Dear all,

I have known about this charity for a while now, having found it randomly on the justgiving page more than a year ago, and I decided a while back already that I would like to do some fundraising for them. I remembered it, then forgot and never really got to setting up a page or to sending invitations to donate and so it has taken me to this day to set up this page ahead of my birthday and invite you all, if you are interested, to donate a bit- whatever you can afford- in celebration of my 25 years on earth. I do not need any presents, so I thought this would be a meaningful and fun way to celebrate.

The charity runs a Children's Home in Tanzania called Amani. The little fella on the picture to your left is Amani himself- or a boy named after the home. He was born on the streets of Tanzania (where child homelessness is a major issue much like in the rest of the developing world) to a mentally unfit mother and given to the home to care for- since he had never been given a name, they named him after the first home he ever had. When I first found out about Amani- the school and the kid- I was particularly struck by the absolute sweetness and joy emanating from all the children there. They have a great page which introduces you to the children they care for- and those smiles- those incredible smiles- were the first, and maybe most important things that struck me. Homelessness for these children is absolutely devastating- many of them run away from abusive homes or are AIDS orphans- and unfortunately many of them never get out of the vicious cycle of streetlife. Amani takes them in (even actively seeking them out on the streets through community volunteers), gives them a home, friends, authority figures and an education. They also seek to relocate lost families and reunite street children with uncles and grandparents if their parents have died.

Please check these kids out- marvel at their smiles and read their stories- the site also explains in more detail what the charity does. Although this is a needle in a haystack, and although there are needy adults and children all over the world- I chose Amani this time because... well, because of those smiles ;).

Here are the links:
http://www.amanikids.org/photos.php?TopicID=kids
 
http://www.amanikids.org/whatIsAmani.php

Thank you for your kindness!

Oh, and donating through justgiving is simple, fast and totally secure. The money is given straight to the charity to use in the most beneficial way!

love, Kaisa

PS. I know its a bit cheeky, but I raised the target a bit to encourage a few more people to donate!