Cecily's Fund Easter Newsletter 2015

2 | Cecily’s Fund

Welcome!

Social | To keep up to date with all our updates, be sure to follow Cecily’s Fund on social media - we are on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube at /cecilysfund

Welcome to the Cecily’s Fund Easter Newsletter 2015. You will have noticed that this issue launches a new look for this year’s newsletters, and we hope you like it.

2015 has already had a busy start for Cecily’s Fund. Our Programme Manager has completed one monitoring trip to Zambia, and another is planned; our partners in the country continue to do fantastic work; and we hope to run a

New! Instagram |

number of exciting events and campaigns here in the UK.

Cecily’s Fund has recently joined

As ever, we are tremendously grateful for your support, which makes our work

Instagram. Follow us for beautiful

possible. We hope to you will follow developments in 2015 with interest.

new photos from our programmes in

In this issue Success story: Boyd

3

Red Nose Day 2015: Kitwe Stories

4

A Sunday in Summer

5

Partner interview: Gift

6

British 10K London Run 2015

7

Annual Review Coming Soon

7

Help Cecily’s Fund Find Friends

8

Zambia,

plus

infographics,

quotes and lots more. You can find us at Instagram.com/cecilys.fund

About and Contact | Cecily’s Fund is registered charity 1071660.

Our

work

makes

education possible for orphaned and vulnerable children in Zambia.

Email admin@cecilysfund.org Phone 01993 358 089 / 186 Post Ground Floor, 6 Church Green, Witney, Oxon, OX28 4AW

Easter Newsletter 2015 | 3

Success story: Boyd Kabila CF: Can you please introduce yourself?

BK: My name is Boyd Kabila, and I am the first born in a family of five. I come from Kitwe in Zambia. I am currently working at Mopani Copper Mines PLC for Murray and Roberts, a South African contractor, as a Management Trainee/Mining Engineer.

CF: When did you first start receiving support from Cecily’s Fund?

BK: I first started receiving educational support from Cecily’s Fund in 2007 when I was in my final grade of junior secondary school. I started receiving 50% of total tuition fees, in addition to books, uniforms, pens, pencils and “That support really affected my

pairs of school shoes. Upon successful completion of junior secondary school,

life” |

Cecily’s Fund further supported me at university level where I went to study

Boyd Kabila is a real success story.

for Bachelor of Engineering degree specialising in Mining Engineering at

Having lost his father at a young

Copperbelt University between 2009 and 2013.

age,

CF: How did that support affect your life?

Boyd

began

receiving

educational support from Cecily’s Fund which took him all the way to university level. While attending Copperbelt

University

in

2010,

Boyd’s mother also passed away.

With the help of Cecily’s Fund, Boyd has overcome numerous challenges and, having secured a job with a major mining company, is set on securing a better life for himself and for his family.

BK: That support really affected my life positively in that I could go to school without worries of being chased out of school due to unpaid fees. I really could concentrate on my studies. The uniforms and pairs of shoes I received built confidence in me because I could look just like any other pupil coming from their responsible fathers and mothers. In short, Cecily’s Fund took on the role of my father and mother because by then my father had already died and my mother, who could not manage to support all of the family, died in 2010 when I was in my second year of study at university. Going to university with the support of Cecily’s Fund was my long awaited dream come true.

CF: How has the support you received affected your family?

BK: My success has and is still helping my family because all my siblings have now got a Dad and a Mom - which is me! Currently through my job I am able to pay school fees for my brother in Grade 11 and my sister in Grade 8.

Not only that I have also helped my younger brother back into school to improve his grades. My other younger brother-Lastone completed Grade 12 last year and has started applying to study nursing - I will help to fund him.

CF: What are your hopes for the future?

Boyd with his family in Kitwe,

BK: My personal hope for the future is that I can become well-established in

August 2014

terms of education as well as financially. My ultimate desire for the future is to set up my own engineering firm after I raise enough working capital, become my own employer and possibly become a donor helping out other people who are facing challenges in their lives in terms of education or other aspects.

4 | Cecily’s Fund

Red Nose Day: Kitwe stories

In the lead-up to this year’s Red Nose Day event from Comic Relief, children supported by Cecily’s Fund and our partner Afya Mzuri featured in education

Key Dates in Zambia, 2015 | Good Friday

April 3

Easter Monday

April 6

Labour Day

May 1

Africa Day

May 25

Heroes’ Day

July 6

Unity Day

July 7

Farmers’ Day

August 3

Independence Day

October 24

Christmas Day

December 25

and fundraising materials designed for use by UK schools.

Comic Relief’s schools campaign focuses on a child-headed household in Kitwe, in Zambia’s Copperbelt province. Siblings Ngosa (pictured), Rabecca and Clifford live in very basic conditions having lost their parents.

Ngosa, 9, and Rabecca, 18, are the focus of videos intended for use by primary

Comic Relief and Cecily’s Fund |

and secondary schools, respectively. The short films explore the family’s very basic living conditions: the children eat just once a day, and Rabecca earns the family’s only income by washing clothes, clearing land, and plaiting hair for neighbours.

“It feels nice for my future, because I have a vision that I will become a teacher.”

Rabecca The films go on to explain how support from Afya Mzuri, a local Zambian partner of Cecily’s Fund which has been funded by Comic Relief, has helped both Ngosa and Rabecca to go to school, giving the whole family a chance at a better life. Ngosa also features in a special interactive story on the Red Nose Day website, which helps children between to think about the differences between life in the UK and in Zambia.

In 2014, Afya Mzuri hosted another Comic Relief team who took YouTube star Fleur de Force to Zambia as part of their “School of YouTube” project. The video has been viewed over 160,000 times.

Comic Relief is a key funding partner of Cecily’s Fund. The Hands on Learning programme enables local people to have a greater say on the way education is run in their communities.

The project is primarily funded by Comic Relief, and is implemented by Cecily’s Fund partners Afya Mzuri and the

Copperbelt

Project (CHEP).

Health

Education

Easter Newsletter 2015 | 5

Supporter Focus #2: Peter

A Sunday in Summer

Christopher |

In this issue, we meet Peter Christopher, former headteacher of King Edward VI Aston School in Birmingham, which has supported Cecily’s Fund for many years.

How did you first come into contact with Cecily’s Fund?

Friends introduced Jane and I to Cecily’s Fund by inviting us to the Opera. The cause struck a chord with us as all three of our children had gone abroad on their gap years. We donated, and now find the Christmas Gift cards an ideal way of spreading the word.

On May 10th Basil and Alison Eastwood hope you will join them for a wonderful luncheon with music and theatrical entertainment, as guests of David Gladstone at historic Wotton House in Buckinghamshire.

Why did you choose to donate to Cecily’s Fund?

Following an excellent three-course meal, Basil Eastwood will give a moving

The simplicity of the appeal and the way contributions have been broken down into manageable portions for uniform, a year’s education, etc. seemed an ideal way to engage the interest of children in this country. A nonuniform day buys so many uniforms, and class groups can achieve a tangible target.

orphans and vulnerable children of Zambia. Later we will be treated to a comic

Do you have a particular memory you would like to share?

In 2012 I had the privilege of visiting Zambia and seeing first hand the impact Cecily’s Fund is having. One young man had been given a life-changing opportunity after a terrible childhood and was determined to graduate before he was too old!

We hope that summer will have arrived! The house and gardens are beautiful, and before lunch our guests will be treated to musical entertainment from harpist Fiona Thompson, clarinettist Michal Bredik and pianist Lucie Smitkova.

personal presentation on Cecily’s Fund and the pressing need to support the critique of Wagner’s Ring Cycle in impressive operatic style by Angela Knapp.

Guests will be treated to a house tour by our host and can admire the early 19 th century country house designed by John Soane and its newly-restored cupola.

We would like to invite all of our friends to support the event and we thank David Gladstone once again for opening his house to us so generously for the day. We are inviting The Compassionate Friends, who help bereaved parents, to join us at this special occasion. All guests who join us through Cecily’s Fund will help us make a huge difference to the lives of orphaned and vulnerable children in Zambia.

All Enquiries Contact:

Or email:

Alison Eastwood

stableyardalison@gmail.com

Church End Church Street Somerton OX25 6NB

Donations of £75 welcome

6 | Cecily’s Fund

Partner interview: Gift

Treasure Hunt - June 4 | Cecily’s Fund will hold a special

In each newsletter, Cecily’s Fund will be interviewing a member of staff from one of our partner organisations in Zambia. This Q&A is

fundraising

treasure

hunt

in

Witney, Oxfordshire on June 4.

Teams of up to six people will

with Gift Shanyinde, Community Mobilisation

explore

the

Officer for Afya Mzuri. Afya Mzuri forms a key part of our work in Zambia, including the

along the way. Among the prizes

questions

town,

and

answering

solving

puzzles

provision of school fees.

will be two tickets to this year’s

CF: Can you describe what Afya Mzuri does?

The festival begins on July 10 and

GS: Afya Mzuri is a national NGO committed to improving the quality of life in poor communities. Based in Kitwe, we receive funding from Cecily's Fund to help children access education in many ways including identifying children requiring support and then providing school fees, uniforms and books. More generally, Afya specialises in the implementation of HIV and AIDS awareness and support programmes for workplaces and their host communities. Afya

Cornbury Festival. features Tom Jones, Lulu and Martha Reeves & The Vandellas.

Registration for the hunt will open in May - look out for more information on the Cecily’s Fund website.

Mzuri is one of the largest local health NGOs in Zambia and has established long-term partnerships with over 50 companies, reaching over 100 workplace sites, making them well-placed to share learnings from this project. Afya Mzuri is also currently implementing a water, sanitation and hygiene programme

About Afya Mzuri |

funded by UNICEF. CF: What does your job involve?

GS: My title is Community Mobilisation Officer. I work closely with both government schools and communities in the Copperbelt province of Zambia, advocating for good and free education and health programmes for the orphans and vulnerable children in those communities. I work closely with the administration in procuring school materials for the children. I assist the

Afya Mzuri is a national Zambian

manager in policy analysis, development and implementation and conduct

NGO which established in 2003.

field visits to schools and colleges to check on the performance, attendance,

Meaning “good health” in Swahili,

and motivation of orphans and vulnerable children. My other roles include

Afya Mzuri has a wide range of

tracking where alumni are and what they are doing, as well as strengthening

programmes in health, education

partnership relationships and communications.

and WASH (water, sanitation and

CF: What is your favourite memory of working in your job?

hygiene).

GS: The time I worked with Comic Relief teams from the UK to document case

Afya Mzuri became a partner of

studies of Emmanuel, Rabecca and Ngosa. I enjoyed it and I learned a lot.

CF: How would you describe the relationship between Afya Mzuri and Cecily’s Fund?

GS: The relationship between Afya Mzuri and Cecily’s Fund is strong as both organisations communicate on a daily basis.

Cecily’s Fund in 2013 and also implements major programmes for USAID and UNICEF. To find out more,

visit

their

www.afyamzuri.org

website

at

Easter Newsletter 2015 | 7

British 10K London Run 2015

London Marathon 2015 |

In 2015, Cecily’s Fund is again able to enter a runner into the London Marathon having secured a place through the Silver Bond scheme.

Training hard to take part is Chris Childs (pictured taking part in the 2014 Oxford Half marathon). husband Tom is a trustee of Cecily’s Fund. She is a keen runner, and previously raised money for Cecily’s by

taking

part

in

the

Bournemouth Marathon in 2013.

Her

role

model

is

Cecily’s Fund calendar. In 2015, as the run itself celebrates its 15th anniversary, Cecily’s Fund will once again be entering a team of runners to take on the challenge and raise funds for our work in Zambia.

Chris was born in Zambia and her

Fund

For many years now, the British 10K London Run has been a key date in the

European

champion athlete Jo Pavey.

Chris is aiming to raise £2,000 for Cecily’s Fund in 2015, and is keen

Changes for this year’s race include a brand new medal and an altered route, which takes runners through the very heart of London and weaves between some of the city’s most popular landmarks. Last year, our runners (pictured) raised over £4,000 to support our work bring education to the orphaned and vulnerable children of Zambia.

Cecily’s Fund has 18 guaranteed places for this year’s race which will take place on Sunday 12th July. Runners interested in taking part should email admin@cecilysfund.org to receive an application form. We look forward to hearing from you!

to make as big a difference as possible to the lives of children in the country of her birth. To sponsor her, visit her fundraising page at

Annual Review Coming Soon

justgiving.com/CHRISTINECHILDS2/

The Cecily’s Fund annual review for 2014 is nearly complete. This document will cover all of our activities in 2014, a year which saw the continuation of major grants from the Department for International Development and Comic Relief.

The review will contain both a narrative section and a summary of our accounts.

In addition, the full Cecily’s Fund accounts will also be available soon. Both the annual review and annual report will be viewable and downloadable from the resources section of the Cecily’s Fund website.

Also available online as downloads are the annual reports for previous years and all newsletters dating back to the summer of 2012. Supporters interested in reading earlier materials are welcome to get in touch with their request.

8 | Cecily’s Fund

Help Cecily’s Fund Find Friends!

We will soon be launching our Find a Friend campaign and need your help!

Everyone at Cecily’s Fund is extremely grateful for the support we receive from all our donors and friends. Together, we’ve achieved some fantastic things for orphans and vulnerable children in Zambia. However, there is so much more we need to do. In order to continue providing an education to disadvantaged children, we need more supporters.

We will be asking you to tell your friends about Cecily’s Fund and encourage them to join you in supporting the work we do. We’d also love to hear from you on Facebook and Twitter about what Cecily’s Fund means to you.

You can use one of our new postcards

So please, get chatting, sharing and tweeting using the hashtag #findafriend and

to introduce a friend to Cecily’s Fund

help us find more friends!

Donation and Gift Aid form Help Us Educate More Children in Zambia Bank Standing Order Mandate (please also fill in the left-hand side)

Yes, I want to give Cecily’s Fund £ This time

o annually o or monthly o (please tick one)

o I confirm I have paid or will pay an amount of Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax for each tax year (6 April to 5 April) that is at least equal to the amount of tax that all the charities or Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) that I donate to will reclaim on my gifts for that tax year. I understand that other

This is an instruction to your bank. Please fill in the form, return it to us, and we will process it for you.

Please pay Cecily’s Fund CAF Gold, Sort Code 40-52-40 A/C no. 00089893 The sum of: £

taxes such as VAT and Council Tax do not qualify. I understand that the charity

o quarter o year o until further notice

will reclaim 25p of tax every £1 that I give.

Each month

Title:

Date of first payment

First name or initial(s):

Surname:

Bank name

Full home address:

Bank address

Name of account holder (s) Post code:

Account number

Date:

Sort code

Signature:

Please contact Cecily’s Fund if you need to amend these details or cancel your Gift Aid declaration

Signature Date

Please return the form to Cecily’s Fund, Ground Floor, 6 Church Green, Witney OX28 4AW Cecily’s Fund is a UK Registered Charity number 1071660 and a member of the Fundraising Standards Board Scheme: FSO137