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Retired Couple Starts Charitable Organisation

Wednesday 02nd of May 2007 11:46:27 PM

After visiting a few poverty stricken villages in Ethiopia in 2002, retired couple, Judy Sanderman and Dennis Wilkins, decided to donate a small amount of money for school supplies and other items. When they returned home, they decided to give more for school uniforms. Seeing how a little money went a long way in terms of the well-being of the children in the villages, the couple decided to ask others for help.

After selling home made greeting cards, the couple raised enough money to buy school books and benches for the students. Their next project involved building a well so clean water could be pumped into one of the villages. “People started giving us money. This is when I realized, ok, we can just ask for money. We don't have to sell cards,” said Sanderman.

A local church in their area volunteered to take on the project which was getting too big for the couple to handle alone. After building three wells, hiring local construction workers, and ordering enough uniforms for an entire school, the couple has helped many villages in Ethiopia learn how to survive on their own. “We're good at job creation and paying people Ethiopian wages, not having them live off donated money,” said Sanderman.

Even though Sanderman and Wilkins still manage the day to day operations of the project, with the help of twenty-five others, and numerous donations, they are looking to create a board of directors and hire someone to take care of the finances. Since the church sponsors the project, donations made are all tax deductible. “It feels good to focus on these small villages and people. We hope each area will rise as each village rises,” said Sanderman.

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