Newsletters: Volume 5 - Fall 2000
 Clyde Pax, Jeanne Lynch, Roger Whiting, Yona Andrew, Sandra Savage, Eric Larsson, Carla Szymanski |
Three Scholarship Coordinators Visit
We are fortunate to have had three of our four coordinators visit us here in this country during the past year. Josiah Muganda from Dar es Salaam was here last September and attended our annual meeting. Florence Nyamu from Nairobi, Kenya was here in May to attend her daughter's graduation from North Eastern University. Yona Andrew from Arusha, Tanzania attended our June board meeting, and received a certificate of appreciation. These visits have significantly increased GTL's credibility as a true volunteer, non-profit organization; and the coordinators now have a much greater understanding of the effort and sacrifice involved in order to provide their girls with educational opportunities.
Two New Board Members
We are especially pleased to welcome Suzanne Weinheimer and Michael Birch to our Board of Directors. Their ideas and suggestions have already been greatly appreciated.
Suzanne graduated from the American and European School of Energy Mastery, and is currently in her eleventh year as an energy healer at the North Shore AIDS Health Project in Gloucester. Her interest in Africa was furthered by a safari to Tanzania and Botswana in 1998.
Mike has over thirty-five years experience in the telecommunications industry, most recently as a systems engineer with Lucent Technology. He is a member of Toastmaster's International Speakers Club, and his other interests include children's education, photography, and history.
 Florida Amedaston |
Thank You Notes
Below are some remarks we have received from a few of our students. We think they illustrate the value of GTL far better than anything more we could say.
Juliana Martin - Arusha, TZ "The aim of this letter is to give thanks to all who participate in Growth Through Learning...I am very happy to be in school. I feel happy in my life and I will never forget you."
Grace Nantale - Mityana, Uganda "I can hardly express how blessed I feel. God bless the works of your hands."
Phyllis Njeri - Mukerenju, Kenya "I became very happy when I received the scholarship award because now I know that I am going to perform up to my best...Last term I was number six out of fifty-four students."
Tiba Hassani - Dar es Salaam, Tanzania "I suggested to my fellow students to form a club concerning wildlife conservation and environment. They selected me to be their vice-chairperson. In addition I have been chosen as school Headgirl, and I am gaining more experience in making decisions and solving different problems."
Florence Nanziri - Mityana, Uganda "I thank you for keeping me in school, and I wish to inform you that I was the 5th in class last term. The school administration gave me a present of a lamp."
Florida Amedaston - Arusha, Tanzania "If not for your sponsorship I would be at home and my life would be bad. In our school the teachers try hard to make us learn. They encourage us to study hard. Our school motto is Education for a Brighter Future."
 Imelda Nantamu |
Imelda Nantamu - Mityana, Uganda "I am very happy to know that there are kind people like you in America. As you know, I am an orphan and I didn't have any money to go to school until you gave me the money for school fees."
A Mother Writes
Justine Kasagga - Kampala, Uganda "Once again I wish to register my appreciation for your support and relentless effort to maintain my daughters, Daisy and Doreen, at school. It gives us pleasure and energy to know that far away there are lovely souls who care for us."
Advisory Board
Another major step forward this year has been the creation of an Advisory Board. We are indeed fortunate to have the advice and counsel of Chairman Eugene McCarthy, Ph.D. of Holy Cross College; Barbara Bullas of Pacific Grove, California; Robert V. Lange, Ph.D. of Brandeis University; and Richard Ford, Ph.D. of Clark University. They are all very knowledgeable about East Africa and African issues in general. Thank you all for your willingness to offer your experience and expertise to Growth Through Learning.
From The President
What a year this has been for GTL and our scholarship recipients! Almost daily we receive something new via mail, e-mail, or fax. We have met new people, have been contacted by those interested in our program, and received generous contributions from concerned and caring donors, some that we do not personally know. Best of all we have received wonderful thank you notes from our girls. Some of those sentiments are included above in this newsletter.
Our fiscal year ended on June 30th with yet another record breaking performance in all respects. Contributions allowed us to award 57 scholarships - up from 32 last year. In addition, we were able to lower our operating expenses from 18% to a mere 14% of income. Considering the high cost of printing and postage, I think GTL can be extremely proud of that performance.
Due to back surgery in July, I have needed to postpone my planned September return to East Africa. I have now rescheduled for a 15-day whirlwind trip in October. This time I will meet with all four of our scholarship coordinators in the three countries of Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda. While there I will once again have an opportunity to chat with many of our scholarship recipients, visit their schools, talk with their teachers and headmistresses, and review our program and procedures with the coordinators. It will be an exhausting journey, but I can hardly wait to go!
Perhaps it is appropriate that I end here with a sincere note of thanks to those of you have supported GTL in the past. You may recall that the vision of scholarship aid for the girls and young women of East Africa was the end result of a safari that I took in 1996. I thoroughly enjoyed the animals found in the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Masai Mara, and Oldevai Gorge, but it was the people who really captured my imagination. They desperately want educational opportunities! This becomes increasingly clear to me as the letters and appeals arrive almost daily. No-one in East Africa can attend school without paying for tuition, uniforms, supplies, transportation, and books. Most of our girls are attending boarding schools that also require payment for room and board.
Many of you have already read the following parable, but I think it deserves repeating here:
The Starfish
A wise man was taking a sunrise walk on the beach. In the distance he caught sight of a little girl who seemed to be dancing along the waves. As he got closer, he saw the little girl was picking up starfish from the sand and tossing them gently back into the ocean. "What are you doing?" the wise man asked. "The sun is coming up and the tide is going out; if I don't throw them in, they'll die." "But little girl, there are miles and miles of beach with starfish all along it; you can't possibly make a difference." The little girl bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it lovingly back into the ocean, past the breaking waves. "It made a difference for that one," she replied.
Please help us to "save another starfish." Your tax-deductible contribution will be so appreciated by those who desire education so desperately.
Roger L. Whiting, President
Last modified: May 11, 2003, 18:53 EDT