Star Fundraiser

When people fundraise for our various projects it is such a huge benefit to our small charity and we are very grateful to everyone who helps us.

In December 2014 Clayton Woltz together his mother and Hubab Hood visited our projects in Uganda and were shown around by our Operations Manager, George Kakonge. Clayton and Hubab had a “drone camera” and took this wonderful picture of the clinic on Bwama Island.

Clayton told his niece Belle about our projects and Belle was keen to help and to fundraise for a playground at one of our nursery schools. We sent her information and posters and she set about her task.

In her own words here’s how Belle raised the funds:

“Upon pondering ways to collect monetary means for your charity, I happened to contact my language arts teacher and very close friend of mine, Megan Macke. Megan advocates for youth community service and has many groups of students, including myself, reaching out and giving back to our small, rural town. In her efforts raise money for a mural, she and other students sold cheese. The cheese is made by Pearl Valley Cheese (http://pearlvalleycheese.com), a local farm not too far away from our county, and one makes 4(8-9)% profit from all sales.

With this being said, the sale of cheese is supporting our local economy as well as the profit going to a wonderful cause, not to mention they manufacture award winning cheese products. I adopted the cheese sales as means of fundraising, as well as networking with many family members and small businesses, and had much support from major healthcare companies. My fundraiser was conducted over the span of one month, with my monetary goal being $500(cost of one playground). Conducting this fundraiser has been such a great experience for me, and I plan to continue my efforts. As you know, I exceeded my initial goal, by raising $541.50. I had $498.50 collected in cheese sales, $241.50 of which being pure profit. I had $300 worth of donations. 

With this being said, my successes show how youth have the power to make a difference, and change the world. My experience has been completely rewarding. I am incredibly thankful for this opportunity, and proud that I have so many individuals connected to Edirisa, from southern Ohio, USA. 

Thanks Belle and thanks also to Clayton who matched her efforts with his own donation!

The playground at Nyakasiru is being built and will be ready when school goes back on September 7th.

Rita’s Progress

On February 17th, 2013 Rita left Uganda with her aunt, Linate, headed for Aswan Health Centre in Egypt. A week later Sir Magdi Yacoub  performed heart surgery on Rita and he was able to repair, rather than replace, the damaged valves. As Chain of Hope covered the cost of the flights and the operation some of the funds we raised were spent on a monitoring machine for Kabale Hospital and for 2 years of follow up appointments and medicine.

Over the last 2 years Rita and her mother have travelled to Kampala every 3 months for her follow up examinations and treatment and we are happy to report that she has made amazing progress and has been back at school now for over a year.

In December I attended a Chain of Hope Carol Concert in London and had the opportunity to thank Sir Magdi personally. I will be sending this lovely photograph of Rita and her mother to Chain of Hope and maybe can persuade them to send a team to visit our clinic on Bwama Island one day!

Double your donations with THE BIG GIVE Christmas Challenge! We are fundraising for water tanks.

In the run up to Christmas THE BIG GIVE organization provides an opportunity for charities to double donations received. This scheme is one of our most important fundraising initiatives as it allows our supporters to have their donations matched. This year we are raising funds for water harvesting tanks for the elderly, disabled, and families impacted by HIV/AIDs (watch our video and find more project details on our website).

Our target is to install a minimum of 10 new water tanks. Over the last five years we have installed over 100 water tanks to homes, schools and nurseries impacting more than 2000 people by providing clean water. Water borne disease and poor sanitation still kills more people globally than all forms of violence, including war, and is a huge hurdle in the struggle out of poverty. The cost to install one rainwater harvesting tank is GBP500. This simple piece of infrastructure improves health, allows children time to go to school (rather than walk long distances to fetch [dirty] water), increases gender equality, and improves opportunities for food growth and enterprise. A small price for such a significant impact.

If you would like to support us there are three ways to donate. Our preference is for transfers directly to our UK charity account – we will then pledge the money on your behalf. This avoids us paying fees on the transfer.

Bank account details are:

Edirisa UK

Sort Code: 20-03-53

A/C No:  50376531

SWIFT/BIC:  BARCGB22

IBAN GB34 BARC 2003 5350 3765 31

If you would like to transfer funds please do so in the next few days so we can ensure your funds are pledged!

Alternatively you can make donations via The Big Give site when the race is on to secure matching funds (as the pot of cash runs out fast!). You have to be organized as the funds are released at 10am GMT on the 4th, 5th and 6th of December only! If you are kind enough to make a direct bank transfer to us, Edirisa UK will pledge the funds at the right time to maximise the opportunity to get donations matched.

Or, you can donate on our website.

A little goes a long way in Africa, and what Edirisa UK does makes an impact – please help us continue to do that if you can. Thank you! 🙂