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Letter of appreciation for making a difference

If you have been following our blog you will already know about the hard work our VCAL students did to ensure the Milking Cow and Goat Project (run by the Rotary Club of Healesville) was a success. By raising over $1000 they were able to pay for 5 acres of maize seed to be planted and grown, ensuring that the Kenyan children have a regular supply of food. If you missed the previous articles be sure to click the link below to bring yourself up to date with all the good work the kids have been doing.

This week our CEO, Gus Seremetis received a thank you letter from Wilma Best (Project Manager – Rotary Club of Healesville) and we thought it would be nice to share with the community their appreciation.

I am writing to thank the Foundation VCAL students for their outstanding achievement, having raised $1018.00 to support orphans and needy village children at a primary school in Kariakomo Parish, Chogoria, Meru, Kenya. The orphans and poor village children have little or nothing and this Rotary humanitarian project is striving to feed and nurture the children using sustainable farming methods.

I came and presented slides and provided information to the students, in the presence of their teachers and I really felt the empathy for these Kenyan children from these VCAL students. My visit was as a result of meeting Tony at a meeting of my club in Healesville. Now the funds raised by the students are already helping the children.

There is a 30 acre plot watered from a river and as Manager I am attempting to raise enough funds to plant the remaining 15 acres in seed and bananas to reduce hunger and help the children achieve at school. The VCAL funds were enough to buy Maize seed to plant five (5) acres. Maize is a staple food and when available it is eaten all year round.

I sincerely hope you will pass on this message of thanks to the student group as I really admire what they achieved with the encouragement of their teachers.

Yours sincerely
Wilma Best

Other articles of interest
YVCS Students making a difference – posted 17-09-2015
YVCS Students making a difference – posted 08/07/2015

To find out more about UYCH youth education services click here or call 1300 835 235

YVCS Students making a difference part 2

You may have read our blog  “Students making a difference” posted 08/07/205 about our two VCAL Foundation classes at the Yarra Junction campus of Yarra Valley Community School raising money to support orphans and primary school children in Kariakomo Orphanage in Kenya through the Milking Cow & Goat Project run by the Rotary Club of Healesville.

The students managed the project with one goal, raise as much money as possible to make a difference. The main fundraisers that took place were a sausage sizzle and raffling off a trailer load of wood. They drew the crowds in with the smell of a BBQ and once a sausage had been sold, they tempted the public with a chance to win firewood to keep them warm during winter.

Originally it was hoped that the students would raise enough money to buy a goat or two for the community, but with the money raised they have been able to pay for 5 acres of maize seed to be planted and grown, ensuring that the Kenyan children have a regular supply of food.

The students of YVCS raised over $1000 which is a great achievement and showcases their dedication to this project. To say thank you for all their hard work they were invited to celebratory BBQ hosted by Healesville Rotary, with club members Wilma, Bruce and Don providing a lovely lunch to be enjoyed any all in attendance.

YVCS students enjoyed bacon and egg rolls and sausages and onion on the BBQ. Once the food was all gone, Wilma Best, Project Manager for the Milking Cow & Goat Project, presented the students with a framed certificate of achievement and appreciation.

“The fundraising project has been a great experience for the students, teaching them not only entrepreneurial skills, but helping them to build their social conscience in reaching out to other children in the world, not just in their own backyard.” Willa Vale –  VCAL Foundation Teacher

Well done to all involved! 

To find out more about UYCH youth education services click here or call 1300 835 235

YVCS Students making a difference

The Milking Cow and Goat Project – YVCS students raising money for orphanage in Kenya.

Foundation VCAL Students from the Yarra Junction Campus at YVCS are currently working with the Healesville Rotary Club to raise money for The Milking Cow and Goat Project which supports orphans and primary school children in Kariakomo Orphanage in Kenya. These children live in extreme poverty, dying of starvation and diseases such as HIV/AIDS and Malaria. 300 orphans and poor children attend school and their daily intake of food consists of some beans and maize and ¾ glass of milk. Once a week they get one egg and a banana so as you can see they really need our support. The students have developed fundraising projects to support the purchase of cows and goats that will provide more milk for the children.

As a part of this project the students came up with some great ideas on how to raise the funds needed to make sure their milk supply doesn’t run out. The first initiative was to run a raffle, being winter a decision to make the prize a trailer full of fire wood was a winner. So off they went making a flyer and putting them up in local businesses to spread the word. They took to main street of Yarra Junction with their trailer full of wood to promote and sell tickets. Their entrepreneurial  skills didn’t stop there as they held a sausage sizzle at the same time, so customers could purchase a ticket while waiting for their banger in bread, good thinking on their part. Their hard work has paid off as they have raised over $1000 and they still have more ideas up their sleeve, so be sure to keep an eye on our website and blog for more fundraising activities to take part in.

If you’d like to support this fantastic fundraising activity come into UYCH Main Office – 2463 Warburton Hwy in Yarra Junction to purchase your raffle tickets – $2 each or 3 for $5. The raffle will be drawn Wednesday 5th of August so there is plenty of time to purchase a ticket or three.

For more information on The Milking Cow and Goat Project visit www.cowsandgoatsproject.org.au

If you would like to know more about our youth education programs click here.