Dear Friends,
Happy 2016! We are looking forward to a great year working together, transforming children's lives and investing in their future.
This year we enter our 8th year of operations. MAP was founded in 2008 as a grassroots, volunteer-based NGO with no seed funding but with great passion and conviction to end childhood poverty.
MAP was formed with the following goals in mind:
- to implement holistic programs that nurture and educate children out of poverty;
- to build a socially responsible global family of donors and volunteers and bridge cultural divides; and
- to build a fiscally responsible and sustainable organization for generations to come.
In 2008, we held our first fundraising event in a renovated warehouse and invited our community to join us in our mission. To our delight we raised $60,000 to fund our programs and we began our work together. Since our humble beginnings, each year, we have nearly doubled in revenue and expanded our programs.
We are pleased to report that in the past 7 years:
- We have successfully built programs that are holistically minded and assist children out of poverty. We have taken great strides enlisting the guidance of the local elders and worked with the local community to build culturally sensitive and appropriate educational/vocational training programs for our children. Additionally, we employ the locals in our programs with the goal of building economically sustainable communities.
- We have worked hard to build a community of like-minded donors and volunteers from all walks of life. Our unique fundraising events serve as an opportunity to bring the community together, not only to raise funds but also to celebrate our community's diversity, our work and our children's lives.
- Finally, we have worked hard to build a financially responsible organization keeping 3-4% overhead and we are currently undergoing a self-audit to ensure that our process and procedures are viable and dependable.
Together we have created an organization made of love, passion, commitment and integrity. This year is no different, we plan to:
- Expand our U.S Nutrition Outreach Program providing food for thousands of impoverished children in the U.S.
- Build over 50 preschool daycare/education centers in remote villages of Iran to provide much needed early childhood education for the children.
- Expand our Vocational Training Center in Kerman, Iran to empower special needs children and provide means for them to work and lead independent lives.
- Open our first private orphanage in Kerman Iran with the financial support of the Tahbazof Family.
- Expand our Education Outreach Program in Cambodia and further provide tools for hundreds of impoverished children in that country to obtain work or move forward to higher educational institutes.
- Open five additional Learning Centers in India and provide vital learning to children living in slums.
- Open five new Computer Centers in India and provide the children with the tools they need to seek employment which can support their whole family out of poverty.
- Build a second school in Senegal to serve children in a critical need of a place to educate and empower themselves.
- Construct a new Learning Center in Sierra Leone to provide education for the street children within this community.
- Provide critical shelter and basic provisions to children of the Gardinia Community in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
As we continue our growth, the need has arisen for us to expand our operations. We plan to do so by upholding good industry standards and practices, keeping our operating budget to a minimum and maintaining the support of our amazing dedicated volunteers. As a result, in 2016 we will be looking to raise operational funds through Donor Sponsorship Programs, Special Fundraising Events and obtaining Operation/Service Grants. We have a great future ahead of us. Our inspiration remains to be the children. By changing the life of one child, giving them opportunity and love, we change the life of generations to come. We need your help to make this vision possible. You can positively shape the future of the world by getting involved. Learn More. On behalf of the children we thank you for your continued support and look forward to another year filled with great possibility for our children. Kind Regards, MAP Board of Directors Delfarib Fanaie, Nooshin Hakimi, Ladan Judge, Maryam Refahi, Maryam Winan |