Christmas Package Received- Michelle in The Philippines

Here is Heather G's sponsored child Michelle in Quezon City.  She is posing with her MAC Christmas package.  I see she even has some of the things she received displayed on her neck and wrist!!

Michelle's Home Repairs Fundraiser Thank you!

Post from Heather G:

Dear Sponsor,
Hello! I want to say "Thank you very much" for the construction materials you've given us. We bought the construction materials needed for the construction of our house. Now, I have a new and nice house to live. I'm so happy!
Thank you and God bless you always!
Love,
Michelle T. Epa

Summer Reading Package Received~ Michelle in the Philippines

"Dear Sponsor,

Hi! Thank you for the package you sent for me they are all beautiful. I'am really happy to received them especially the barbie and the pair of dress and also the slippers. I will always wear them. I will share my toys with my siblings, and I'm happy to tell you that I got 80% percent on my report card and one ribbon as most behave in our classroom. Thank you very much for helping me. God bless you always.

Love
Michelle"

Meet the MAC Staff!~ FirstGiving Page Coordinator

Ushering in our 2nd year in existence means bringing on new faces! These past few months have become busier and busier. A few months ago, I realized, there was no way I could do it all alone. Besides, who wants to do it alone when you can work with some great people instead!? I asked for volunteers for a few projects, and that is pretty much how it all started. I am happy to make these wonderful volunteers official staff of the MAC group!! They will all get a substantial salary- paid out not in US dollars but in millions positive emotions!! Don't believe me? There are studies and articles found everywhere to back this up. Check out this 2 page article on MSN: http://health.msn.com/health-topics/depression/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100167285

(I wish we could get the positive emotions and the cash out of this job, but that would mean taking money away from the kids. As needy as myself and my family are, we are not even close to what these families are going through!)

Now, on with the introductions:
I am introducing you first to Heather Griffin. She is the person you will go to after you get your child's fundraiser breakdown from CI. She is our FirstGiving Page Coordinator! Once you know you have a slot in the MAC fundraiser waiting list, Heather G will know your slot number because she has the same fundraiser list that I have. Then, once you have the special needs breakdown, e-mail Heather G at hgriffins85@yahoo.com . You will want to send everything in one e-mail to her including the special needs breakdown, pictures (about 6), and a write up. Heather will put it all together for you into one pretty page :o)

This is a special presentation called "Getting to Know Heather Griffin":

My name is Heather and I am 24 years old. I live in Massachusetts. I have been sponsoring with Children International since 2001. The girl I first sponsored moved away after a year and a half of sponsorship and then the next girl they sent me already had a sponsor by the time I got her information. That's when I received the information of my Joyce. She is 12 years old from the Philippines, I have been her sponsor for almost 7 years. In July of 2008 I went to the CI website and chose Diego from Ecuador, he is now 7 years old. And just last November I chose 8 year old Michelle, also from the Philippines. I enjoy going to the movies, reading & bowling. I enjoy sending direct packages to my sponsored children. I work at a local supermarket. I like animals, especially my cat Milo who I have had for 6 years now. I hope to meet my sponsored children someday.

Fundraiser #21 is COMPLETE!!!

Michelle's family will now be able to repair their home before the hurricane season hits!! How awesome is that!? I am sure the family will feel comforted living in a sturdier home during times of bad weather. Thank you to all who helped make this possible! You all ROCK!!!

And the winner for Michelle's raffle is...

Steve! Steve requested that the $20 go to Michelle, so Heather G put the money right into the fundraiser. Thank you to all that helped with Michelle's fundraiser! Now, she only needs $10 to complete the project all together!!

Michelle's Raffle

Time is ticking away on the raffle for a $20 gift card. We are in the final hours, BUT there is still time! To enter the raffle make your donation here. For every $1 you donate, you will received 1 raffle ticket! And, Michelle's fundraiser only needs $92 more in order to complete it!
The lucky winner's name will be drawn at 10PM EST tonight!

Raffle Deadline Fast Approaching

Don't forget that there are 3 raffles currently going on! The deadline to enter is tomorrow 2/26/10, so hurry if you want to win! Of course, I don't mind winning :o) I won't be doing the raffles this time because my name is in each one.

Yamileisy & Jose Manuel's fundraiser has a raffle for 3 Dr. Suess books in Spanish

Michelle's fundraiser has a raffle for a $20 gift card

Maria's fundraiser has a raffle for a $25 gift card

Fundraiser Slots Available & Details

Since it has been almost a year since we started these fundraisers, and we have had many new members, I thought it would be a good idea to revisit the details of how the fundraisers work. Here is the announcement that was made last year:

Dear fellow sponsors,

Thanks to your overwhelming support, our fundraising projects have been a huge success! However, there is some concern that, as our campaigns continue, the people benefiting from these fundraisers will not be same people who have been contributing to others with the greatest generosity.

Our FirstGiving fundraising campaigns are based on the concept of 'Pay It Forward', following a model developed by an experimental group of four sponsors. Over the past year, these four developed a money-sharing system that would allow their sponsored children to receive Special Needs gifts more rapidly: instead of each sponsor saving up her money for four months, then each funding her own project, the sponsors contributed the money they would have saved to another child - with the knowledge that the same would be done for her when her child's turn for a donation came around. The beauty of the idea was that three out of the four children involved in the project would receive their donations sooner than they would have otherwise.

FirstGiving uses the same concept, only executed on a grander scale. With more people involved, a little goes a long way, and smaller contributions on the part of many can accomplish great things. The hope is that donors will feel good about helping other needy children, having the underlying belief that their own child's project will eventually be funded in the same manner. Unlike the arrangement between the above-mentioned four sponsors, there is no guarantee that each contributor will receive back precisely the same amount that he/she has invested in the previous projects - which is fine, as long as everyone is aware that the system could break down if it starts relying too heavily on a small core group of donators who may easily become frustrated if they feel they are doing all of the 'work'.

To ensure that things remain fair and somewhat even, in order to have one of your children granted a slot in the next round of fundraisers, you must have contributed at least 25% of your 'asking' amount to previous projects. For instance, if your sponsored child has requested $200 to buy an X-Box … oops, I mean to buy food and school supplies … then in order to start a fundraiser for him/her, you must have already donated a total of $50 to our previous projects. This rule is particularly important as the maximum amount for future projects is being increased to $350. I would like to have seen a sponsor contribute at least $88 to other projects before requesting this much for his/her own child!

*We currently have 3 slots available for a fundraiser. If you would like your sponsor child to have one of those slots, please contact me. If you want your fundraiser to be the $350 amount, you will need to donate $88 to our current fundraiser BEFORE your child gets the slot.

For those who have a fundraiser already scheduled and have not yet donated their 25%, please do so now. Our fundraisers have been struggling, and there are several upcoming projects whose sponsors have not yet donated. That is why it will now be required that the sponsor donates BEFORE their fundraiser gets a slot. This will guarantee that when the time comes for your fundraiser to start, it will start right on time.

To donate to the current fundraisers and get a fundraiser slot for your child, visit these links below:

Yamileisy & Jose Manuel

Michelle

Maria

Only $150 needed to Complete Fundraiser #21!!

Michelle's fundraiser is so close to completion! Only $150 more & the family will be able to make the necessary repairs to their home. Donations to her fundraiser, also, get you into the raffle for a $20 gift card!! $1 = 1 raffle ticket. The raffle ends on the 26th, so hurry to her site here.

Two Raffles

Holly's sponsor child Maria's family would like to start a fish vending business. In order to boost contributions, Holly is offering a $25 Visa Gift card that will be raffled off. $1 = 1 raffle ticket. For Maria's raffle, click here

You may remember Michelle's raffle. It was for a $20 Fandango gift certificate. It is now for a $20 gift payment of your choice (paypal, gift card, Fandango, your choice). $1 = 1 raffle ticket

For Michelle's raffle, click here

John was the winner of Michelle's raffle. However, he has bowed out of the raffle, and offered it up to others!! Very sweet! That means that Inga's 10 entries & Robyn's 2 entries will be included in this extended raffle. Thank you, John, for your generous donation both for Michelle's fundraiser!!

Both of the raffles will go until February 26th. On February 27th, the winners of both raffles will be chosen.

Current Fundraisers 2/12/10

Fundraiser #18: The Dominican Family Business will soon be under way! Only $230 more needed!! The one day sale added close to $10 to the fundraiser. Little by little, we are getting it done. To make a donation, click here

Fundraiser #21: Home repairs for Michelle's family is in need of $174. The one day sale added $15.50 to this fundraiser. If you would like to make a donation to repair this family's home, click here

Fundraiser #22 is for Maria's family to open a fish vending business & includes the purchase of a motorized boat. This is one of the big fundraisers, but any amount of money helps make a dent in the capital needed for the business. $511 is still needed. To make a donation to this project, click here

The one day sale went ok. There were a few extra purchases, as you can see, they helped these fundraisers. I didn't know this, but the handheld games that were offered during the one day sale, also, dispense candy!! So, I will be adding candy to the ones that were bought before I ship them out. There are still some left, and I am hoping to get some more in stock soon. These will be great for the Christmas packages. AND, it is good to get the fundraisers helped at the same time.

Raffle for the $20 Fandango Gift Certificate

And the winner is John!!! Congratulations! Please contact Heather G with your information (address/e-mail). Thanks for your contributions, everone!

Last Chance for the Fandango Raffle!

Only 5 hours left to get in on the $20 Fandango gift certificate raffle! $1 gets you 1 raffle ticket, and every raffle ticket counts! Make sure to ge in before the raffle closes:

enter here

And, remember, you will be helping a sweet little girl and her family!!!

The Raffle Continues

You have until Wednesday to get in on the raffle for a $20 Fandango gift certficate. To enter, make your donation here Less than $200 completes this fundraiser!!

Raffle for Fundraiser #21

Michelle's Home Repair Fundraiser only needs about $250 to complete! Heather G is offering a raffle, in order to get this one done or at least closer to being completed. The raffle begins now, and will go until Wednesday (2/10) at 8PM CST.

What can you win? This raffle is for a $20 Fandango gift certificate, so you can go to the movies! If you live in a place like I do (the middle of nowhere), you could see 6 movies with this gift certificate!! If you live in the rest of America, you can see 2 :o)

It only costs $1 to enter. For every $1 donated, you will receive 1 raffle ticket. The drawing will be held on Wednesday night.

To enter, make your donation here Good luck!

(*For those of you who were paying attention to my post last week about only posting happy things for one week- I did go a whole week. Now, I will mix in some fundraiser updates with the happy posts)

How you can help

To help Yamileisy and Jose Manuel, click here

To help Carla, click here

To help Michelle, click here

Eveline Germain is in need of a sponsor. She is 8 years old and attends the preschool class in Danda. She has 1 brother & 6 sisters. She needs a very special sponsor. Details below...

I decided to break down and make my "How you can help" post. With all that is going on, I could use all of the help I can get! So here are some ways you can help. Depending on what works for you and how much time you have, here are the things that are needed:

1. There are 3 fundraisers currently. There are so many ways to help with those:

a. Donate to the fundraisers.

b. Add a link to the fundraisers on the signature line of your e-mails to family, friends, coworkers, etc. You would be surprised at how many people will say, "Hey, I saw your link, what is it about?" You have now opened a discussion for fundraisers & new sponsorships!

c. Add a fundraiser link to your social networking sites: Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Blogger, Google & Yahoo Groups, among others.

2. I need someone that can do up some FirstGiving pages for me for our upcoming fundraisers. This can be done in whatever spare time you have. Once you figure out the site, the whole process shouldn't take more than 15 minutes per page. I will have a little under 20 pages that need to be set up between now and March. If that is something you can help with, please contact me for start up details.

3. The little girl shown above, Eveline Germain is in need of a special sponsor. She is in the HH4H program and recently lost her sponsor. The HH4H crew is concerned about her health, so they do not want her to be without a sponsor. She remains small, even though she has gotten older. This is why the crew is concerned. If you have space in your heart for this little girl, please send an e-mail to Jamie at jamie@hishandsforhaiti.org

4. I am starting another group called MIC- Mothers Inspiring Change. This group will be based on the whole IGP process that we have done for our families through the fundraisers. The difference is that this group will partner with a group of mothers to provide them with a business. The business will provide income for 15+ mothers and their families (there are 15 mothers right now ready to get started, but we will probably have more mothers total in the business by the time it starts). How can you help? I need someone who has set up web-sites before to put together a web site for this group. It will be similar to the one we have for the MAC group. Someone with experience in IGP's and east africa is preferred but not necessary. If you can provide this service, please contact me for start up info.

5. You can donate items to raffle/ sell in the web store that can provide money for our fundraisers. Sara S is a good example of this- She provided 25 barbie-like dolls that have already provided over $100 to the fundraisers! There are still dolls she donated that are waiting to be bought, so after all of them sell, she will have given $200 to the fundraisers!! Donations should be mailed to: Make a Change, c/o Heather McLaughlin, P O Box 847, Anna, TX 75409

I am going to go ahead and post this, so that you can see what is needed. I may have some more things to add about helping later, so I will put those in a new post if that happens.

Please keep me posted about Eveline Germain, as well, so that I know when she has a sponsor. Thanks!!!

By the way, of those who have children in the HH4H program, do any of you have children in Danda? If so, send me an e-mail. There is another special project in the works for the Danda children.