September2003Letter

See also [Eva]

See also the [January2003Letter]

Torino, September 28th 2003

Hello to all the visitors of www.nkoni.org,

My last letter is from January of this year (see the [January2003Letter]), and so I feel a need to update all the sponsors of our project on the last news.

This year has seen a good development of the project, as concerns the individual adoptions as well as the project in general.

This year, some 6 students have started their higher education thanks to italian people and families who have taken the commitment of sponsoring their studies until their diploma, and one student began last year, so there are actually 7 students taking higher education.

In the meantime, 2 students have finished the 4 years following elementary school, successfully passing the preliminary exams, and are at the moment waiting to learn their choices for the future (a trade, nurse or teacher).

Meanwhile, the Nkoni center is developing further: by the end of 2002, we had to send those of our student who wanted to attend the last year to other schools, but from this year we have opened the 7th year of elementary school at our center, also thanks to the presence of [Michael], our first student to become a professor: here is a [photo] of him teaching soon after he arrived.

The work of expanding the school is being continiued, with the construction of other class rooms, though provisional (wood, straw and mud), because we lack the funds to build with brick - as we still have to finish the two main buildings in brick, where the floor and windows are still missing.

Because of the dust raised from hundreds of bare feet on the equally bare earth, there is also a sanitary problem (nits, infections, ulcers) that we must resolve as soon as possible to allow our children to frequent the school in comfort, and also, because of this it is practcially impossible to keep the tekst and exercise books clean. The same lack of windows, along with the wind and humidity, renders the benches, of crude wood, unpleasant.

We are therefore continiuing to search for funds for the improvement of the living conditions at the school, which remains free and open for all from the 1st year, until not only the 6th, but now even the 7th year!

The nutrition level of the meal offered at the school, which has seen the addition of sugar to the porrige twice a week, is slowly but gradually improving. It would be good to be able to add powdered milk, so as to vary the flavour and increase the proteine content, and likewise it would be good if we could give at least once a week a meal with vegetables and meat.

This year the teachers have for the first time been able to buy "modern" materials for teaching, as you can see from the new photo; the children can finally use placards with cheerful drawings to learn English (see the [English class, small photo] or [English class, big photo].)

We would like to obtain the funds to open a small infirmary at the school, which with the opening of a library would make our center a good meeting point for big and small in the area, besides being a cause of pride for our new football team (for the boys) and basketball team (for the girls), who are proudly playing and winning also without unforms!

For 2004 we have several student who are about to finish their last year of elementary, but cannot begin secondary school for the lack of money, unless they are sponsored through the Long Distance Adoption program.

In the [How To Contribute] section, you can choose how to participate in an individual adoption, how to finance the addition of powdered milk in the porrige, or the mini-project of your preference - always for the benefit of the children of Nkoni (see [Help Only Once] ).

Thank you anyway for the interest you have shown in our project!

At the end we would like to tell you that for those of you who would like to support our initiative with credit card, it's now possible to do so in a secure way certified by Banca Sella! We know how convenient this way of paying is and we have activated it on our website (see the information on [Secure Donation] on Nkoni.org)

As usual, I'm available for any clarification. Until later!

Cordially,

Eva Biginelli <evambiente@nkoni.org>