Hello Friends!
It is that time of year! The time of year where the Krietes come to all of our friends and family and ask to continue to help support this amazing work the Lord has put before us! Our dreams, way back in 2013, have become a yearly time of reflection, prayer, communication with Christian Relief Fund (both contacts in the US and on the ground in Kenya) on what the Lord has in store.
Like most people, 2020 has been a ROUGH one! So many ups and downs... we debated not doing anything this year because we know it has been a tough year for a lot of people (for so many reasons) and didn't know if we could get the financial support we were looking for. We knew we would be limited on what people would be comfortable with participating in, BUT after a lot of prayer and discussion with the kids... we have some goals and some fundraising options!
UPDATE on the Chemurgui Community:
If you remember, in August of 2019 we FINALLY reached the goal to get the bathroom houses built. We got the finalized pic of those!
We also raised funds for an acre of land that was purchased and 2 classrooms. Both of those things were purchased and the classrooms are built!
We also purchased a herd of 30 goats. The update on the goats is this... the herd was not what they anticipated there. The goats, in that number, were very mischievous and causing a lot of problems, so they broke them up. They are in the care of some of families from the Kriete Educational Center, and a portion of their profits are going back to the school. We did get the update that the goats continue to multiply and are being distributed to bless more families!
Covid has effects everywhere... even places that the actual virus is not present. Currently, there are ZERO reported cases of COVID in the Chemurgui Village! This is a huge praise and something that we continue to pray for there! Medical treatment is limited, so we will pray that the village and the people there remain safe and healthy.
Although there are no cases there, this community has still been deeply affected by this global pandemic. Schools in the entire country of Kenya closed in the Spring, and they will not open until January 2021. All sponsored children are receiving food and hygiene products in 2 week supply increments every 2 weeks. But, as I feared, many children in the area have lost their sponsorship.
Our #1 GOAL this year is to get sponsorship for as many children possible! We have a sponsorship page set up for specifically the children in our region! We currently have 56 kids on the waiting list. This is a private page set up just for us, so we don't want to keep these children from the general pool of kids to be sponsored forever. We have until CHRISTMAS DAY to share our page with children from only our area. You can find that HERE.
If you can sponsor a child, please do. It is $35 a month and provides that child with the life changing opportunity to attend school, food and access to clean water, medical care and regular check-ups, new clothes and shoes, and spiritual guidance and Biblical teaching. You can do that HERE.
** We know that so many friends and family are already currently sponsoring children! WE APPRECIATE YOU SO MUCH!!!! You might take this opportunity to pray for another child waiting for sponsorship, write a letter to your sponsored child, and/or send a special gift!**
Our secondary goals this year are to:
1) Purchase 5 cows to keep onsite at school. These will be used for milk for the kids at school and anything beyond that will be sold for money to go back to needs of the school. The children will also get to use the cows in a real time learning process of taking care of animals. These are $300 each currently. So that comes with a $1,500 price tag.
2) Purchase 30 more desks to fill the new classrooms. We currently have 2 brand new classrooms sitting empty, waiting for students to come back in January. We would love to fill those classrooms with desks for the students. Desks cost $30 each, so that is a $900 price tag.
3)Put warm socks on 100 local homeless. We currently have a sock campaign going through WE HELP TWO. For every 3 pack of socks we sell, we receive 60% profit to apply toward the cows and desks AND a pair of warm socks we get to distribute to the local homeless. WIN-WIN!!! You can reach that fundraiser HERE.
4) If we raise funds beyond the cows and desks, all money would be put toward the CASSIE IS GOING TO KENYA fund!!! That's right, I'm going to Kenya! Words can not explain how long I have wanted to go and the excitement of thinking to meet the people, seeing what the Lord has done and see the work that has been done there!!!The plan is to go August 2021 with a team from CRF. This is all Covid pending. Obviously, the country has to be open to having us there, but we are pushing forward with raising the funds. The current price tag on the trip is around $4,000... that could go up or down depending on the price of the of the plane tickets when we purchase. But for right now, that is the current goal.
So here it is...
2020 GOALS:
1. Sponorship. You can do that HERE.
2. Purchase 5 Cows for the School. ($1,500)
3. Purchase 30 desks for the new classrooms. ($900)
4. Put warm socks on 100 local homeless. You can do that HERE
There are numerous ways to help, contribute, participate in fundraisers... something for everyone!
HOW TO HELP:
1. PRAY. We, as a family, believe with all of our hearts that the Lord can do ANYTHING! We ask that everyone please join us in prayer for 1)this community in Chemurgui, Kenya. 2)That He helps us (the Krietes) remember that we are just the hands and feet of what He wants to accomplish. 3) That we glorify Him in the process 4) and we spread the love of Jesus like wildfire! 5) We reach our financial goals!
2. SPONSOR A CHILD. We know this is not for everyone, but we ask you to pray and consider this! If you are currently sponsoring a child, write them a letter! If you can not sponsor, we encourage you to read through some of the children's stories on the link and find someone to pray for until they do have a sponsor.
3. ORDER SOCKS! We have LOVED working with WeHelpTwo over the years and are excited to be doing it again! From now until December 8th you can order a package (or 10 :)) and help both globally and locally. You order a 3 pack of fun, funky socks for $15 (tons of new designs!) Every time you do, we get $9 toward our projects in Kenya AND a pair of warm socks to donate to the local homeless, right here in our area! If you are local, when you ORDER, you can have them shipped to "Campaign Host" and save yourself on shipping. if you aren't local or need them ASAP, you can have them shipped directly to your front door!
So... you get fun socks, we get funds for Kenya, AND a pair of warm socks for local homeless. WIN-WIN- WIN. We have a goal of 100 packs sold this year! Order those HERE.
4. PURCHASE SALSA or PASTA SAUCE. This is a first come, first served basis. I make this fresh from my garden (and the squirrel problem had me purchase a case from the local Amish this year) Quarts are $10 and Pints are $7.
I have the following: SALSA: 20 quarts and 24 pints. PASTA SAUCE: 12 quarts.
5. ORDER LEMONGRASS. Lemongrass Spa is a company that sells organic, chemical free products. Lotions, soaps, makeup, hair product, scrubs, oils, diffusers.... the list goes on. I love this company. I am currently hosting an online MYSTERY HOSTESS party. That means one lucky person that orders from the party (any amount)will get all the hostess benefits!!! AND 100% of the profit goes toward Kenya projects! You can order from that party HERE! From now until December 3rd!
** as a side note- ANY Lemongrass Orders/Parties hosted through me from now until I leave for Kenya are designated as 100% of profits toward my mission trip expenses**
6. MANUAL LABOR We know that with the current pandemic happening, the likelihood that this will be a big money maker is not great... but... the kids want local people to know that if you have outdoor chores that need done, the kids are willing to work! We will be safe and socially distant, but they are willing to put forth some manual labor toward the cause!
As always... if none of these things are your cup of tea, but you still want to contribute by making a donation we can accept that through PayPal @krietesinkenya@gmail.com making sure you use the friends and family option. If you want your money to be toward something specific (i.e. cow, desk, mission trip, etc.) please specify in your comments.
If you have made it to the end of this post, you are a champ! Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts for believing, praying, supporting and cheering on this vision in Kenya! Please feel free to share our story. The more people we have praying for our cause, the louder our voice becomes.We love you all!
