Update from Zimbabwe!

Greetings! Jaiaen is in Zimbabwe for the first time in five years, and has sent home a report on how she is finding things there. The complete report can be found here, but the following is her quick synopsis:

  • Feeling much gratitude for everything!
  • What it’s like here in town and the rural area… summertime, a safe friendly culture, a struggling economy beyond your imagination, a resilient people,
  • There is an impending drought and feeding the hungry may be on the agenda in 2016,
  • Our preschool is having several challenges – over $2,000 can solve some unexpected problems… can you help us be part of the solution?
  • Thank you for whatever you can do!

Hopefully we will get further updates during Jaiaen’s trip. Watch this spot!
-Payton

Upcoming Trip to Zimbabwe

Dear Friends of Zimbabwe,

Please take a minute to hear the latest from our Zimbabwe project!

** If you have been able to help us with this year’s mission, this email will hopefully give you a short update. And thank you, for your decision to make a difference in Zimbabwe through our efforts. We all are working together!
** If you haven’t seen our annual letter please go to https://ancient-ways.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/AW2015-packet.pdf and check out the film clips, or
** If you have read the letter (and seen those great videos) but haven’t been able to donate yet, please see https://ancient-ways.org/about/join-or-donate/2016-focus/ to contribute today!

Here is what is happening NOW:

1. The preschool needs some soccer balls and a local girl scout troop is gathering them to send in my suitcase. I leave on the 16th of February for a month.
2. Our library sponsor is covering the postage for us to send some books to arrive while I’m there. We have some books to send, but if you have a special book that would be a great addition to our library please send it right away! I must receive it by February 6th to get it in the mail (that’s 10 days from now). These books will be part of our library there, which serves a full community from daily preschoolers, primary and secondary as well as adults, including local teachers who use our facilities. I would say that lots of Goldie locks and Goosebumps or Harry Potter might not be the best choices – they have their own educational curriculum as well and so straight school text books are also not the best. Think about their culture, and great literature, to make your choices! Please send any books right away that you would like to see made available in the village setting to PO BOX346 SCIO OR 97355.
3. We will be providing monthly care for the girls this trip and all the wheels are in motion to make this happen.
4. We will be providing uniform fabric for the preschoolers and staff so that our school is following the legal guidelines for school uniforms.
5. We will be able to print one of the preschool books that Red Zebra made so that each child might have their own book! What a thought!
6. We will be able to provide some health care by being present to the village needs as we do daily work. Thank you for your support with this.
7. I’m looking forward to getting pictures of wells! We have built a total of 92 wells…16 built just this last year. Now since a camera has been recently donated, we can get pictures of the wells on an ongoing basis (our last camera bit the dust). Thank you all for your patience with our well building and picture taking progress. Some of you don’t care about getting a picture and others do. We continue to always do our best…thanks.
8. We will be able to explore many areas of the project and hear from the residents just how Nhimbe for Progress is helping their lives.

Its been 5 years since I have gone to Zimbabwe. Initially the political situation made it difficult to spend a month in the rural area, since having regular gatherings could be misconstrued. Then my late husband, hence our family and friends, were all working through Agent Orange and its repercussions. Its taken a while to be ready to travel and return to the rural area, but I’m now looking forward to it.

Thank you for any way you are able to help us, help them! We are committed to making a difference today, and in the future.

Please feel free to call or email with questions…thank you for your continued support!

Jaiaen
541-259-HOPE or 877-TATENDA

 

Ancient Ways Works in Zimbabwe

Dear Friends of Zimbabwe,
 
If you haven’t received our annual letter please follow this link to read more about our work in Zimbabwe: https://ancient-ways.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/AW2015-packet.pdf.
 
If you have, and already have made a decision on what you can do, thank you for taking the time to ponder the question and take action however it works for you.
 
Besides being an active force for positive change in the world, Ancient Ways has stayed the course and continues to build wells in rural Zimbabwe where less than 1 in 10 people have a clean pure water well, as well as remains committed to the preschool and youth of the Mhondoro communities where we are based.
 
Please consider a fully tax-deductible donation now to help us help them!  Use PayPal and get the use of an additional 1% to increase your donation (see below).  Also, consider talking to your employer about their matching fund policy.
 
Besides being a reminder about year-end tax deductions, I also want to THANK YOU for all the encouragement you have given all of us, both here in the states and abroad, on the ground in Zimbabwe.
 
Blessings into 2016! 
 
Jaiaen
 
Donate as a business of individual through the PAYPAL Giving Fund by December 31st and PayPal will add 1% to your donation. Increase your impact with their 1% match, delivering 101% to your charity.

4 Hours of Great Marimba Music!

An Ancient Ways ensemble, Kufindura, brings 4 hours of great marimba music from Zimbabwe to downtown Silverton on Saturday October 3rd as part of the Silverton Sidewalk Shindig Check this out!.  Please join us from 1 to 4 pm and again from 5 to 6 pm as these 7 musicians share the uplifting sweet music of the Shona people, complemented by a few original pieces. If you are interested in learning to play yourself check out our website! Bring your dancing shoes!

Join us for Mother’s Day!

Join the Ancient Ways Community Marimba Ensembles for Mother’s Day at Thyme Garden in Alsea. Enjoy the ambiance of great food and festive vendors while shopping for your favorite herbs. We’ll bring the uplifting music from Zimbabwe to share in the celebration. See you there this Sunday!

* Diki Diki Marimba and Kufindura will play from 12:30-2 pm
^ Kufindura, Mufambo and Nhimbe marimba groups will play from 3:30 -5 pm

Zimbabwe is on my mind today…

Zimbabwe is on my mind today, particularly the children. You and I can’t solve the world’s problems but we can make a difference! With our attention, focus, and compassion, each of us does change the world! Any donation you make to Ancient Ways is fully tax-deductible. There are still a couple of days left to use your donation as a tax-deductible write-off for 2014.

If you have already replied to our earlier email, thank you very much! If our original letter to you is not available, please see Ancient Ways Website for the annual update and check out 2015 Donation Focus for ideas as to how to help. Any amount makes a difference! And all our programs, such as pure water wells or maturing girls assistance, are vital. But I am writing to you today because there is only a month, with much preparation to do, before the schools open, and currently we have dedicated funds for a little over 17% of the children. Other donations given towards “greatest need” can be put towards the preschool funding but if you are moved by the plight of young children, you can ask that we direct your funds to the preschool.

During this holiday break, most of us have been able to share time with family and/or friends. We can easily buy gas, use our telephone without interference, and watch movies of our choice. We have medical facilities we can count on, insurance that helps with the unexpected, and stores with an abundance of food and other basics. We have so very much for which to be thankful.

If you are able, please share some of your abundance with one of our preschool children. The average cost per child is $330 for the year which is less than $30 a month, or $1 a day.

Please mail a check to PO Box 346 Scio OR 97374, use the online system at the web links above, or call the office at 877-TATENDA to setup a recurring charge on any credit card. Credit cards and PayPal have a fee for use so a check is most direct, but if you enjoy the convenience of the online system or a phone call, they work and we are happy to help! Thank you in advance for whatever you can do!

Always feel free to write or call with questions…thank you for the consideration,

Have you seen our annual letter?

Have you received our annual letter, which we just sent in the last couple of days? It would have come directly from the office to you, personalized for your ease. You can also go to https://ancient-ways.org/news/annual-newsletters/ to find the latest update and a general purpose donation form that can be used and/or also sent to family and friends, if you would like to forward them this information. Check out https://ancient-ways.org/about/join-or-donate/2015-focus/ for an online version of the donation form. Thank you for your time and attention! Looking forward to hearing from you!