Newsletter 2014 #2Registered Charity 1099280

/EducationForTheChildrenFoundation /eftc /EFTCFoundation

www.eftc.org.uk enquiries@eftc.org.uk /EFTCFoundation

Empowering children and young adults

to reach their potential

Our mission is to break the cycle of poverty through education, empowerment and enterprise at the heart of the community.

567 children and young adults are supported by Education for the Children. We work in partnership with these children and their families to ensure they develop

the tools they need to break free from the cycle of poverty.

NellySponsorship Coordinatorsponsor@eftc.org.uk

Points of contact

Social Media We are now on Instagram! Follow us for a daily portion of photo news from the School of Hope in Guatemala! www.instagram/eftcfoundation

NatalieVisitor and VolunteerCoordinatorvisitors@eftcfoundation.org

AnnaCommunicationsCoordinatoranna@eftc.org.uk

News:

BooEvents and CommunityCoordinatorboo@eftc.org.uk

ChantalUK Foundation Coordinatorchantal@eftc.org.ukTel: 0115 9584876

Sta� ChangesNew Corporate and Major Donor Manager Lizzie manages corporate and trust fundraising partnerships for the Foundation.

Christmas ShopOur Xmas Shop is now open!You can now buy Christmas presents for your loved ones while making a difference to families in need: www.eftc.org.uk/christmas-shop THANK YOU

We have been delighted to receive significant contributions over the past six months from:

St. James’s Place Foundation HSBCCastlegate LLP HD Decisions FestaffFluent Money Cop Security DistinctionOpen Gate Persula FoundationBritish & Foreign School Society

Word from the Chairman:Sometimes it is almost impossible to remember what something was like before it changed. How did we work without email or communicate without mobile phones? These are relatively trivial examples but similarly, 100 years ago, how did someone from a working class background get a decent job in the UK? The answer, of course, was that they did not and regardless of their work ethic and/or intelligence, they were destined to carry out manual duties for low wages.

Fast forward, and circumstances have changed so much in the UK that there is little difficulty in finding good opportunities to build a career. A combination of education and social services gives most of us every opportunity to succeed and prosper. Guatemala is an extreme example of how life was for the poor in the UK 100 years ago. It has an incredibly unfair distribution of wealth and opportunity. There is no access to education for the poorest and the economic conditions ensure that huge difficulties face those who try. Many different factors led to the improvements in the UK but there is one clear driving force in Jocotenango.

You and EFTC are changing the lives of these children and families. You have provided the education and all of the essential wrapround services for the children to remain in education and succeed. The dream, and it will become a reality, is that these children will become adults who hardly remember how it used to be before it changed.

Jocotenango is changing in front of our eyes. Please come and see it as it happens and witness something very special. Thank you so much.

- David McKee

Meet the Sta�

"One of my favourite moments is when my students ask me to translate words into English when we are outside of a classroom."Claire is raising funds for the Garden of Hope project that will enhance the students' biology, English and business skills and provide them with skill sets that can only be acquired through first-hand experience outside of the classroom.

“I strongly believe that education is fundamental to achieving a better quality of life and that is why my passion is to serve in the educational sector, to help students reach higher education and decent jobs.”Ana Laura works hard to empower our Scholarship students to make the most of their studies at college and university and find work experience and good employment opportunities.

On the Ground: Fresh Perspectives I sit in with the 6-year-olds for lunch today. We shovel strands of spaghetti with tomato sauce into our mouths and all grin at each other as our tummies start to feel better. I wolf down the heavy corn tortillas and I gulp the delicious sugary fresh fruit squash. This week I am eating my school lunches with a fresh perspective. I’ve known what our kids go through for a very long time; yet I’ve never really lived it until now. This experience will be just a fraction of the reality of a life lived in poverty but it’s a huge lesson all the same; I am living off the same amount as the average child at our project. That’s 6 Quetzals (50p or €0.65 cents) per day. On a normal morning I spend Q6 on a yogurt, Q16 on a coffee, and Q15 on a tuk tuk to get to work; I blow a week’s budget before the clock even strikes 8am. At the start of the week I scoured the market stalls for the best bargains. I bought rice, dried black beans, some potatoes, salt and sugar, an onion, 6 bananas, 5 limes, 4 eggs and a sachet of coffee. Oil was too expensive. Herbs or other flavouring seemed out of the question. Vegetables were relatively cheap but I was more worried about going hungry than I was about vitamins.So my dinners are bland, but enough to fill me up for the night. The hardest part is the morning. A long walk to school on just a banana for breakfast makes it hard to concentrate. This is when I miss my coffee and my little luxuries that I usually think nothing of. Ironically, this morning, as my stomach rumbled, we discussed possible cuts to the budget. Food was high on the list. We talked about what kind of impact it would have on the children if we stopped giving them fruit, or other possible cuts from the $50,000 spent annually on nutrition. It would be a painful decision and we closed the meeting committed to only doing so if we couldn’t find any other solution soon. I walked into the kitchen with a hungry tummy and a heavy heart. I understood how incredibly lucky our kids are to have those huge piles of broccoli and green beans prepared for them.As I join the kids in Reception finishing every last crumb, Dan peers around the door with a grin on his face. “Have you seen your fundraising page?” I sprint into the office to see that I’ve smashed my target of £3000 and I’m over the moon. The response far exceeded my expectations and made the headaches and hunger feel like such a small sacrifice. It’s a wonderful feeling and my eyes fill with tears.I leave EFTC this month after more than 6 years of challenges and rewards. It has been a rollercoaster ride that I’ve been lucky to share with many of you. And so as EFTC takes on fresh perspectives in my absence, I ask you not to lose perspective on what you personally can achieve. We’ve only come this far because individuals like you have also taken the decision to make a small sacrifice to do something incredible. - Amy Holly in her last days as Director of the project in Guatemala (August 2014).

Amy’s challenge raised £3,500 and thanks to the generosity of her donors and several other new income streams, the food budget hasn’t been cut. For more info on how to take on the challenge and fundraise contact Anna at anna@eftc.org.uk.

Claire

Ana Laura

www.gofundme.com/gardenofhope

English Teacher

Careers Advisor

New computers are here thanks to your help!In July, we found out about a fantastic opportunity: a trusted organisation in Guatemala offered us reconditioned IT equipment at an incredibly attractive price. It came at a perfect moment for us too as the study room dedicated to our further education students was in a poor shape and had only 3 half-working computers for 120 students! We support these students through college and university and it's imperative that they have access to a space where they can work on their projects, do their coursework as well as search for jobs and work experience opportunities.

We decided to run a crowdfunding campaign to raise $3,500 which was enough to cover the cost of 14 computers and 20 flat screens, as well as transport and setup. We recorded a campaign video, took pictures and launched the campaign which we then shared with you, our supporters, through our monthly Newsletter, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram... The campaign received over a 1,000 visits and had hundreds of shares - it was incredible to see all the engagament and responses! Within a week we reached 35% of our goal and before the end of the month, the campaign was 100% funded.Last week our Scholarship students celebrated the inauguration of their new study room...

Read more on our blog: www.eftc.org.uk/blog

Empowering the communityBeginning in early 2014, the Empowerment programme has become a vital part of our mission to break the cycle of poverty. The initiative was designed to provide parents, families and the students themselves with the skills, knowledge and understanding needed to combat issues common to everyday life such as alcoholism, domestic violence and truancy. The aim is to empower our families to help them avoid dependency and be able to support themselves and each other.

Javier is a 2nd grade student who has missed school regularly since late 2013, despite several attempts made to encourage him to attend. In July 2014 however, inspired by ideas of the Empowerment initiative, a new approach, peer-to-peer programme, was taken. We asked another parent, a "model mum" Doña Elsa to visit Javier's parents and explain the importance of frequent attendance at school. Similar conversations occurred between Javier and his schoolmates. As a result, Javier's attendance rate began to improve and this has only increased as these meetings have continued.

Karla’s childhood story is an extremely sad one. She experienced violence and abuse and unsurprisingly was an underachiever at the School of Hope. Through the application of the Empowerment programme, Karla's self confidence has improved visibly as she has been encouraged to share stories from her past with students struggling with similar issues. Karla says she wants to become a psychologist in the future to be able to help children in need.

In September, Scholarship students led a session for their younger peers discussing future goals, offering positive advice and creating a medium through which students could talk about and confront their fears and insecurities.

We also recently hosted a Sexual Health day for the parents, where issues like contraception, STDs and sexual hygiene were explained to the parents by the secondary school students!

The independence and ownership the programme provides is clear and already the benefits have proved themselves to be numerous. We are thrilled by the success of the initiative so far and look forward to seeing the increased confidence and sustainability in our families.

Bilingual Programme FlourishesWe are very proud of our young Reception and 1st grade students who are the first two grades completely immersed in our Spanish-English programme that commenced in January 2013. The children understand and respond to plenty of basic expressions in English, teach new words to their parents and older siblings and greet school visitors and volunteers in English.The programme has brought fantastic results so far and we look forward to welcoming a group of 50 new young students in January who will join the bilingual team at the School of Hope.

Lucía joined the School of Hope in 2007 when she was 13. She is the oldest of 3 siblings. When she was little, she, her siblings and mother were abused by her father who later abandoned the family leaving the mother to bring up the children and manage the payments of a loan her husband had taken. This left the family in deep poverty. To make matters worse, a few years later Lucía’s mum was diagnosed with cancer which deprived the family of their sole income; the Foundation supported them in this difficult time. Despite these challenges Lucía was persistent in her studies and knew she wanted a better life for herself and her future family.Lucía is one of our first students who graduated from university having obtained the first stage of a nursing degree and now continues to the next level and works in an oncology children’s hospital.“I always wanted to become a nurse but never thought this would be possible. I watched my mum struggle with cancer and wanted to be able to help her. Thanks to the support of the Foundation I could achieve a higher education... I am very happy, especially because I am now able to support my own studies financially”.

Where are they now?

Wilson studies Maths at San Carlos University in Guatemala City. He is finishing his exams and thesis and next year he is due to graduate with a title of Licenciado (equivalent of a BSc). Wilson works as a Maths teacher in a secondary school from Monday to Friday, 7am to 2pm, and attends classes at university every night of the week. He dedicates weekends to additional studies. Wilson works really hard because he and his family have been through very hard times and he wants to make sure this will not be repeated. He aims to be able to look after himself, as well as his siblings if needed (their parents passed away years ago and the 4 siblings live on their own and look after each other).“I love my studies and would like to continue to become an engineer in the future. It is hard to dedicate so many hours to work and study during the week, and I hardly ever see my brothers and sisters. We all work long hours and far from home to ensure we can maintain ourselves. I am so happy and grateful for all the opportunities that were given to me by the Foundation and will strive to make good use of the support I was offered”.

Help our young adults pursue the careers of their dreams and break the cycle of poverty.Poverty in Guatemala is both widespread and severe. Young people face numerous obstacles that make it very hard for them to achieve the education they dream of.

The cost of further education is much higher than primary or secondary. For this reason, EFTC has decided to create a new level of sponsorship for our Scholarship students.*

Sponsor a Scholarship student: £15 / €20 a month - covers materials, books and uniform £35 / €45 a month - covers inscription and tuition fees £50 / €65 a month - full sponsorship

Be part of the fight against poverty. Bring an education, an opportunity to succeed and a better start in life to the students at the School of Hope in Guatemala. To sponsor contact Nelly: sponsor@eftc.org.uk

* The costs of standard sponsorship remain the same.

Volunteers and fundraisersXanthia, a volunteer from the U.S. who owns a theatre company, came to our school to work with our secondary school students on a theatrical performance that allowed them to

share stories from their own lives. They rehearsed after school and performed for the entire school during one of our Friday assemblies. This was a brilliant experience for our students to have! This summer we were visited by a former volunteer.

Yvonne helped out at the School of Hope 6 years ago and decided to come again this year. Not only was she a tremendous help in Seño Flor’s 6th grade classroom, she also brought her dance teacher into the school and our students learnt Bachatta and Salsa. Yvonne is also a proud sponsor of one of our students, Lesly. Before leaving Germany, Yvonne organised a fundraiser leaving party and raised over €1,200! The money was used to buy beds for 2 boys in need and EcoFiltros for some of our families.

Volunteer Chrissy took on the responsibility of class instruction in Maths and Natural Sciences in June and July. She also facilitated workshops for our Scholarship students equipping them with the necessary skills for job interviews. Chrissy teaches Spanish and Public Speaking back home in Massachusetts and now continues to help out EFTC by translating documents via email.

The Buxton family joined us in August after bidding on the Guatemala Experience prize package at EFTC's annual fundraising ball. They assisted in the classrooms, played basketball with the kids and held an after-school Rounders session! They showed so much passion and enthusiasm, it was great having them here to help out!

Each year, our long time supporters HD Decicions organise a challenge to raise funds for the School of Hope.This year, they tackled a gruelling cycling and walking challenge in beautiful Snowdonia and raised over £10,000! Congratulations to the whole team and big thanks for your continued support!

The School of Hope had the pleasure of hosting a long-time supporter and friend this August. Andy has visited us in Guatemala three different times, this time with his son, Oscar. Oscar is only 13 years old and managed to raise over £1,500 before his arrival in Guatemala! The pair climbed Acatenango volcano as part of the fundraising challenge. They also brought football gear to donate to our students! They were an incredible help in the classroom as well as the kitchen!

There are so many reasons to visit us in Guatemala!

Volunteer at our school Visit the child you sponsor Get to know our kids Check out our programmes first-hand Participate in our famous volcano challenges Celebrate milestones with us like graduation ceremonies Explore beautiful AntiguaWe always welcome volunteers for both long and short visits anytime of the year! No particular skills are necessary – you can help with English classes, teach children to juggle or breakdance, help out in the kitchen, paint a classroom – everyone has a skill that can be shared.

Our dedicated Visitor and Volunteer Coordinator, Natalie, will be there every step of the way to help you plan your trip and make your experience meaningful and fun. You can contact Natalie with any questions by emailing visitors@eftcfoundation.org

EFTC Community Events 2015

The School of Hope Opening (Guatemala)Big Volcano Challenge (Guatemala)

EFTC Annual Golf Day (UK)

EFTC Annual Ball (UK)Pedal, Paddle, Peak Challenge (Guatemala)Graduations Ceremonies (Guatemala)

To book or find out more about the events, contact Boo at boo@eftc.org.uk

2015

Jan

20-25

Jun

Oct

19

24-25TBC

TBC

5

Why not nominate EFTC as your Charity of the Year. Many companies ask their staff to vote – can you be our representative at your company?

Advertise our Challenges at work and encourage a group of colleagues to take part. Some companies even match fund the fundraising done by their employees!

Host a one-off event in your work place. From cake sales, dress down day to coffee mornings – these are all fun ways to raise some money and get people talking about EFTC.

Can your company help?Our corporate partners make a big difference to our work and we would love your company to get involved! Here are just a few ways your company can support EFTC:

Fundraising at your workplace not only provides EFTC with invaluable support, it also engages your staff and increases motivation and satisfaction across the company.

Lizzie has just joined EFTC as the Corporate and Major Donor Manager. She’s on hand to help with any company related fundraising questions and introductions. Feel free to send her an email: lizzie@eftc.org.uk

You could host an after-work social where £5 of the ticket price is a donation to the Charity. Why not find your local wine merchant and organise a fantastic evening of wine tasting!

If your company have an annual grant system – get in touch and let us know!

Maybe you’re company aren’t able to support EFTC at the moment, if so, do you know any companies who can and could you introduce us?

Christmas Shop

Climb 3 volcanoes in 4 days raising funds to help children born into poverty. www.eftc.org.uk/volcano-challenge

Big VolcanoChallenge 201522 - 25 January

Visit www.eftc.org.uk/christmas-shop to buy presents for your loved ones that make a real di�erence to the children at the School of Hope!