"Love Makes Dreams Possible"
Sieg Will – Oakville, ON "Love Makes Dreams Possible," was the simple statement on a donor label that had a profound impact on me during this trip to Uganda with Sleeping Children Around the World [SCAW]. When I read this label it hit me again how the gift of a bedkit to these children -- children who face the challenges of malaria, HIV/AIDS, and poverty on a daily basis -- is truly a dream come true. This gift of love consists of a foam mattress, LLIN mosquito net, blanket, bed sheets, pillowcase, towel, basin, and a school uniform. It will ensure that a child's condition will improve dramatically. During the course of the Uganda distribution, 6,000 bedkits were donated by individuals and groups to children throughout twelve districts in central and south eastern Uganda. My wife, Debbie, who took the donor pictures, and I, who managed the labels, had the opportunity to see every donor label at this distribution.
The individual donors typically purchase a bedkit to commemorate a person's birthday, graduation, anniversary, or retirement. A bedkit might also be provided as a gift for such special occasions as Christmas and Hanukkah. In some instances, bedkits were purchased to remember a loved one in the form of an In Memoriam donation. The group donors consisted of girl guides, scouts, clubs, schools, church groups, service clubs, service sector organizations, businesses, foundations, and estates. It was amazing to see how so many individuals and groups had heard about Sleeping Children Around the World even though we promote ourselves only through "word of mouth" as opposed to doing direct marketing. Each member of the Sleeping Children Uganda distribution team will be encouraged to talk to others about their trip to ensure that the message of SCAW continues using the grass roots approach that Murray and Margaret Dryden pioneered so many years ago. It is so rewarding to represent a charity that ensures that 100% of a bedkit donation is used for the items in a bedkit.
If you require someone from SCAW to share a presentation on a distribution and communicate the principles which SCAW adheres to, feel free to contact the Sleeping Children Around the World office directly or through our website at www.scaw.org. Next year Sleeping Children Around the World will be reaching a major milestone, the distribution of bedkits to one million children, a goal that founder Murray Dryden set in memory of his wife Margaret. The love that so many of you donors have shown to these children in Uganda has made Murray's dream possible. "Love Makes Dreams Possible." It most certainly does. |
