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A symbolic start
Dear ,
First of all we would like to thank you for all the congratulations, comments and messages regarding our 5 years anniversary and our new ambassador. It is very special to see how many people are involved in the work that the Meet Kate Foundation is doing. Thank you for that special birthday feeling!
The Meet Kate Foundation has been very busy this past month. In Ghana, the construction of the Meet Kate Primary school has officially started. This primary school will provide quality education and a safe environment for approximately 200 children, in order to enable them to achieve more and determine their own future. Do you want to know more about the construction? Click here! Do you want to contribute to this special project? You can! Sponsor a child in Ghana and enable them to attend this school!
In the Netherlands there are also some exciting things in progress and we hope to be able to tell you more about that soon... Stay tuned...
In this month's newsletter, you will read about our collaboration with Foundation to Build; the foundation which also supervised the construction of the Meet Kate Children's Home, and the Zonline & Wakawaka Foundation. In addition you will read about the work of Noor van Hout, the educationalist at Meet Kate and the experiences of our brand new ambassador Veronica Hoogdalem.
Myrthe Oostenbach
Chair Meet Kate Netherlands
P. S. Have you liked us on Facebook yet ? Help us achieve a thousand likes!
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Three beautiful people with a beautiful goal. Directors Philo & Kelly and secretary Steve are symbolically digging the first hole on the construction site which will eventually lead to an amazing building: the Meet Kate primary school.
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We work for Meet Kate
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Veronica van Hoogdalem
'Last week my mother called me to tell me how proud she is of me . These last couple of weeks she has told everybody about her daughter being the new ambassador for the Meet Kate foundation. I could imagine her talking about this with enthusiasm and passion for the work the foundation is doing. I was very moved when I heard my mother speaking with so much pride and love. It was then that I realized that I have indeed started a new adventure by becoming the new ambassador of this foundation.
Meet Kate has welcomed me into their organization but also into their family. Every picture I see on Facebook and every story I read makes me even more anxious to visit the foundation in Ghana. I am determined that, that will happen this year. I can not wait to get involved in Ghana as well, see how the organization is working there and experiencing everything for myself.
My job as an ambassador is to raise more awareness among my target group. Through Twitter I have a lot of contact with young people who watch my TV programmes. It is very pleasant to see that they are very curious about the Meet Kate foundation. When I tell my followers on twitter what Meet Kate is doing they all respond in a very positive en enthusiastic way, frankly I didn't expected anything else! Meet Kate represents the positive side of Africa and that is something I want to forward as well.'
Read more here about our second ambassador and watch her promotional video here!
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Noor van Hout
'Time flies.... I have been in Ghana for almost two months now! It's amazing how quickly the time passes , but that's a good sign I guess, because since the first day I arrived here I have felt very welcomed and I am very happy to be part of the Meet Kate family.
The Ghanaian people and children are a great inspiration and example of how to live a happy life. Although major challenges can cross their path, with a lot of strength, perseverance and optimism people can overcome them and continue. I have great admiration for the people here! The satisfied and happy faces of the kids and the appreciation of the staff fills me with satisfaction, enabling me to continue my work with a lot of joy and love.
To start with, I am particularly focusing on writing a curriculum for Meet Kate's day care centre. In this curriculum, the vision, principles, methods and teaching potential of Meet Kate are illustrated. In addition I am working on the implementation of schedules and registration forms which will provide guidance for the teachers.
By means of workshops (training), observations and assessment of teacher competencies, we are working on the quality of teaching. This will eventually contribute to the futures of the Ghanaian children.'
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We work together with Meet Kate
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Foundation to Build
'My name is Peter Schlooz and I started working for Foundation To Build in April 2, 2012. After 4 years of working in the Netherlands for a major contractor, I have taken my chances to start building for Africa. I always wanted to work abroad and especially in Africa. After a successful Skype job-interview with Eric de Ruiter (co-founder of Foundation Building), the decision was easily made.
Foundation to Build supports Dutch NGO's with designing, budgeting and building constructions such as schools or clinics. One of our main goals is to involve the local community in the construction. So for the Meet Kate foundation, we are building the primary school with the help of skilled workers from Ekwamkrom and surroundings.
In this way, we hope to create support and commitment within the community to the construction of the new school and also to generate some extra income for the local economy. During construction, Foundation to Build will monitor the budget, planning and quality.
I hope I can use the knowledge and skills I obtained in the Netherlands to contribute to the expertise here in Ghana and vice versa. Ultimately, our goal is that with this collaboration between Ghana and the Netherlands we can open a beautiful new school within 6 months.'
Pieter (Foundation to Build), Ali (intern) and Godsper (foremen) planning how to start with the foundation of the school.
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Zonline & Wakawaka foundation
At Zonline you can order solar panels for your own home and simultaneously help to enlighten the lives of children who live in the dark. Last Thursday, April 12th , the Waka Waka Foundation was launched. WakaWaka, which in Swahili means: 'Brilliant Light', is a friendly and affordable LED light that runs on solar power.
A short movie demonstrates that this lamp can make the lives of 1.5 billion people without electricity a lot easier and safer. Zonline is the first sponsor of this sympathetic initiative and donates an average of five WakaWaka lamps for each solar system sold. The Meet Kate Foundation is one of the charities that distribute these LED lights within their projects among the children who desperately need them. We are very pleased with this partnership!
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