Dez & Al meeting Ann after 4 years

This past April, Desiree Daniels and Al Sodaro, headed to Kenya to finally meet the girls that they have been supporting for the past four years. Desiree is also an MFFO Board Member. It was an amazing experience for everyone. We are so very excited that they are heading back next week. And trust me, so are the girls in Kenya.

There is so much to say about your first trip to the home to see the girls, but no one has ever explained it quite like Al himself. This video was prepared for the attendees at our Gift of Education Fundraiser this year in Gaithersburg, Maryland back in October. Please take a moment and listen to Al tell his personal story.

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Thank you Al and Desiree for loving the girls so fully and proving to all of us once again that love is never limited by distance or time. Please give each and every one of them a hug from all of us… volunteers, sponsors, donors and friends.

Tell them we love them all and hope that they have a wonderful holiday and new year!

Safe journey my friends.

We have WONDERFUL news.

At 8:15pm on Thursday night, we received news that our eldest girl, Mary, was accepted to Nairobi University!! She will be studying International Relations and she reports on October 5th.

We couldn’t be more proud.

We, at MFFO, met Mary when she was entering High School. It’s amazing how the time has flown by and here she is, all grown up, and heading to College.

Mary has worked so hard over these past four years. We also know that none of this would be possible without the tireless efforts of the staff at Saint Monica’s. Perpetua Gatome, the director at Saint Monica’s, has been an inspiration and motivator for higher education. We know that she has played an integral part to all of this, and we are forever grateful!

We love you Mary and good luck in your studies!

The “create your own” link caught my eye and the first thought that popped into my head was, “we already have one.” The story of how Mothers Fighting For Others came to be is a real life Google Search Story. Rocky tells it in her Founder’s Letter. It begins, “I would have never guessed that Mothers Fighting For Others would have started by a simple Google Search on “Volunteer Africa” in 2006. I was just doing research, that’s it. Less than a year, and many, many shots later, I was to far off Kenya. I volunteered with Global Volunteer Network and was assigned with an all girls orphanage outside of Nairobi.”

At this very moment she is once again in Kenya and the girls at Saint Monica’s Childrens Home are now in a new place. It’s been an amazing journey. To cap it off, she returns from this trip on Mother’s Day. It just doesn’t get any better. So, I just had to put together this Google Search Story.

It makes me smile. I hope it makes you smile too.

This is the Mount Kenya Room. We’re figuring out where to put all the beds!

Passing out supplies for school to ALL the girls! We will need sponsors!!

MFFO and Sisters Arise Project cheering the accomplishment.

Thank you ALL for your continued support!

I was on Skype with Rocky when she told me that the girls had no concept of what a slumber party was. That’s certainly no surprise. It’s a cultural thing. So when I saw this first tweet, I was prepared.

[tweeted]http://twitter.com/headmutha/status/12958923946[/tweeted]

Rocky uses the same tactic when our family stays somewhere that can’t really fit our six kids properly. Beds on the floor = a slumber party. In this case, the beds in the new home are not put together yet and this is their first night in the new home. Then the next tweet came a short while later:

[tweeted]http://twitter.com/headmutha/status/12959535813[/tweeted]

To be sure, knowing every detail of the trials encountered to get to this point, and even from this great distance, witnessing what has transpired is indeed a miracle. I can hear the joy in her written words and I can tell she is in her happy place. And I still kept it together. But the next tweet sent me over the edge and I couldn’t hold back the tears of joy.

[tweeted]http://twitter.com/headmutha/status/12960397589[/tweeted]

The new home is indeed beautiful, but what makes it special is that it will be a home, not an orphanage run inside an old motel. There will be laughter and love and respect. And there will be discipline and struggles and tears, all handled with respect and love. They way they are supposed to be handled. If we are to help orphaned girls become powerful women, we must give them more than just a formal education. We must strive to provide for them a living example of what is possible in the homes they will create for themselves and their children.

This is day one of their journey. I’m looking forward to taking it with them.

I’ve seen most of the photos numerous times. I imagine that I am a lot like most of you who follow what is happening with MFFO. I look at the photos trying to get a feel for a place that I have never visited. I look at the photos trying to get to know, on some level, girls I have never met, but who I’ve come to love. Last night, I was simply missing my wife.

But the photo below stopped me in my tracks. It helped me focus and helped me go to sleep. It captures a simple moment in time. Two girls are reading a book. As a result, it clearly illustrates our mission: helping orphaned girls become powerful women.

What can you see in this photo? Call me pollyanna, but I see hope. I see the cycle of poverty being broken. “Educated girls grow into educated women, who – research shows – have healthier babies and are more likely to educate their children.” It’s the girl effect.  Writing this now has me on the verge of tears.

This photo is what MFFO is about.

This is amazing news. For the last two months, we have been unable to speak freely about the work we’ve been doing behind the scenes with our US partner, Stepwise, and our Kenyan NGO partners, Sisters Arise Project, to take over the guardianship of the 34 girls so we could move them into a more suitable home. Today, it is done.

We have been unable to speak openly about this until now. But you should know that the money you have donated in the past few weeks has already been put to work. We have secured a new temporary location for the girls and have paid for four months rent in advance.

I Leave For Kenya On Thursday

The timing of this news could not be better. Although we had some concern about how the volcanic activity in Iceland might affect this trip, that now appears to be mitigated. When I arrive in Kenya, my main focus will now be:

• preparing the new facility
• purchasing the needed supplies
• and moving the girls into the their new temporary home.

This signals a whole new chapter for these girls’ lives. And we could not be more thrilled. You will now begin to see more frequent updates about exactly what we’re doing and exactly why your funds are needed and where they are going.

Thank you all for your support. My heart is filled with joy right now!

In response to this need, many have come forward to donate their services to be auctioned to raise funds to help. Our first auction raised $2,413 and Denise Ulrich, from Duluth, GA, graciously made the winning bid.

Now, we have two more packages being offered, and both auctions end Saturday, April 17 at around 8 PM PST. We are reposting these auctions to end April 20, at 2PM PST.

Package 1 – Marketing Services – Total Value Over $2,800

Epic Marketing: Newsletter Design – $1000 & up

• Design of a two page newsletter.
• Includes design, copy and images, and printer ready PDF.
• Does not include printing.

Se7en7: Identity Design  – $1500 & up

• Complete identity design package.

Honeybee Consulting: Copywriting – $375

• Three hours of copywriting services.

Package 2 – Real Estate Services – Total Value Over $3,000

Laura Monroe: Virtual Assistant – $400

• 10 hours of virtual assistant services.
• The scope includes consultation and implementation on either a project, goal, or the creation of an action plan in area of the winner’s choice.

Mike Price: Logo Design – $500

• One complete logo design, and all finished digital media formats.

Real Bird: RealBird Pro – $297

• Three years of complete RealBird Pro service.

PlanOMatic: Photo Tour – $350

• One full-service flooplan creation and photo tour.
• This service is contingent on the location of the buyer. Please contact  aaron@planomatic.com for coverage areas.

Joeanne Fossland: Business Coaching – $800

• One full month of personal and business coaching.

Brian Gardner: AgentPress Pro Membership – $150

• WordPress AgentPress Pro Membership with StudioPress.

Gina Kay Landis: Licensed BPO Specialist – $600

• 10 hours of training & consultation for an office, team or single agent.
• Instruct how to construct a value assessment BPO (and how to get more BPO’s)!

As I write this, there are no bidders, but several watchers.

Thanks to everyone above who donated their services for these auctions!