Need: GIVE AFRICAN ORPHAN GIRLS A REAL SHOT AT A FUTURE
by elinorburkett | November 1, 2012 at 9:12 AM | Funding
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Meet some of the girls being trained!Across Zimbabwe, girls with few options are forced into early marriage to men who are abusive, unfaithful and, in too many cases, infected with HIV. Almost a quarter of the country’s women admit that their first sexual experience was forced; a third of married women report living with violence. We’re changing that for one group of orphans. We’re giving them nothing less, and nothing more, than control over their own destinies.
How? “Women’s work” doesn’t get you very far, so last year we trained two girls in welding and building techniques– from laying brick to pouring cement. Now, we’re launching an expanded version of that program, ZimGirls Welding, and plan to grow it into an independent company for future trainees. It will serve as template for other microenterprises run by, and tailored to, dozens of young women orphaned by AIDS.
The umbrella program, Zimkids Orphan Trust, is a finalist in a Nike/GlobalGiving Foundation competition to improve the lives of girls across the world. To win organizations – and get $30,000 in grants - we need as many individual donations as possible during Nov. Donations don’t need to be large. Since it’s the NUMBER of donations, not the amount raised, that will catapult us to the top, even $10 will make an enormous difference.
Our goal is 1000 donations. So can you spread the word and ask your friends and family members to give our girls a helping hand? Every little contribution is worth a LOT to us. Let’s take these young women viral!
You can donate two ways – PLEASE, not before November 1 or after the 30th:
By credit card: Go to http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/building-girls-futures/
By Check: Payable to “Global Giving”. Must be received by Nov 15th. Note that donation is to be applied to Zimkids; Building Girls Futures. Mail to Global Giving, 1023 15th Street, NW, 12th Flr, Washington, DC 20005
Learning the magic of welding!
Who says girls can't build their own houses?
Comments
Great program!
Sounds like a great program Elinor, thank you for sharing this. I wish you great success!
Scott Beck
World Pulse Online Community Manager
And thank you for World
And thank you for World Pulse, Scott!