10-year-old-wish

Ready to be inspired by a 10-year-old? AMAZING Heart for Congo story from our Ft Campbell friends, now residing in California. Thank you for taking our cause across country...

Congo cupcakes

 Dear Family & Friends,

 I will be celebrating my 10th birthday and I wanted to do something different this year. I don't want presents because I want to do something nice for kids that need food and other things. There are over 5 million orphans in the Democratic Republic of The Congo (DRC). I know how these kids feel because I have been in an orphanage and I was really hungry too. I used to be in a crib, even when I was 5 years old, and I was really hungry and lonely. One time I remember having to go to the bathroom so bad and so I snuck out of my crib. I tiptoed across the floor and all the adults were outside talking. We had to stay in our crib all day, even if it was sunny. Now that I am not in a crib and I have a family and lots of other stuff, I want to help the kids that are still orphans. Our friend is trying to raise money to feed kids in one orphanage in the Congo and I want to try to help her. Here is my idea, instead of presents for my birthday I would like people who come to my party to help me raise money to send to the DRC. If you were planning on bringing a present to my party, could you please bring a donation instead of a present? I hope that we can help the orphanage get food and things they need. This would be the greatest birthday present ever!

Love,
Deacon

Happy Birthday Deacon! Thank you!

10-year-old Deacon raised over $1,000 for Heart for Congo. Basically, he just fed 40 orphans for 1 month. Awesome! Thanks Deacon! Notice our latest thermometer...we're almost to our goal of $12,000!!!

I had to share this one...Deacon's Dad (deployed) calling in for the fun

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Family Pics

We had family pictures taken 2 weeks ago by our talented friend, Andres. Andres & I attended Nyack College together & photography is now his full-time job. Andres spent a decent amount of his childhood in Kenya & with hearts for orphans, he & his wife Kim are fundraising for the Rehema Children's Home in Nairobi, Kenya.  Click on the links to read more about this fantastic couple and if you're in the West Point area look them up for a photography session.

Photo #1 from post family | Pictage

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Beads for Sale

I'm thrilled to announce that Heart for Congo is being "sponsored" by Outreach Uganda this month! When you shop, purchase, & write Heart for Congo in the comments section during check-out they are giving us 40% of proceeds towards feeding our orphanage in DRC for a year! This organization has been fantastic to work with (three cheers for Katie) & I'm thrilled they're extending this opportunity to us! Just a reminder, Heart for Congo's goal is to raise $12,000 by OCT 31st to feed our soon-to-be-sons' orphanage (in Eastern DRCongo) FOR A YEAR! We only have 4 weeks to raise $4,000 but I know we can do it! 

beads!

 Here's what you can do:

1. Go to  Outreach Uganda HERE 
2. SHOP (all times are fair trade)...birthday gifts;  teacher gifts; Christmas gifts for your sisters, moms, daughters, neighbors, friends, coaches, postal workers;  unexpected gifts to simply bless someone you know & tell them how much you appreciate them. These products are stunning & high quality (I have a necklace, earrings, scarf, & bracelet).
3. Write HEART FOR CONGO in the COMMENTS section during check-out & they will give Heart for Congo 40% of all sales UNTIL OCT 31!. 
4.  SHARE SCREAM this info with at your friends & encourage them to shop & write HEART FOR CONGO in comments!

This is a win-win guys! Your purchase will bless someone you care about, support a Ugandan woman AND help feed an orphanage in DR Congo.

Below is an excerpt from Outreach Uganda & how your purchase empowers the crafters:

Outreach Uganda is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Colorado and dedicated to helping empower Ugandans rise out of poverty. To do this we work with village groups in Uganda to bring hope and improve lives, especially in the areas of education, women’s empowerment, and self-sufficiency through job creation.

What is Fair Trade? Fair trade assures more than just fair wages, it addresses:

1. Fair wages
2. Protection of children’s rights
3. Women’s rights
4. Environmental rights
5. Indigenous rights

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Heart for Congo Project #2

Since Congo Carnival was a hit and we raised over $11,000 many people have asked about where the extra money we raised is going. Glad you asked! ‘Tis the time to announce our next project- feeding our boys' orphanage* in Eastern Congo (borders Rwanda)for a year! As of now, OFA (the non-profit guiding us through this adoption) gives $1,000 a month to feed this orphanage. Riley came up with the idea (again) to feed that orphanage for a year- especially since our soon-to-be-sons are there. We've already raised $7,000 of the $12,000 needed so I'd love to complete this project by October 31st. A project a month, can we do it? This is a BIG amount to raise (with no major fundraising event going on as of yet) but I believe we can do it.

On a fundraising note, keep your ideas flowing to us. The Congo Carnival was our first attempt at fundraising & God most definitely poured his blessings there.  I will be launching a Heart for Congo Facebook page for jewelry/accessories in the next day or two. I’ll be selling handmade items from Uganda and we will keep 40% of profits for Heart for Congo & the rest of the money goes back to the women who made them. Very cool! I’ll let you know how you can get involved! We’re also working on planning a silent auction, getting a booth at a women’s craft fair, possibly a kids fashion show, forgoing some meals, selling a vehicle, encouraging kids to collect change, etc. LOVE all your ideas & passion to help the DR Congo orphans. We can do this!

Heart for Congo Re-Cap:

Project #2:            Feeding our boys’ orphanage in Eastern DRC for 1 year

Goal:                     $12,000 by Oct 31 (already raised $7,000)

*Just like showing pics, I’m not allowed to state orphanage’s name on any social media website- for the protection of identities and money

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