Hi!

On December 28th, I am leaving for Namibia to be a 5th-7th grade English teacher for one year. I am volunteering through an organization called WorldTeach, which has been partnered with the Namibian Ministry of Education since the nation's independence in 1990.

WorldTeach’s mission, to supply teachers in areas of need, appealed to me instantly.  The program is designed to help fill some of the holes that the AIDS crisis has left in Namibia’s teaching population.  I just learned that I will be working at Paulus Hamutenya Primary School in the ‘town’ of Eenhana.  Paulus Hamutenya PS is primary school teaching grades 1-7 with about 315 learners and 9 teachers.  The local people are from the Owambo tribe and the local language spoken is Oshiwambo.

The cost of my placement, training, air travel, insurance and field support is $6,000.  While quite a sum, that doesn't even begin to cover what will be needed to augment teaching supplies for the classroom. As a former NYC public school teacher, I am all too keenly aware of the shortage of materials in high needs schools in our wealthy nation. I am fairly certain that deficiencies in resources will be even worse in Africa. That is why I am hoping to garner support in this endeavor. I know that times are tough for everyone right now with our economy doing so badly, but I hope that many people contributing even a few dollars will make a big difference.

Donating through this website is simple, fast and totally secure.  Many, many thanks for your support -- and don't forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!

Love,  Julia