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Empowerment International
P.O. Box 1215
Lyons, CO 80540
Ph: (303) 823-6495
Fax: (303) 747-3846
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| EI Launches New Website |
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 by Courtnay Klimowicz
Imagine strolling down the rutted dirt paths of Villa Esperanza with a bottle of cool water in hand. Startled at the rattle of the corrugated tin wall of a nearby home, you smile realizing it is only a stray soccer ball. A young boy snatches it up as an old woman scowls and motions for him to move on.
Taking in the surroundings, you watch a group of boys spin their trompas and a little girl getting ready to fly her makeshift kite. Just around the corner, a street vendor beckons you to her fruit stand while shooing away the neighborhood dog with her foot.
Suddenly, you come upon a child with a smile as bright as the sun and a glint of mischief in his eyes. He takes your hand and leads you on an adventure through the barrio. You meet his friends and are quiet as you learn of the heart-breaking struggles and hardships many of the residents face
For every sad story however, there is hope. The children enlighten you with their heart-warming tales of triumph and accomplishments. They are learning so much. There is a sense of pride as they show you their latest schoolwork and report cards. You smile at the desire and determination of these children and feel relieved that their lives will be different.
Imagine getting to know these children and their families. Imagine a chance at meeting the people that are making the difference in their lives. Imagine being a part of this wonderful group. Imagine all of this, at the touch of your fingertips.
In an ongoing initiative to share the stories and phenomenal success of program participants, staff and volunteers, Empowerment International is pleased to announce the launch of their new website, www.empowermentinternational.org .
"We want the site to be a place where people feel at home," says Kathy Adams, Founder of Empowerment International. "A place where people can visit often, learn what's new, contribute, and really just feel part of the effort and connection to the issues and organization."
As EI continues to gain momentum and tremendous growth in Costa Rica and Nicaragua, the staff felt it important to have a strong web presence, not only to continue to get their message out, but to create a place where supporters, staff and curious visitors could converge and interact.
Visitors can learn the latest news and happenings at EI as well as information about Costa Rica and Nicaragua and the history of Empowerment International in each.
Team bios introduce the many U.S., Internationaland Central America field staff and give visitors a chance to meet and feel the inspiration of these amazing people. Their blogs at the Our Stories page offer an intimate and first-hand view into the daily lives of the children and families in the barrios. "These are stories that make you proud and break your heart all at the same time," said Linda Brown, a site visitor. "I like the site because I'm able to be a part of and contribute to something I would have otherwise not known about. It really opens your eyes and makes you look outside your bubble of reality." At Empowerment International, the world becomes a smaller place.
Would you like to help? Click on the Get Involved page and choose from the many ways to join the team. Contact a team member to volunteer your talents or donate money directly to EI through their secure site. Do you like to shop? Visit our link to Amazon.com and they will donate five percent of your purchase to Empowerment International.
While visiting, don't forget to sign up for the newsletter and the new RSS feed. By adding EI to your RSS feeds, you receive alerts to the latest news and goings on.
"We have some ambitious objectives over the next couple years," says Adams, "we're hoping to increase our retention rates in 2007 and double our  enrollment in 2008. We also plan to raise enough funds to create a reserve for more financial stability. We feel the new site is a great vehicle to help us reach those objectives as well as provides a place for EI to generate on-going news and share our incredible stories."
Visit Empowerment International today, www.empowermentinternational.org.
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| Grateful For A Chance To Help |
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 by Sheila McAuliffe
Two years ago, I spent seventeen days in Granada, Nicaragua. A good friend and I delivered suitcases of children's books and instructional materials and volunteered at Donna Tabor's school for street children.
Newly retired from twenty-seven years of teaching and serving as a professor of literacy education, I had worked with thousands of teachers in hundreds of classrooms and now as a volunteer, I was again sharing the fascinating process of teaching and learning. My trip made one thing clear, too many of Nicaragua's children were not attending school.
In spring of 2006, I learned of Empowerment International. Their efforts in Nicaragua and Costa Rica to provide essential uniforms and school materials, tutor kids at home, and counsel parents to focus on the long-term payoff of keeping their children in school fit my dream for Nicaraguan children.
Now in January of 2007, my husband Bob and I have come to Granada delivering 80 pounds of backpacks and school supplies given by EI donors. We will also participate in the hectic and rewarding days of distributing the school supplies to the children.
At the airport, we pile the supplies and ourselves into a worn Toyota taxi. At a small house in a modest neighborhood, we meet Darcy, a volunteer who shows us around the spartan EI office and her living quarters. Simple wooden tables serve as desks. Notebooks, papers and supplies fill crude shelves. In one corner, the requisite balls and bats, always found in places where adults and children work and play together.
We also reunite with Anielka, a native Granadan whom we met when she was working at EI headquarters in the United States and studying English. Anielka is gracious and talented, and has a smile which lights up the room. She is a terrific ambassador for Empowerment International.
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| Welcome New EI Team Members |
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| Thanks for joining our team!
We would like to welcome the many new volunteers and staff members who have recently joined us at EI.
Somphonh (Sam) Oulavong, Brenda Mingo and Milagros Guadalupe Gomez are part of the Ground Team working with Anielka in Central America. Arin Balbinder is our new Finance Director. Courtnay Klimowicz, Neha Singh, Shamala Pulugurtha, Jacque Stonehocker are our Virtual Writers. Guarav Bhatia is currently our Grant Researcher and Derek Repp is in charge of our international Public Relations efforts. | |
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