by heather-cstars | Nov 7, 2017 | education, Liberia, Uniting Distant Stars, vocational training, youth development, Youth Empowerment
We are always grateful when our Star Supporters refer Uniting Distant Stars (UDS) to great learning opportunities! We extend our heartfelt Thanks to Yeamah Brewer for connecting us to Friendly Water for the World, based out of Olympia, Washington! Friendly Water for the World is providing a BioSand Water Filtration training on November 13th-18th to five organizations in Liberia.
UDS will be sending eight (three volunteer staff members & five students) to attend this six-day training. They will receive tools and knowledge on how to use this system to “remove pathogens and suspended solids” from the water. And, they will have an opportunity to network with the other organizations and work together in learning how to provide safe and clean water to their fellow citizens.
Each organization will also learn how to produce and manage a BioSand Water FIltration Program using locally-sourced materials. This will enable us to train our students on how to provide clean, safe water as a business. This program is helping to decrease the number of cases of water-borne diseases, like Cholera, and helping to protect the environment, by reducing the waste created by using plastic water bottles.
We look forward to sharing more about the experiences of our team post-training, and our plans to develop this program at our training center. We are thrilled about this empowering opportunity!
by heather-cstars | Dec 2, 2014 | Uncategorized
In the spirit of this season of giving, we welcome your
contribution to inspire 20 youth in making 300
Backpacks for Peace through our innovative training program. The cost of making a backpack is approximately $10, so a generous gift of $50 will get us that much closer to our goal. For the second year in the row, Uniting Distant Stars will invite some of
Liberia’s promising young men and women leaders to participate in the March 6, 2015 Nobel Peace Prize Forum Youth Festival organized by
youthrive, a Minnesota-based non-profit.
 |
| Three Liberian youth modeling our backpacks in each color–white, blue and red |
The
Backpacks for Peace project will instill peace building within the community and re-spark their creative flame by using recycled plastic to make the backpacks. The first phase of the program focused on teaching four trainees on how to sew the backpacks and care for the sewing machines as future trainers of this program. The goal of the first phase was to make 250 backpacks to be given to the students at our adopt-a-school program as part of our
4th Annual School Supply Drive.
Video shows launch of our first phase of this project on 09/26/14; narrated by Kelvin Fomba, UDS Co-founder and Country Director.
Twenty young men and women from primary to post-secondary education will launch the second phase of our backpack training program the beginning of January 2015 by making 300 bags that they will give to the beneficiaries of the
Straight From the Heart Center in Liberia. This center was founded by Agnes Fallah Kamara-Umunna to provide a space for rehabilitation, reintegration, and reconciliation for youth who were on all sides of Liberia’s Civil War. Agnes is the author of the book “
And Peace Still Did Not Come: A Memoir of Reconciliation”.
 |
| Photos: Left is project team lead and professional tailor Charles Mamba sitting at his machine on left that he has donated for this project. Next two photos show three of the four trainees. |
We have already raised $590 towards our goal of $3,000 to buy four more sewing machines and the supplies such as zippers and thread, to make 300 backpacks. Our partner—
African Dream Academy—has been donating the recycled plastic drinking water sachets, the primary material for the backpacks.
|
No
|
Items
|
Qty
|
Unit Cost
|
Total Cost
|
|
1
|
Machine
|
4 each
|
190
USD
|
760
USD
|
|
2
|
Zippers
|
600 yards
|
2
USD
|
1,200
USD
|
|
3
|
Thread
|
3 cartons
|
50
USD
|
150
USD
|
|
4
|
Scissors
|
5 each
|
10
USD
|
50
USD
|
|
5
|
Machine needles
|
3 packets
|
25
USD
|
75
USD
|
|
6
|
Machine oil
|
8 bottles
|
4
USD
|
32
USD
|
|
7
|
Cloth Lining
|
3 rolls
|
50
USD
|
150
USD
|
|
8
|
Participant
Benefits
|
|
|
583
USD
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL
|
3.000
USD
|
Your contribution is not only tax-deductible; it is also developing a sustainable youth training program that teaches life-long skills in sewing and marketing a product needed by many Liberian youth. The need for rebuilding from the Liberian Civil War is still relevan, and it is even more urgent now due to the Ebola epidemic that recently devastated many families in Liberia.
 |
| Our team has been working hard and made nearly 200 backpacks when this photo was taken. |
|
Please support our Backpacks for Peace service learning project with a donation by
PayPal or by check to Uniting Distant Stars, Inc. and mail to:
Uniting Distant Stars, Inc.
4010 Lawndale LN N
Plymouth, MN 55446
Thank You For Your Generous Support
