Christmas Newsletter 2014
Registered Charity 1071660
Inside: 2014 in challenges, Peer Health Educators, Comic Relief video, and more!
Emmanuel’s Story Emmanuel Kunda’s story is an inspiring one. Born into poor circumstances but determined to build a future for himself that would enable him to give back to his community, Emmanuel received the support he needed from the Bwafwano Integrated Services Organisation (BISO) - a key partner of Cecily’s Fund. Emmanuel lost his father when he was nine years old and BISO supported Emmanuel as he passed through his primary and secondary school grades. Emmanuel eventually went on to university, and from there secured a job as a research supervisor for the Zambia Daily Mail.
That role took him across all of
Zambia’s nine provinces. With part of his newfound income, Emmanuel chose to support his friends from back home and helped his mother to secure better accommodation.
Emmanuel Kunda in Zambia, 2014
Emmanuel’s growing desire to support the less fortunate
“I made a promise to the lord that
resulted in his formation of the Jire Home of Hope Foundation in 2013.
The Foundation is already supporting orphaned and
vulnerable children, and has ambitious plans to grow.
one day I will be able to help children with the same situation”
Cecily’s Fund extends sincere thanks our Zambian partners Afya Mzuri, BISO and CHEP for their tremendous efforts to improve the lives of children in 2014.
Find us on social media: /cecilysfund
Christmas Newsletter 2014
Inspirational: Peer Health Educators August was a busy time for Cheryl and Liz who spent two weeks engaging with the communities we work in, meeting all our partners and visiting some of the children Cecily’s Fund supports. One of the highlights of the trip was the opportunity to meet our dedicated and inspirational Peer Health Educators. This vibrant team have been supported through school by Cecily’s Fund and are now trained Peer Health Educators and positive role models for younger children. Cheryl and Liz were inspired and humbled by their motivation to make a difference in their own communities and the value and impact of the PHE programme from their own perspectives. Recruitment of PHEs takes place in September each year by our local partner CHEP who identify vulnerable children who have the potential and ability to be specially trained to deliver the programme across 25 schools in Kitwe. Now hear what our PHE have to say...
Cecily’s Fund staff meet PHEs, August 2014
Christmas Newsletter 2014
Christmas Appeal Begins December 1st
Donate online at cecilysfund.org/donate
Buy Gifts of Hope at cecilysfund.org/shop
Enclose a cheque with the form on page 8 and post to us
The Small Change! Big Change! Challenge is a special fundraising campaign being run by Cecily’s Fund during December 2014. The overall aim is to raise £20,000 for our vital work in Zambia - and we need your help. We are working to secure £10,000 in pledges ahead of our public launch in December. Between December 1st and 14th, we are asking all our supporters and the general public to consider making a donation to help us reach our £20,000 target. This is your chance to have your donation doubled - there has never been a better time to donate to Cecily’s Fund. With our new online store now open (see page 8), you can even buy our Gifts of Hope and their value will be added to our campaign total. Cecily’s Fund thanks all of our loyal supporters and we hope you will be able to support our Christmas appeal again this year.
Christmas Newsletter 2014
2014: The Year in Challenges This year has been another strong one when it comes to sponsored challenges. In 2014, supporters both old and new have taken on all kinds of exciting events all over the country and beyond to raise money for Cecily’s Fund. Here is a review of the year, featuring just a few of our brilliant fundraisers!
Corinna Witt: Berlin Airport Night Run Corinna is an associate and former trustee of Cecily’s Fund who was responsible for our website until 2010. After training hard this year, she took part in the Berlin Airport Night Run and ran 10,000 metres to raise money. A big social media fan, Corinna used Twitter and Vine to share her progress throughout her training for the event.
April
Sarah Richards: London Marathon Everyone at Cecily’s Fund was delighted to hear that Sarah had secured a prized open ballot place in this year’s London Marathon and that she had chosen to run for us. Sarah attended the same school as Cecily - Bedales School in Hampshire - and did a fantastic job both in her fundraising and in the run. She secured a time of just under four and a half hours.
April
Elspeth Shirtcliff: Coast-to-Coast Walk Elspeth is a longstanding supporter of Cecily’s Fund and for her birthday this year she chose to do something special to raise money. With a few friends, Elspeth set out on an epic coast-tocoast walk from St. Bees in Cumbria to Robin Hood’s Bay in Yorkshire. The 192-mile walk was devised by famed walking writer and enthusiast Alfred Wainwright in 1973.
May
Christmas Newsletter 2014
Anstice Oakeshott: Hackney Half Marathon Anstice is Cecily’s cousin and this year decided to take part in a run to raise money for Cecily’s Fund. She chose the first-ever Hackney Half Marathon, and completed it in just a shade over two hours. The route took in many of Hackney’s best known landmarks and even included the chance to pass through the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
June
Katherine Moore: Three Peaks Challenge It was second time lucky for Katherine, who is the sister of Cecily’s Fund Programme Manager Liz Gupta. Her first attempt to complete the Three Peaks Challenge was foiled by sickness and injuries to her teammates. Happily, Katherine’s friends were rescued and she was able to complete the challenge on her second attempt with her husband Alec. Here’s to perseverance!
July
Various: British 10K London Run Cecily’s Fund supporters once again took on the British 10K London Run this year, led by Cecily’s sister Philippa. A total of 16 supporters ran for Cecily’s Fund in this year’s instalment of one of the capital’s most popular runs. Helped along by some healthy competition within the group, the runners did a fantastic job both in their fundraising and in the event itself.
July
In 2014, supporters who have taken part in sponsored events have raised over £10,000 for Cecily’s Fund, helping to support many orphaned and vulnerable children attend school, stay healthy and make our work possible. Thank you all so much for your brilliant efforts!
Christmas Newsletter 2014
Supporter Focus #1: Ann Barnes In this new series of articles for the Cecily’s Fund newsletter, we will be speaking to supporters about their support for our work. First is Ann Barnes, who has raised funds for Cecily’s Fund since 2006 through methods as varied as sponsored rides, jam sales, African evenings, and more.
CF: How did you first come into contact with Cecily’s Fund? AB: My daughter had a placement for part of her Gap year in Kitwe, volunteering with CINDI, during the year following Cecily's death. I was very impressed by what CINDI was doing
Ann
and it was obvious that Jenny was quite affected by the
thousands
situation she found herself in - the children and their needs. So
Cecily’s Fund since 2006
Barnes
has
of
raised
pounds
for
when she returned to England we both set about doing some fundraising for CINDI.
Then when Cecily's Fund became
established I did a little bit of fundraising for it over the years, until I eventually got a flier through the post about a challenge bike ride from London to Paris. This was something I had long dreamed of doing, so I enrolled, and that was really the catalyst for a much deeper commitment to the charity. CF: How would you describe your fundraising experience?
A Special Thank You to Our Supporters Ann
has
made
a
huge
contribution to the work of Cecily’s Fund but she is just one of the many generous
I think what is important to stress is that it has all been great
supporters upon whom we
fun and at times very moving. The support and help I have had
rely.
from friends has been amazing, and there is no-one more
Our sincerest thanks to all of
surprised by how much money has come in than me. I never would have thought that I could achieve what I have done, and I know that there is something much stronger than me involved. CF: Do you have a particular memory you’d like to share? I think one of the most touching things I heard / read this year was an email from a friend who had helped with the African supper we put on... she was replying to my email to thank her for her help and simply said “just thinking of the kids - and Cecily.” What more can be said - that is what it is all about.
the
individuals,
c h a r i ta b le
companies,
t r u st s
and
institutional donors who have supported our work in 2014; the change we are able to make in Zambia would not be possible
without
your
assistance. - Cecily’s Fund
Christmas Newsletter 2014 Cecily’s Fund Featured in Comic Relief’s “School of YouTube”
Watch the video online
YouTube star Fleur De Force visited Kitwe Comic Relief chose Cecily’s Fund projects in Kitwe, Zambia as the setting for one of the centrepiece videos in its recent campaign,
tinyurl.com/comicreliefcf
What viewers said
the “School of YouTube”. The campaign featured a number of YouTube stars - who between them command a huge audience of young people who were asked to make videos in which they taught or learned
“Thank you so much for taking us with you. I’m sure it was an amazing, eye-opening experience.”
a skill. At the end of each video, viewers were asked to donate to Comic Relief, who fund the Hands on Learning programme run by Cecily’s Fund. Beauty, fashion and food video blogger - or “vlogger” - Fleur De
“[It’s] great that you’re using your profile to raise attention to these problems.”
Force accepted an invitation from Comic Relief to visit Zambia. Together with her husband Mike and a Comic Relief team, Fleur was able to see first hand the support that Comic Relief and Cecily’s Fund bring to the vulnerable young people of Kitwe.
“I really appreciated how you focused on the hope and positivity in this video.”
Fleur and Mike met Emmanuel, who is helped to attend school by Cecily’s Fund partner Afya Mzuri. Emmanuel taught them how to make bricks by hand and explained how he had to take on the responsibility for looking after his family at a very young age.
“What an amazing experience and worthy cause.”
With the support of Comic Relief, Cecily’s Fund and Afya Mzuri, Emmanuel has a chance at a better life. Fleur’s video of her trip has been viewed over 155,000 times; her channel boasts more than 1 million subscribers. She also appeared in the videos which opened and closed the campaign.
“That was wonderful! It made me cry a bit…”
Christmas Newsletter 2014 Cecily’s Fund Online Shop Now Open! Looking for beautiful Christmas cards with a conscience and gifts that make a real difference? Look no further than the new Cecily’s Fund online shop, which is now open! Our Christmas cards are designed by talented artist Mella Shaw and are just £3 for a pack of six. Gifts of Hope start from £15 and can help provide a child in Zambia with school shoes, a uniform, or a year’s education. Whichever items you choose, payments are accepted via secure card payment or PayPal and affordable delivery rates are calculated online. Visit us today and buy a card or gift with an impact this Christmas.
Visit the Cecily’s Fund shop at cecilysfund.org/shop
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