with the delayed event this Autumn
October 6th 2022 6pm at Aston Stadiums Lansdown Room. So dust off those suits, get the sparkles polished, it’s time to party and raise money for some very highly motivated young girls.

We will need your help please to make this awesome.
Can you…….

  • help fill a table with guests?
  • provide prizes or auction gifts? (anything from a bottle of Whisky, meal vouchers to a holiday home let)

Check out the band we have booked on you tube. 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rbP-O4ECRTQ&feature=youtu.be

Huge thanks to Ed Ware Homes for sponsoring the music on the night.

contact [email protected] for more information

Please forgive the C word in July! This is a heads up notice that we have applied to be a part of The Big Give Christmas challenge again this year due to the success you all made it last year. The opportunity to double your donation is too good an opportunity to turn down.
If you are considering making a gift to us in the next few months can you please contact Ally ([email protected]) so she can maximise the campaign and make sure your donation is doubled. Thank you so much.

Amazing Ros has raised over £2,000 in 12 months 

Over the last 12 months Ros has kept all of us enthralled with her various adventures in her narrow boat Dingiswayo. The money donated to her sponsorship pages has been building. To date over £2,000 has been donated in total and the figure is still rising. Thank you so much Ros for all your hard work and to all of you who encouraged her by donating. This is a huge help to the plumbing that will be needed for the new girls education building Prudence house. 

Final blog for Dingiswayo
I can’t quite believe that I have completed this rather ambitious journey from the Vale of Pewsey to Letchlade on the Thames, via the riverSevern.
There are various people who deserve a huge thank you.
I am especially grateful to my daughters, Cath and Julia who left me and collected me from obscure places when necessary; thanks to the For Ethiopia team, Rosie and James for getting me down the Caen flight. Thank you to all the other friends who helped me along the way but special thanks to Jenny
(who encouraged me to tackle the river Severn) and Barbara who got me through hundreds of locks, many of them requiring Herculean strength. Finally I would like to thank Sue Thomas for her unfailing support and encouragement and enthusiasm throughout the whole enterprise. 
As a result of all this effort we have reached our target of raising £500 For Ethiopia- and probably more!
I am just wondering what to next……..

https://dingiswayoisoffagain.wordpress.com/2022/06/09/final-blog-for-dingiswayo/

Ethiopian Proverb
If you see that a town respects a calf, then cut the grass and feed it