Local Parish Raises $22,000 for ARDF Project in Tabora, Tanzania
Parishioners of every age at Good Shepherd Chinese Anglican Church in Vancouver, British Columbia, a member of the Anglican Network in Canada, got involved in two fundraising events that produced $22,000 (Canadian) for the Anglican Relief and Development (ARDF) Project in Tabora,Tanzania. The project called “Drought-Prone Tanzanians Receive Needed Water and Food Relief” will provide sustenance for 7,000 people in the Diocese of Tabora.
On February 3, more than 34 children and youth performed either individually or in groups in a musical variety show. The young people collected donation pledges for their participation in the show. On February 10, the parish hosted a concert night attended by over 300 people. Church members solicited sponsorships and donations prior to the event, and also collected a freewill donation during the concert.
“The children and youth played beautifully,” said Nora Tong, organizer for the fundraisers. “During the events, we showed a short Power Point presentation highlighting the needs in Tanzania which helped to bring the message across. Parishioners and friends gave very generously.”
Canon Nancy Norton, Executive Director of ARDF, was pleased with the outcome of this parish’s efforts saying, “This is exactly how ARDF is designed to work. The parish researched our list of projects, chose this one and educated themselves about it, and decided on how they would go about raising the funds. All of the funds raised will go directly to the project’s recipients in Tanzania.”
This is the third project that ARDF has successfully funded in Tanzania. Two projects were funded last year with $65,550 that was donated by individuals and parishes in the U.S. and Canada. The Rt. Rev. Sadock Makaya, Bishop of the Diocese of Tabora, could not be more pleased. “We are talking about hungry and needy people. We can honestly say ARDF is an instrument which is serving thousands of people in Tabora,” said Bp. Makaya. “I am overwhelmed, and touched to hear that even the children raised their hands to support us. I can not find enough English words to acknowledge this contribution.”
To find out more about ARDF or to see a current list of approved projects, go to www.anglicanaid.net. For questions about ARDF or to adopt a specific project, contact Canon Nancy Norton at nancy@anglicanaid.net.
Posted 2/28/07