Silembe School Project

Today I began to consider the presentation that I have on Monday, to a local industry-based philanthropy organization, and how increadibly saddened I am that I/we will be the only voice for the Orphans in Silembe as I communicated the opportunities for service there. Consider the overwhelming plight for the children in Zambia:




GO! KEY METRICS

• 920,000 people HIV/AIDS positive
• 130,000 children infected with HIV/AIDS
• 710,000 AIDS Orphans
• 1.2 million Orphans – over 10% of the population
• 75,000+ ‘street kids’
• 2/3 of the population live on less than a $1 per day

• In the past five years, 1.5 million children have died of AIDS-related causes, and 15 million children have lost one or both parents to the disease
• An estimated two million children younger than age 15 are HIV-positive
• 6% to 10% of children in need of antiretroviral drugs receive them, compared with 30% of adults
• Fewer than one in 10 infants in low- and middle-income countries were tested for HIV within two months of their birth
• HIV in children has increased eightfold in sub-Saharan Africa, where 90% of the world's HIV-positive children live



We can make a huge difference in the community as a whole with a direct involvement in the local community school. With $25,000 in facility and learning material upgrades, we can dramatically increase the effectiveness in which these children excel through their first 7 grades. In addition, we will use our involvement in the school to increase awareness for HIV and to offer opportunties for testing and treatment.



Please keep this project in your prayers.