(1936-2012) Bill Bicknell was a passionate, driven and articulate man who accomplished many things in his life. He was a teacher not only in the classroom, but in the school of life. I will never forget the evening I sat across the table from Bill and told him the story of Babylon, C4C’s oldest child, [...]
Archive for Category: "General"
Making Connections
One of the more satisfying parts of running a sponsorship program is seeing the individual connections that are formed between children and their sponsors over time. This is sometimes challenging, since there is so much physical distance between the two, but it happens over and over. When we travel to Zimbabwe, we get to see [...]
Letter from Arden
Dear Friends, As I get further from the year I lived in Zimbabwe, I find more of my time is spent on logistics and fundraising and less on the soul feeding connections that drew me to this work. Many days the morning arguments that come from my elementary school girls trump thoughts of barefoot children [...]
Brandeis Students Build on Pads Project
This past summer two Brandies students, Kayla Dinces and Lena Morrison, spent time at our new partner organization, Chiedza Child Care Centre after being awarded a Davis Peace Prize. Background In the summer of 2010, volunteer Bridget McBride taught a group of young women how to make Luna Pads, which are washable feminine hygiene pads [...]
High Standards for All
We currently provide scholarships to fifty children. The youngest is in preschool and the oldest is about to begin a degree in community development. Being consistent about our expectations for this many children has been challenging at times, but last year we worked closely with teachers, children, and C4C staff to identify the minimum requirements [...]
Thank You Reebok
Group identity is a powerful motivator. Everyone wants to be part of something important. Thanks to ongoing support from Mike Kratochwill and Reebok, we have been able to supply two sets of sports teams and peer educators with Reebok gear! The children wear their matching shirts with pride!
Thank You!
Thank you to Brendan Murphy and the Autumn Hollow Band for organizing a fundraiser for C4C. On January 27, 2012, Will Dailey, Autumn Hollow, and The Rationales performed at the Regent Theater in Arlington. Crafts made by C4C young adults were sold and money raised will go toward enhancing the skills building program for youth [...]
Why Give to C4C?
Long time donor Jane Hale says the reason she gives money to C4C is she knows it will actually get to the children. Unlike big donor organizations like United Way, C4C is run out of a spare room of our house and has very few administrative costs. Liz and I volunteer our time and energy [...]
Lisbon Makes It
It’s somewhat unusual to see cars in Norton. Most of the vehicles speeding past are combies (small minivans packed with more humans than seems possible), so it was with some surprise that I noticed a clean white Buick pull up in front of Vitalis’s house. When I looked, I realized that the driver of the [...]
Graduates!
Coalition for Courage has now existed for long enough that a number of “children” have graduated and become gainfully employed, a feat that is quite amazing in a country where the unemployment rate is over 80%. According to the CIA World Factbook, Zimbabwe’s unemployment rate is 95% (2009 estimate that “also reflects under employment; true [...]