Welcome to the Global Sojourns' Giving Circle Update!
Dear GSGC Members and Donors,
Welcome to the New Year! Thank you for your generous and caring hearts!
Because of you, our two carefully vetted grassroots organizations in Zambia
are making a difference in the lives of Livingstone's residents and in
our own lives-- we are all more informed about the issues facing
developing countries and the critical need to help girls receive an
education.
Imagine the day when the president of the U.S.
has a grandmother who has lived all her life in a small village in Kenya--
another example of how the world is growing smaller and more
interconnected and why an organization such as the GSGC is more vital
than ever.
Thank you again and again for your continuing support. As we all know,
we are in a recession and it is also affecting Africa.
While we may need to postpone purchasing a new car or other items, our
associates in Zambia
may need to postpone sending their children to school. Our help is
needed now, more than ever and we are thankful to those who have been
so generous in this downturn economy.
Best to you for 2009,
Linda Dee, GSGC Coordinator
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Updates
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New Partner
Agency!
 Our ability to help girls in Africa
has expanded! We are welcoming a third carefully vetted organization
into our Giving Circle
family. Jikeleza uses dance to create
brighter, more hopeful futures in a township of Cape
Town.
Book Club
Formed Focusing on Social Change
The first
GSGC book club has filled up with Denver-area members and will
begin in late January. Since the book club will be led by a
professor from Colorado
College, a fee
of $100 will be charged per person for the year. It will offer a
unique perspective on how individuals have worked and can
work to better understand and make positive changes in our
world. Contact Linda Dee for more info on starting a similar book club
in your area: (303) 973-2928, sandyandlinda@msn.com.
Rag Dolls to
Love
Thank you to
the Auburn Sewing Circle for completing 50 more dolls to be sent to
southern Africa to children in need. If you are interested in
becoming involved with this project or sponsoring a doll please
contact: Paige Hasson 503-246-9691, morkh1@comcast.net.
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2008 Funding Overview
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Your Donations Hard at Work:
- $4,000 to Ray of Hope for micro-loans to the
caregivers of orphaned and economically vulnerable children.
- $6,000 to Tusa Munyandi for helping 40
orphaned children in the community with their school requirements
(uniforms, exercise books, etc.), micro- loans to the caregivers
of orphaned and economically vulnerable children, capacity
building.
- $4,000 to Jikeleza for 200 girls (50 per
week-end) to go to a workshop at a YMCA camp to learn about
dealing with and overcoming issues in their communities (e.g. teen
pregnancy, alcohol & drug abuse in the home), team-building,
empowerment and fun.
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Travelers Philanthropy
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Presenting on
the International Stage at the Travelers Philanthropy Conference
In December, Priscilla Macy was a primary
presenter at this year's Travelers Philanthropy Conference in Arusha, Tanzania. The purpose of
the annual conference was to bring together the world's leaders in
travel philanthropy to share lessons learned, brainstorm on innovative
approaches, and map out the future direction of Traveler's
Philanthropy.
 This was a 4-day conference of over
200 participants. The conference's keynote speaker was Kenyan Nobel
Laureate Wangari Maathi. Priscilla shared the GSGC model and lessons
learned from work with the Giving
Circle as well as her travel and
international development work.
Priscilla was proud to walk away from the
conference feeling that the Global Sojourns' Giving Circle stands out as a
leader in its effective and uniquely educational approach to
international giving!
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Upcoming Giving Circle Trip
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Plans are underway for the next GSGC trip. The August 2009 trip will
include Livingstone, Zambia, Capetown, South
Africa and a "bit of the
bush." This will be a great opportunity for those who wish to
return to Africa or for first-timers
and those who want to make meaningful connections in their travels.
View the itinerary. Click to see the 2008 trip summaries and photos and stay tuned for
more details.
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Upcoming Calls/Conferences
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Thursday,
February 26th,
3 pm Eastern
Speaker:James Fernie from
Uthando sharing about Jikeleza and the issues facing children in the
townships of Cape Town
(269) 320-8100
use access
code:
603003#.
Misc.
The 2009
schedule for newsletters: January, April, July, October.
The 2009 schedule for conference calls: February, May, August, October.
Please share ideas for articles and speakers for our newsletter and
conference calls. We want to hear from you!
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Spreading the Word
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 If you are interested in hosting a
GSGC wine tasting event, we have developed a "template" that
will help make the event easy to organize. This is a wonderful way to
have a get together with friends and educate them about Giving Circles
in general, and ours in particular. Please contact Linda Dee at
303-973-2928 or sandyandlinda@msn.com for more information.
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GSGC Mission
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The Global Sojourns Giving Circle helps
individuals pool their time, talent and financial resources to improve
the lives of children and conserve wildlife in sub-Saharan Africa. Members make a direct, positive
impact while learning about issues in the region, connecting personally
with the projects, and forming community with other members.
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Members and
Donors Welcome!
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- All donations are tax
deductible
- 100% of your donation goes to
supporting projects
- Donations of $365 to $2,000 +
vote on projects to be funded, travel opportunities with the GSGC,
take part in educational calls, receive updates
- Donations of $35-$364: take
part in educational calls, receive updates
- Make checks payable to: The
Clarence Foundation, 678
13th Street Ste. 201 Oakland,
CA 94612.
Be sure to designate it for the Global Sojourns Giving Circle.
theclarencefoundation.org
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Member Spotlight: Sandy Bettger
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Sandy Bettger, Executive Director, Giving
Circles Network, has recently joined GSGC as a member. As Co-Founder
and Executive Director of GCN for three years, she decided to join GSGC
to support a Giving Circle internationally, participate in a
community of people with whom she shares common values
and enjoys get-togethers, learning about Africa and
its community and regional issues, and engaging with a group that
she believes espouses the critical thinking and issues
analysis required to make a difference overseas.
With a Master of Science in Community and
Regional Planning and a Master of Arts in Latin American Studies,
she has spent a considerable part of her professional
career working
on development
issues abroad (mainly through USAID contractors) and is therefore
aware of the challenges and opportunities internationally. She
believes that GSGC has an promising approach to effect real
change and sustainable development in the region and desires to be a
part of that effort.
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Book & Movie
Corner
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Should celebrities use their fame to
spotlight the issues facing Africa?
A documentary called I am Because We Are about the orphaned
children of Malawi
premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2008 to general acclaim. It
is more likely you are familiar with Madonna's involvement than its
message.
Ultimately, the film is a call to action, a revealing portrait of one of
the poorest, HIV/AIDS stricken countries in the world. Interviewees
include Desmond Tutu and Bill Clinton. So, would you see it?
Visit the film's site to watch clips and read
about what is being done to help.
Have a book or movie to recommend? Contact Linda sandyandlinda@msn.com
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Investment Tips for the World
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African Proverb: "If you educate a boy, you
educate an individual. If you educate a girl, you educate a
community."
Kofi Annan, former U.N. Secretary General: "There is no tool for
development more effective than the education of girls."
Amartya Sen, the Nobel prize-winning Harvard economist said that just
educating a girl to a fifth-grade level reduces infant mortality,
reduces population explosion and increases the well-being of the
individual, any children she may have and society itself.
Research has shown that educated girls are more likely to marry later,
have fewer children, contribute to family income and insist their own
children are educated. They are less likely to die while giving birth
and their children are less likely to die. They are less
vulnerable to HIV-AIDS infection, sexual exploitation, human
trafficking and child labor.
The Council on Foreign Relations' handbook "What Works in Girls'
Education: Evidence and Policies from the Developing World"
concludes that there is no better investment for the health and
development of poor countries around the world than investment to
education girls.
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Thank you
GSGC members for truly making a difference!
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Improved Communications
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Think of all the holiday gifts of communication technology given this
year- it is easy to text, call, email, skype, facebook and twitter
everyone around you.
Correspondence for Ernest of Tusa Munyandi has not been the same story,
as the lack resources in Livingstone made emailing an expensive, all
day affair. The exciting news is now we don't have to wait weeks to
receive reports and information from him as an internet connection is
now being set up in Ernest's outlying Livingstone township.
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Questions?
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Contact Linda Dee:
sandyandlinda@msn.com
(303) 973-2928
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 A special thank you to Alexandra
Hasson who not only volunteers her time to design our newsletter but
also designed and produced our website.
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