Been a While!!

Hi everyone! Sorry for the delay of this post!!

I've been very busy with school so haven't had a great amount of time to dedicate to this, but I'm back. I went to Applebee's restaurant the past two days to get the fundraiser planned. They told me they'd be calling me after Thanksgiving to set a date for the event.

I am very, very excited about this one because it should raise A LOT of money. I get to pick three locations of their restaurant throughout NYC and I will receive ten percent of their combined sales for the day to donate to the orphanage! As soon as I have a date, I'll be filling everyone in.

In the mean time, donations are still coming in and I am ecstatic. The donations have officially covered the cost of my trip so from here on out every penny goes to the orphanage and its children. My passport came yesterday too, which makes the trip that much more real.

Soon, the anticipation will be too much!! = )

My New Goal

Hello All,

So the newspaper article came out GREAT!! The writers did an amazing job and it took up almost a whole page as soon as you opened it up! I am hoping that a lot of people read it and I think they did because I have been getting a lot of recognition on campus!!

I have officially raised enough money to pay my way on the trip so now EVERY penny I raise will be going straight to the orphanage which is fantastic. I have gotten the estimate for the fence, and it turns out that it will most likely be far to expensive, so I have a new ultimate goal in case that doesn't work out. They are working on building a new dormitory so as to accommodate more children and need about $6,000. LETS RAISE IT!!!! I would love nothing more than to help The Josef Home with this because by helping them, we are helping children who need it.

Love,

Katie

The Quadrangle!!!

Hello,

GREAT NEWS!! Manhattan College has heard about what I am trying to do and has asked me to answer a few questions for an article in the school's newspaper!! I told them that I know this experience will change my life and a little bit about what exactly my fundraising is going towards.

The money I raise during this journey is going to help in bettering this orphanage and will help them out in huge ways, I hope. My ultimate goal is to have a fence installed around the building because as of lately, there has been wild hyena attacks to where it is unsafe for the children. A fence would lessen their worry in everyday life. I also want to buy mosquito nets for each of the beds. Like I mentioned before, I will be doing a school supply run for the children and also supplying some hygiene supplies. So far, this is what I have planned for this trip....I'm sure there will also be more to come.

I am working on getting a fundraiser going with Applebee's Restaurant as well as some sort of fundraiser on my campus.

Again I thank you all so much for your donations and also for spreading the word about this great cause. This will surely be the best experience of my life thus far.

Love,

Katie

Facebook Official!

Hello,

Just wanted to inform everyone that there is now a Facebook group dedicated to this cause. It is titled "Katie's Ethiopia Trip!!" and it is filed under common interest/beliefs and causes.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=133448687900&ref=share

If you could PLEASE join that'd be wonderful. It is an open group so you can invite anyone you'd like, and the more the merrier! It only takes a couple minutes to invite Facebook friends into the group, so let's keep it up!

Thank you for all of your help and donations thus far.

Love,

Katie

Let's Start from the Beginning

Hi All!!

Katie here. Just wanted to keep you all updated on a more day to day basis without bombarding you with e-mails...so this is the perfect way to do so!! The website is up and running and seems to be getting more popular by the minute, which is FANTASTIC news!

I am hoping that by February I have enough money raised to really help this orphanage out in a huge way. I know that I can do so much good when given the opportunity, so here it is.

I thank you all for your donations so far and thank you for supporting me in this service I feel so strongly about.

All my love,

Katie

P.S.-If anyone ever has any questions or comments for me, FEEL FREE to e-mail me at ksmith01.student@manhattan.edu. Thanks, again.