 | Mercy M, EFAC Class of 2015, just started her first year at Bahati Girls
High School |
2011 Students Chosen for EFAC ScholarshipsJanuary begins the new academic year in Kenya. At the end of December EFAC received the applicants' national test results. These are paired with the students who have qualified according to need and class performance. This year all qualifying students scored over 360 marks. This is astonishingly high and puts all EFAC students in the top 10% of their districts. We are reaching our goal of providing the poorest and brightest students a secondary education.
During January and early February the students are placed in some of the most competitive high schools in Kenya. As part of our new Change-A-Life Scholarship Initiative, we will place between 50-60 students in high school this year. Approximately 30 of these students will need sponsors before year end. The others have already been sponsored and their sponsors anxiously await the information about their sponsored students.
All students should be placed in a school before the end of February and new sponsors will receive news of their sponsored student by the beginning of March. EFAC is extremely proud of this new group of students and welcomes them to the alumni group of scholarship recipients which now totals over 150 students.
Thank you for your support of the EFAC scholarship recipients. |
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EFAC Student Spotlight: Samuel L.
by Lisa Van Sciver
Just outside Nairobi's city center we turned down a dirt road. The jeep bounced through deep potholes. At the road's end we found Samuel waiting in front of his home, a two story orphanage. Samuel was one of the last of the ninety EFAC scholars we collected for the three day mentoring workshop held last autumn. The jeep filled with EFAC mentors and students piled out to greet Samuel and take a tour of his home. He proudly showed us their study room, a barn with no electricity or furniture. The passionate, young Kenyan man who runs the orphanage makes all eight children study daily. Samuel smiled when I asked how his studies were going. "Good" he replied. |
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Donor Group Gathers To Learn About Kenya and Send Greetings to their EFAC Student
In November 2010, the seven women who sponsor EFAC student Pamela, Form 3 student at Naivasha Girls' School, gathered at Hope Martin's house to create a collage about their lives in Portsmouth NH to send to Pamela. They wanted to involve their children in their relationship with
their EFAC student and have some fun doing it. After snacking on Kenyan food, Nancy Van Sciver told them stories about Kenya. Then everyone pulled out markers and glue sticks and got creative and put together a beautiful 45-page photo book for Pamela. Everyone wrote notes to Pamela and wished her lots of luck in her studies.
One of the mothers in the group wrote afterwards that it was great for her kids to hear about life in Kenya from someone other than her parents because it resonates better. On the way home, her daughter told her, "now I get why we do this."
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Meet Your Student and Go on Safari Trip 2011
In early October EFAC will host its second annual two week trip to Kenya. Founders Rod and Nancy VanSciver will accompany the EFAC group to the schools where the students are in residence for nine months a year. EFAC sponsors will have the unique opportunity to spend time with their sponsored student and the student's friends and teachers. Seeing firsthand the opportunities that your scholarships have given these bright young adults is life changing. There are very few people in the world that actually experience the real impact of their donations. At EFAC you do understand your impact through the letters and report cards you receive. Imagine now meeting these amazing students.
No trip to Africa would be complete without a safari. Anthony Cheffings, OnSafari, is a third generation Kenyan who is the principal in a multi generational family safari business. His trips are rated among the best in East Africa. He is planning a stay for us at an exclusive private game reserve, a stay at a locally owned ranch and a tented safari in the famed Maasai Mara during the annual wildebeest migration. We will see the most incredible wild life in the world and visit the villages of the local tribes.
Check out our student photo gallery and safari photo gallery from last year's trip. Then call or email us to get more details and to reserve a spot on this once in a life time trip. |
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EFAC Matching Funds Drive Hugh Success
On December 23, EFAC launched its first Matching funds Drive with a $5000 challenge. The funds are to support two sustainability initiatives involving our US school based global citizenship program and a national social media outreach initiative. The challenge was met in less than an hour and two weeks later another matching challenge was issued. Now, little more than a month from the first challenge, we are only $750 away from raising $20,000. Our hope is to match this second $5000 challenge by February 23, two months after the first challenge.
Thank you EFAC donors for your amazing support! |
