Contact: Marc Jensen

Our Kids to Kids Literacy Program for Eritrea was a huge success. The students at Westbury Friends School collected over 200 volumes from favorite picture books to gently used early readers. Some of the children also wrote stories about what it is like to be a student here in a Friends school.

Shipping of the books was delayed while the government of Eritrea worked out its differences with the United States. We were given a working address to which to ship the books this month and have sent them out this week.

Westbury Friends students worked a great deal last year to help the children of in Africa. Beyond the Kids-to-Kids Literacy Program, the Student Council of this 150 member student body put together 42 kits for the children of Mozambique including the $420 for shipping which they raised through bake sales and the recycling of ink cartridges. The students also partnered with Sweet Unity Farms to sell Tanzanian coffee to the families and teachers of the school. This cooperative of farms was started by David Robinson, Jackie's son, to help the Tanzanian growers better support their families by giving them all the profits from their sales. A culminating moment for the kindergarten through sixth graders was the witnessing of Dance Africa, a troupe of HIV orphans who performed music and dance from their home country.