We can never spend in Korando as much time as we would like to. Then, why not try to help as much as possible from our home countries? There is more people than we can imagine willing to help.
First of all, be patient and assume that you will have to write many emails. Write to anyone you can think of; restaurants, shops, companies, ngo’s… and tell them about your experience and your willingness to help the people around you. Telling your experience in first person makes the illusion contagious. Pictures and videos are a great way of doing this.
It has been a year since I returned from Kenya for the first time. Since then, I have done many things to help fund Korando’s mission. I want to share them, so everyone else can find inspiration and cooperate the same way I do.
- Solidarity Cookies. The idea of a cookie representing a white and black kid together came after receiving a present from someone else. It happened to be really successful. Baking around 2000 cookies at home is not easy, but when you keep in mind what will be the outcome of your work, it becomes a really rewarding activity. We sold them mainly to friends and relatives, who also helped us by sharing it through social media.
- Solidarity party. We contacted many different spaces to organize it, and choose the one with the best conditions. They allowed us to use the place for free! With the entrance ticked, we gave two drinks, a snack and a ticket for a raffle. The presents for the raffle were donated by different business, and the food mainly cooked by friends. Also, social media was our ally to invite as many people as possible.
- Bracelets and homemade key rings. A friend of mine donated simple bracelets and necklaces. I found an elephant key ring model and made many of them for a low price, people knowing the proceeds were going to Korando, made them a huge success.
- Fundraising Markets. Since I am a teacher, kids donated many toys and afterwards visit the market to look for something new to play with. The families are really generous, putting posters up announcing the market around the neighbourhood. Together with the market, we organized a raffle, which motivates people to stay around until we draw winners, giving a socializing extra benefit to the community.
- Aprons and bags. From Madrid we have sold 460. They are tailored in Africa, with a unique design. People really appreciate their value!
- Christmas Lotto. In Spain, 22nd of December is a rather important day, where everyone has an eye on the nationwide draw of lotto with the biggest prizes of the year. Many people use the winning numbers from it to raffle different products. I did so, with mainly donated prizes. We sold the tickets to friends, relatives and people that passed by in the center of Madrid, plenty of people visiting on weekends. From the 1000 tickets printed, we sold around 750! This year, we hope to sell out!
- Calendars. Handmade with pictures taken during my stay in 2015. Two formats were produced, for the wall and pocket size.
- Free accommodation Torsten, founder of Better Me Foundation, came to Madrid bringing aprons, bags and to take donated computers back to Korando. Torsterns accommodation for his stay was kindly provided for free. After sending numerous email requests reaching out to local hotel owners.
- Material & equipment donations. Companies renew their technical equipment. 15 laptops and 20 smartphones were donated, this gave us the chance to provide computer lessons. Another company donated 100 good quality sunglasses.
In every fundraising activity and event, we fill the walls with pictures, and explain to everyone willing to listen about our personal experience. This way, they trust us when we tell them that the money goes directly to the kids, and that our only goal is their well being. With all the activities listed, we made it to 14700 euros. Every little effort makes a huge difference, and grain by grain you can make a mountain. I would like to thank everyone who has been part of each of these events. People around us have been really generous with their time and donations.
Thank you for reading this, I hope this has provided you with some fun fundraising ideas to discuss with co workers, neighbors and friends. I am at the disposition of anyone motivated to help Korando, to answer questions and to support whoever wants to help make the world a better place!
By Angela Frial