Please can you help!

I am a student at Cowbridge Comprehensive School and next year I will be travelling to South Africa as part of a group that will be helping the important work of the Goedgedacht Trust . I need to raise as much as possible to make the trip possible as well as to provide a direct donation to the Goedgedacht Trust so it can continue its work after I return home.

The Trust works with farmers and children to improve their way of life and to help them to lift themselves out of poverty. I want to play my part in helping them and to help spread the message of the Trust's work back here at home.

I would be extremely grateful for any contributions to my fundraising target, however small. I will be keeping the page up-to-date so you can follow any updates and view my fundraising progress.

So please, please, please make a donation as every contribution will make a big difference!

The Goedgedacht Trust - what does it do?

The Goedgedacht Trust (click on the link for more info) is a charity that was established in 1993 at a farm in rural Cape Town. Its objective is to make a contribution to the transformation of poor rural communities by addressing poverty, particularly poverty that affects the lives of children. The Trust has set up a Path out of Poverty (POP) programme; this is a long term (25 year) plan made up of projects which cater to the needs of children from 4 months old to school leavers. It is built upon four themes: Education, Health, Personal Development and Care for the Planet.

A particular issue is that fact that parents may have been given ‘bad wine’ as their wage from their work. In turn this has lead to issues within the families and communities such as high levels of hunger, poverty, domestic violence and Foetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorder (FASD). As part of the POP programme, POP centres have been established. These are safe spaces where education, clothing, blankets and toys are provided, and often these are where the children have their only hot meal of the day. They are a means by which children can escape issues at home and can play and learn coping skills.

The aims of the trip include a) to more fully appreciate the situation of the children in rural Cape Town, b) to work on both the farm and in the POP centres, and c) to maintain the close relationship of Cowbridge Comprehensive with the Goedgedacht Trust so we can continue to provide support in the future.

How am I going to raise funds?

In as many different ways as I can!

I realise that fundraising for the trip will involve a lot of hard work, and I understand how big my target is. I am, therefore, starting with the initial aim of raising at least £1000, but I really hope to pass this mark and fundraise the full £2500 if possible! I plan to achieve this in many different ways, including:

- organising events

- attending car boot sales

- making items to sell

- babysitting, and

-seeking sponsorship.

I will use all of these activities to publicise the Goedgedacht Trust and I will continue to promote their work when I return from the trip.

I also plan to take old football shirts for the children as I know from friends who have been on the trip before that the children really love having them.

So again, please, please, please make a donation as every contribution will make a big difference! Thank you!