Through the Eyes of Hope Project - October 2010

Dear Friends,

As many of you know, for the past two summers I have traveled to Rwanda to run photography workshops for children with Through the Eyes of Hope Project. This year I will be returning to Rwanda in late October, along with my sister Leann, who will be documenting the Project on video.

It's been 4 years since Linda Smith, the Project’s director, first traveled to Rwanda to start these workshops. Since that time, the children have had numerous exhibitions of their work. Some of the kids have gotten photography internships and all of them have been using their training to earn money for school fees and food.

This year our hope is that the children in our next workshops would have fun and just enjoy being kids. The majority of Rwandans live in extreme poverty, earning less than $0.43 per day, so many children must work to feed their families. More than a million children are orphans due to the 1994 genocide or to AIDS, and some live with AIDS as well. Consequently, Rwandan children feel like they must always be looking out for themselves. Our heart and prayer for these kids is that they would know they are LOVED by God and the people around them, and they would let those who care about them share their burdens.

Our next goal for Through the Eyes of Hope Project is creating a sustainable photo studio for the kids in Rwanda. This studio would provide a place for the kids in the workshops to continue learning and applying their knowledge, as well as open up the doors to many more Rwandan children.

To donate equipment to the studio or to the children in our next workshops, please visit eyesofhopekids.blogspot.com and scroll down to view a list of specific needs. If you have questions about donating other items, please call or email me!

Leann and I fly out at the end of October and will be in Rwanda for about 3 weeks, so we would greatly appreciate your thoughts and prayers as we prepare. We need to raise around $6,000 for our own travel expenses and an additional $55,000 to get the photo studio up and running

If you’d like to make a tax-deductible contribution, you can click our Donate button at www.eyesofhopeproject.com/contacts.php and use your credit card, or mail a check to: Redeemer Hoboken, PO Box 5214, Hoboken, NJ 07030. (Please make checks payable to Redeemer Hoboken and write “Through the Eyes of Hope Project” in the memo.)

We truly appreciate you taking this opportunity to be a part of Through the Eyes of Hope Project. Your support has a lifelong impact on the children of Rwanda, encouraging artistic expression and empowering them to provide for themselves and their families! Thank you for your prayers and support!

MURAKOZE!

Thank You!

Andrea Dunn & Leann Besch

Find us on Facebook: THE TEOH PROJECT (link)