Dear Few for Change Supporters, The month of November is traditionally a period of transition, as the days become shorter, darker and cooler heading into the winter months. It is also the beginning of a busy time as the holiday season gets underway. Likewise, Few for Change is in transition and we are quite busy trying to make these changes and other goals happen.
One of the most important changes currently underway is Few for Change’s incorporation as a part of World Learning. World Learning has a page on the social-networking donation site First Giving (www.firstgiving.org), in which people can browse for causes and organizations they’d like to donate to. Few for Change will be accessible through World Learning’s donation page, and partnering with them will give us 501(c)(3) status, making donations tax-deductible. This change opens up a lot of opportunities for us. Few for Change will be associated with World Learning, giving our cause legitimacy and providing an incentive for potential donors. We’ll also gain exposure by being on the First Giving site and have the potential to make many new connections with people involved with or interested in helping World Learning. This should be finalized soon – all we’re waiting for is an introductory page describing the experiences, sentiments, and purpose of Few for Change and its members.
Another project in the works is also happening online, at cafepress.com. This is a website in which anyone can open up an online store and sell merchandise as a business or, in our case, to benefit a cause. We can choose from a large array of products provided by the cafepress.com company, and can customize them with our own graphics. Anyone can view the site, and people can shop by interest or cause. We’re looking at this as a way to reach out to a larger donor base, as well as a way to raise funds and advertise our cause: buying a Few for Change t-shirt will help someone in need, and wearing it may inspire others to do the same.
The “store” is still in the works, as we are in the midst of selecting our merchandise and designs, but stay tuned! We plan on getting this up and running soon, in time for holiday shopping. I hope you take a look at the site in the near future and consider making a purchase to support and advertise the cause.
Clearly, raising funds is a central goal of ours right now, as we look to new ways to reach out to donors. The truth is, it’s almost December and we’re still $800 away from our goal of raising $2000 by December. We, on behalf of the Ngöbe-Bugle, need any assistance anyone has to offer, so please consider one of the many ways of helping out. Buy a Few for Change t-shirt, donate directly through our paypal site, www.fewforchange.com, or make a tax-free donation through World Learning and First Giving. As we near the holiday season, charitable causes always seem to gain more meaning. Though budgets also tend to be more constrained during this time, especially this year, I encourage you to put their hardship in perspective and consider making a contribution.
Of course, the principal goal of Few for Change is to raise funds to provide education for Ngöbe children. An important part of our job is allocating the funds we have raised, and the way we are deciding this is by having kids fill out written essay applications for scholarships. As of October, we had about six or seven applicants, but as we were hoping for more, we extended the deadline. Seeing this is the first time this is happening, people in the Ngöbe-Bugle community probably don’t know what to expect, which explains some of the hesitation to apply. A friend of Gillian’s is going to be in Panama soon, and will be picking up the applications. We are excited to read them and decide who gets the first scholarship! Hopefully this time next year we will have more applicants and more to give.
Thank you for your continued support. Please feel free to join our (usually) biweekly phone meetings, which happen on Thursdays at 10pm EST. Any questions, please contact us at fewforchange@googlegroups.com.
With hope,
The Members of Few For Change
