Examples of Great Fundraising...

London to Brighton bike ride

Caroline volunteered for us here in Uganda last December and has continued to support us from the UK. She just completed the London-Brighton cycle ride and raised well over £1,000 for Soft Power. She said "My friends were amazingly generous when I went round collecting against their pledges". Thank you to everyone who supported Caroline and well done to Caroline for completing the bike ride.

The University of Limerick

12 keen kayakers joined us here in Uganda to tackle The Mighty White Nile. They also spent 3 days volunteering with us and brought with them €7,700! An outstanding amount, big thanks to everyone at the uni, friends, families and everyone who donated. Big thanks too to the the group for all their hard work. We hope to see you back next year!

Mud wrestle for charity!

Oh yes you read it right! Mud wrestling for Soft Power Education! It took place at Walkabout Bar, Temple in Central London on the 10th June 2007 and I'm told it was a very amusing afternoon. They raised a huge £1000 so thank you to everyone invovled in the event. Check the website for more photos www.mudwrestle4charity.com

Charity Head Shave

Helen and Browny are coming to Uganda in June this year and have been involving their whole community in the fundraising efforts. Their poor son even got dragged in on it and had his head shaved! Their local primary school is getting involved by writing letters to Swidique Primary School here. Keep up the good work!

Charity Ball Cambridge

Whilst I was in the UK over Easter I attended a ball at Cambridge University organized by Jess Banham. The night saw an auction, Irish bingo, a raffle, and of course  a scrumptious 3 course meal and free flowing wine… hic! Jess did an incredible job and I have just heard that they raised a whopping £1250 ! Well done and thanks to everyone that came and supported the event.

Ice Skating Children

 "Millekemol", a Primary School from Mol-Millegem (Dirks home village in Belgium), organised an ice-skating event. All the children skated as many laps as possible and they were sponsored per lap... total donation to Soft Power... 2,630 euros!! This money has been used to buy and install a water catchment tank for the new special needs dormitory at Kyomya Primary School.

Wedding lists - Ingrid & Kor, Mike & Helen, and more coming up in the next 12 months
In this modern age, couples tend to have most things they need to set up a house before they get married.  These couples have opted for the traditional wedding list to be replace by a request for donations towards Soft Power Education projects:

 

Anne and Dave - spent a day with Soft Power last December and instead of asking for wedding gifts they asked    their guests to donate money to Soft Power. They raised a huge £ 1250. Many thanks to all.

 Ingrid & Kor - raised a fantastic sum towards refurbishing classrooms in Nsuube Primary School.

Mike & Helen - Tied the knot on April 24th 2006, and guests donated funds towards refurbishing a 3 classroom block at Kivubuka Primary which we we will be starting in September 2006.

Bake Sale - Brooklyn Friends Lower School

The children from this school in America, held a Cake Sale and raised a phenomenal amount of dollars for Soft Power.  The kids were thoroughly involved in every aspect of the event - frommaking posters, to baking, to selling, to counting money.

Ozzie Baby Shower – Jon and Meg
In the run up to their child’s birth Jon and Meg asked that family and friends donate any monies they would otherwise spend on toys and gifts for their baby to Soft Power Education. All donations made to the charity on the back of their request will enable us to help the young children of Uganda. **CONGRATULATIONS** Meg gave birth to Max Pemba Hall on the 24th April 06 at 18:04.  He weighed in at 7lbs 8oz - Mum and baby are doing fine.

Raising the Roof – Gordon Durward
Having visited us in Jinja Gordeon Durward has gone to great lengths to make sure that Soft Power’s Education Centre finally gets enough funding to put on it’s roof and hopefully solar panels….he has spread the word regarding Soft Power.

Cheese and Wine Night - Sheila McCormick
Long term volunteer Sheila, whose raised money for the charity in various different ways (read her update on our testimonial page) hosted a cheese and wine night giving a talk and presentation on Soft Power as well as describing her experiences in Uganda.

Decorating technique – ‘Bob’s Job’
Ex-volunteer Bob the Girl returned in January 2006 with over £4,000. Instead of giving presents at Christmas friends generously donated their money to Soft Power and her impending project – refurbishing Watkitaka Primary School.

Dublin Marathon Runners – Aimee and Ed
Having spent a day volunteering with the charity in 2004, Aimee and Ed went home and ran and ran in the Dublin Marathon….not only did they make it but their fundraising went to Soft Power.

Tiny steps – Madoc Harris
On the French Riveria this little boy took a few shaky steps and walked over 300metres in aid of World Soft Power Day! He was sponsored by friends in Wales, England, USA, Holland and France to walk, unaided, over 200metres which took him a marvellous 25minutes. For footage check out http://spaces.msn.com/members/madockarthaus/%20

Creating a buzz over Honey – John and Catherine Weir
Dr John and his wife Catherine made, packaged and sold pots of home-made honey. For every pot sold the money went towards their donation which they gave to Soft Power upon their arrival in November 2005. And blimey - it was yummy honey!

Granny Smith’s 90th Birthday – Evelyn Smith
Evelyn Smith used this wonderful occasion to donate money towards Soft Power Education. Assisted by one of her many inspiring grandchildren, who gave a presentation about the charity, friends and relatives donated money on the big day …a huge thank you from us all in Uganda.

A Block of Loos - Catherine Ross
In 2004 Catherine spent a day volunteering with Soft Power at Buyala St Pauls Primary School. Instead of Christmas presents she raised money to go towards a block of 6 pit latrine loos. The pupils of Buyala were delighted!

Swimming for Gold – Jackie Smith
The City of London saw Jackie Smith and five other swimmers take part in a Swimathon for World Soft Power Day. Within a few hours the distance covered was more than 25kilometers with each individual pushing out lengths of huge proportions!

Art Auction and Funk Night – Gideon and Cez
A wonderful night was hosted by volunteers Gideon and Cez prior to their arrival in Uganda. They auctioned off their own artwork in aid of Soft Power and had a cool band, who played for free, donate the money made from the sales of their cd’s to the charity. The response to the night was huge and their donation assisted various art projects.

Gala Dinner with Guest Speaker – Hands of Help
A group of medical students from Sydney fundraised extensively before coming to Uganda in November 2005. One of their fundraisers was a Gala Dinner with the famous author Bryce Courtney (Power of One, Jessica) as Guest Speaker.

Reading Marathon – Dyanne and Alison
Two other running nuts, Dyanne and Alison, ran in aid of Soft Power in 2005.

Christmas Cards for Sale – Simon and Cassie White
Returning to Uganda for a holiday in 2006 - 10 years after his last visit - Simon and his wife Cassie raised money for Soft Power on the back of selling their own handmade Christmas cards.

Great North Run – Vaughn Clarke
Another inspired runner and friend, Vaughn, raised money for Soft Power

Water in a Tank – Sheri Brake
Ex-volunteer Sheri raised money for a water catchment tank through writing about her experiences with Soft Power Education. She arrived in May 2005 and described her day to day life in Uganda managing to gain support and interest through regular emailing.

Coffee Morning - Louise Smith
Before heading to Jinja to volunteer Louise put on a coffee morning. The generosity of the people in her town, on the coast of Scotland, was incredible and a wonderful donation was made.

School Play – Laura Ffrence & Hannah Mansfield
Two young and inspiring volunteers hosted a play at Wynstones School - the money from which went towards their donation for Soft Power. Through 2005 the school continued to support the charity through various events initaited by the girl’s experiences with us.

Sponsored Litter Pick – Diana Silvester
Somerset is one tidy place and that’s with thanks to Diana and her commitment to cleaning up the county with the help of friends and donors.

Kayaking Sensation – Emily Jackson
A talanted kayking individual Emily competed in America at various events throught 2005 and put her winnings towards her donation to Soft Power.

African Drumming Night – Bethan Dear
Having volunteered with us for 3 months in 2005 Bethan went home and hosted a Benefit Gig in her local town in aid of Soft Power – her father’s African drumming group performed, a local choir sang African songs and DJ’s played tunes…….a great evening for a great cause!