1 week before Bawjiawse!!

To the wonderful supporters of Mama Hope,

My name is Lauren Wright, and I have been working with Mama Hope for the past three months to raise funds for the Christian Refuge Orphanage Center in Bawjiase, Ghana.  Many of you already know of the great work Katherine has done, and have read about her experience on this blog.  I am so excited to be a part of this project, and to continue to update you about the progress of the new building!  It’s been so great to working with Nyla, Amy, and Katherine , and it’s thanks to their hard work and people like you that we are able to build this new orphanage!

Since my partnership with Mama Hope this fall, we have been able to raise over $18,000 for the funding of the new building!  This is so great when you add it to the $17,000 Katherine was able to raise before her trip in September.  We are very close to the $50,000 we need to finish the basic structure of the building, and this is possible through the generosity of many wonderful people.  I am so grateful for the support I’ve recieved from family, friends, and all the others who are passionate about providing a home for these kids.  and that includes people like YOU, who support Mama Hope and all of the wonderful things they are doing for communities in Africa.

To give you a bit of background information, I am 22 years old, and graduated with a B.A. in Psychology and Religion in 2009.  I volunteered in Bawjiase for three months this past summer, and it completely changed my life.  Since returning to the U.S., my goals for the future have changed, and I am now comitting myself to the progress of this orphanage.  I am currently getting my Masters in Social Work, but am in the process of transferring to a Global Clinical program (hopefully in Boston).  In the meantime, I’m returning to Bawjiase for five months to represent Mama Hope and oversee the construction of the new building, and care for the most beautiful children I have ever met. 🙂

There are so many wonderful people who are helping make this new orphanage a reality. Vladimir Visek is a  volunteer  from the Czech Republic, and he is currently overseeing building process.  He has his own NGO called Akwaaba, and he and Pavla Krystynova (another previous volunteer) are working very hard to fundraise as well!  It’s so great to be a part of something that allows people from all over the world to work together, and we are all so passionate about loving these kids 🙂

Here are some pictures from Vlad showing the progress of the new building.

I will continue to update you with pictures of the new building, and the kids as well!  Thank you so much for your support in this project!  Remember to think of Mama Hope during this Christmas season!  Here is the link the Refuge Orphanage Center page, where you can read more about our progress, and donate on either Katherine’s link or my link:

http://www.mamahope.org/orphanage.html

Also, Mama Hope has an awesome new Gift of Hope catalog, check it out!

http://www.mamahope.org/Gift-Catalog.html

Next update will be about Christmas in Bawjiase!  Thank you again for all of your support 🙂