Her Star Scholars: Burkina Faso

The Hospital

Burkina Faso is one of the poorest countries in Africa. Ouagadougou, its capital, a city of 1.7 million people, will be the site of Her Star Scholar's first African program which will begin mid-September.

Biba, our local coordinator, has sent some pictures of Ouagadougou.

A Bank 

Shop fronts

A Street Market

A Squatter's Community on the Edge of the City

Many thanks to our September Donor!

We had an generous donor step forward and pay for lunch for the children in the Philippines for the month of September! Many thanks to this donor and all of the others that are helping to educate and feed and make a difference in the lives of the children of the Her Star Scholars program.

Wanted: Santas and Elves!

The children we work  with in the Philippines don't get gifts - not on birthdays and not for Christmas. 

We hoped to fix that this year by shipping clothes and toys to the children. Enough so that parents could provide a gift for each child in the family.

Then we ran in to a snag. Our head Christmas Elf got sick and couldn't organize the program. We have no presents! We need to send 200 gifts for children ages birth-16 by mid September.

We need items for both boys and girls. Kids' clothing and shoes (remember this is a tropical climate so no winter items please), hair clips and bows, purses and backpacks. Dolls - preferably Asian or with dark hair, UNO, stuffed animals, toy cars, baby toys, legos, Harry Potter books or related items always a good bet for older kids, coloring books and crayons...Nothing that uses batteries or electricity, nothing that is illegal to ship through the mail (perfumes, nail polish), nothing that could spill or melt, nothing that promotes violence please the Philippines has seen more than its share of violence (no tanks, toy guns, soldiers). 

In December the volunteers in the Philippines will set up a toy store. Parents will be able to purchase an item for each of their children for only 1 or 2 pesos - about the equivalent of 3 cents. We are asking the parents to buy the items for several reasons: 

• We want them to feel a sense of pride for being able to provide special things for their children.
• We want the children to know that their parents can provide special things for them. 
• We want parents to feel like they are participating in the program as equals and not victims.   

If there are any prospective Santas or Elves, hiding out there looking for an exciting project to take on really quickly, please contact Julie at info @ herstarscholars. org. I can arrange pick-ups or drop off areas in Ithaca/Corning/Elmira, Pittsburgh and possibly the Washington DC area. For others I can provide a shipping address in California.  For more details or a copy of the toy store project proposal feel free to contact Her Star Scholars. 

I want everyone to know that the funds for shipping these items to the Philippines are not coming from any general donations we have received. All of that goes directly to the programming for the children. One generous donor has offered money specifically for the shipping. 

Celebrating Nutrition: Go, Grow, Glow

Opening Routine

Our Little Stars in the Philippines just completed a month long study of nutrition. It ended with a program for parents with a play, singing, and dancing. This year's theme was Go, Grow, Glow!

Grow

Children dancing with gulay - vegetables.

Glow

42 cents a day

Schools in the US have long offered reduced price or free breakfasts and lunches to children. It's clear that children who are well-nourished perform better in the educational setting. Yet most of our scholars in the Philippines are lucky to have one nutritious meal per day.

Last year we were able to serve our children lunch 3 days a week for several months. This year we would like to be able to serve the children lunch every school day. One filling and nutritious lunch can be had for only  42 cents per child, per day.

Skipping one large drink per week at a coffee shop could provide 10 days worth of lunches.


Skipping 2 large drinks a month could feed a child for 4 weeks.

Her Star Scholars needs US$500 a month to feed all of our children in the Philippines. In the right hand column of our blog you will see the word DONATE. Remember that $8.40 will feed one child lunch for a month.

These pictures are from last year because we haven't had the budget for food yet this year.

Parents come and prepare the meals.

The children do have to stand to eat because we haven't been able to purchase chairs yet.

We do try to provide extras for siblings who are there at lunch time.

Our programs focus on educating girls, but we don't let little boys go hungry.

Malnutrition in the Philippines

Many of the children in our program in the Philippines are malnourished. We hope to fund a daily lunch program that will ensure all of the children one healthy meal each day. Donations to the food budget are always welcome.

Meanwhile, we try attempt to supply the families of the most seriously malnourished children with daily vitamins and nutrient rich formula prescribed by a local pediatrician. It's hard to only help a small handful of children with these extra nutrients, but we work within our budget to make the most impact we can.

The Books Are Here

The girls sponsored by Her Star Scholars in the Philippines have received their books for the school year. The children were so excited to have books for school. For most of these girls these are the first books they have ever owned!

Edgardo distributing books to the children and parents.

Thank you to our supporters!!