Looking for Laptops. 노트북을 찾아요.

I have recently been informed that a used laptop would be an excellent donation in Tanzania. Any old laptops can be used either for Internet access or just plain old word processing. The laptops would be used by Faraja Trust Fund (a partner organization in Morogoro that I'm sure I'll be writing about more in the future).

Basically, if I were to get ahold of a laptop, I would be able to bring it with me to Tanzania and drop it off for you. I'd also work with YCI (not sure if you can get a tax receipt for this, but I'll look into it just in case - maybe someone from YCI reads this and can comment). If there is more than one machine, I'll find a way to get them there.

If you can donate a laptop or know of someone who can, please email me at michaelwithoutborders@gmail.com and I will get back to you as soon as I can. This won't directly benefit me, but it will definitely be helping the people I am going to help.

Thanks in advance!

African Dinner #3

Last weekend (July 18th), my mother hosted a third fundraising dinner on my behalf. The first two had been friends and family, but this one was slightly different. A family friend, Don Theroux, organized the guest list and invited 20 guests who contributed to my efforts. A big thank you goes out to Don who has helped in a great way. Also, as usual, I must thank my mother, Sharon Davidson, who has continued to work very hard to help send me to Africa (even though I know she doesn't really want me to go so far away).

My mom wrote a short report of the night:

We were very fortunate to be able to hold the dinner outside in our garden...there were 20 people in attendance...

We offered a dinner of African Food as well as African Music and Raffle Draws and everyone received a door prize...Everyone was asked to choose an African Name for the evening...we provided names on name tags for the guests...

People were very generous with their donations for Raffle prizes...
The following people participated in the dinner:

• Don Theroux
• Terry Collins
• Cody Collins
• Kelly Moir
• Gus Kantzareks
• Mary Dimitry
• Cyrus Ghamari
• Judy Mason
• Jorge Esqueca
• Larry McConnell
• Sister Regina Brunelle
• Henry Kaszuba
• Livia Kaszuba
• Vera Woronchanka
• Michael Woronchanka
• Vichy Hipson
• Norm Laitila
• Kathleen Bass
• Ann Theroux
• Orville Theroux

My mom also did not work alone and I would like to thank the many people who helped out with this dinner (once again):

• Judy Morley
• Caroline Bonner
• Heather Davidson
• John Davidson

I would also like to thank the people who donated prizes for the raffle:

• Aimee of Aimee's Esthetic Studio, L'Utima Moda
• Jorge and Maria Rodruques of Ercilia's Fine Foods in Hamilton Farmer's Market
• Everton of Blaire Elements in Hamilton Farmer's Market
• Josie Syers of Josie's Flowers in Hamilton Farmer's Market
• Paul Huffman
  
• Bev MacPherson
• Judy Morley
• Caroline Bonner
• Debbie Polkinghorne
• Lorri Eisenberger of Beanermunky in Hamilton Farmer's Market
• Burlington Eagle's Hockey Club
  

All in all we have fundraised almost $4000 towards paying for my program fee and my flight. A big thank you to everyone who has been helping for so far. The generosity of everyone has far exceeded what I thought was possible.

Here are a few pictures from the event:

Garage Sale!

This past weekend, despite rain, my family held a garage sale to a) raise some money, and b) to get rid of some clutter in their house. Overall it was a great success and most of the major items listed were sold. All in all, the garage sale brought in $420, which will be going directly to YCI to pay for my project fee. To date, I have raised approximately $3270 which is approximately 59% of the current estimate of around $5500 (all amounts Canadian). The vast majority of this money has come from the efforts of my mother, Sharon Davidson. So my first thank you for the garage sale must go to her.

This sale would not have been possible without a lot of help from others. A number of big thank yous go out to the following people/businesses:

• Sharon Davidson (my mother)
• Heather Davidson (my sister)
• John Davidson (my father)
  
• Florence DeMacio (my grandmother)
• Judy Morely
• Caroline Bonner
• Olynyk, King and Duda advertising (for providing the tents that kept things dry)

I continue to be impressed with the response of everyone who hears about what I'm doing. I must send a thank you to everyone who bought items and donated money at the sale. Though the gesture may seem small, collectively it is very large.

Here are some pictures from the event:

Come to My Garage Sale! 가라즈 새일 오세요!

The next event in the process of fundraising for my volunteer trip will be a garage sale. My family has collected many things to sell, including: a tablesaw, a sausage maker, a ceiling fan, men’s skates, an electric guitar with amplifier, men's and women's clothes, household items, as well as books for children and adults. I'm told there will be something for everyone!

So if you're in the Hamilton area this coming weekend and you want to come to the sale, the address is:

Location: 121 Simcoe St E, Hamilton (Click here if the map below doesn't work)
Date: Saturday, June 20th, 2009
Time: 10am until 2pm


View 121 Simcoe St E, Hamilton in a larger map

If you have any questions or if you have anything you would like to donate to be sold, please email michaelwithoutborders@gmail.com as soon as possible.

Here is another advertisement for the sale.

Though I will not be there (I'm living and working in Korea), I hope that you get a chance to check the sale out. Perhaps you will find something there that you are looking for.

Ladies Night in Africa #2

A week after the first dinner and a few days after Nanny's funeral (done the way we all hope she would have wanted) my mom hosted a second dinner. I had already left to return to Korea so my mom wrote a short synopsis of the evening:

The May 8th dinner had 18 guests attend with same type of entertainment and food and prizes as on May 1st...judging by the laughter and positive comments everyone had a great time. again some came in African dress....a prize was given both nights for the most authentic dress...as well as a prize for the runner up...the guests voted on this.....the 1st prize was a "I support michaelwithoutborders" tote bag ordered from cafe press....

Again, this dinner was a great success and the following people participated and/or donated money:

• Peter Demacio
• Eva Lengyel
• Caroline Bonner
• Ewa Siudowski
• Cathy Huffman
• Cathy Vitucci
• Beth Stewart
• Debbie Mudie
• Carol Wylie
• Debbie Bulir
• Lori Rees
• Lorri Poutney
• Cindy Olynyk
• Sherryl O'Neil
• Jackie Steele
• Judy Morely
• Judy Graham
• Donna Snider
• Carrie McCrum
• Mary Ditta
• Diane Campbell
• Sarah Chisholm
• Emily Knox

Though I did thank all of the people who volunteered their time to help with the dinners and those who donated door prizes in my post about the first dinner, I would like to once again thank my mother (Sharon Davidson) who spent untold hours organizing everything and hosting the dinner (and who is still working on ways to raise the remaining funds).

As of now, I have raised $2856.35 of approximately $5350 (depending on the cost of my flight which is as of yet unbooked). Thank you everyone who has helped me get this far.

I will close with a few pictures from the evening.

Goodbye Nanny. 안녕히가세요. Au Revoir. Kwaheri.

Sadly, on April 29th of this year, my great-grandmother (more casually known as Nanny) passed away in her sleep at the age of 99. Nanny played a big role in my life, including watching me after school for years when my parents could not make it home in time. I owe a lot to her and her memory as most of what I've accomplished in my life would not be possible without her support (both financial and emotional) for me and the rest of my family. Being half a world away was tough, but I was able to catch a plane back to Canada for her funeral.

I received several donations in her name. I would like to take the time to thank the following people:

• Bunny & Paul Zaza
• Liz and Graham Lightfoot
• Sarah Chisholm
• Carol Chisholm
• Judy Morely
• Joan & Enzo Deluca
• Joe, Sandra, Chris & Dan Lovranski
• Marshall & Jean Davidson
• Peggy Martin
• Thelma Oddi
• Yolandi Ricci
• Barb Martin
• Rita Molinaro

I hope that I have not missed anyone. Thank you all for your kind donations. And I would like to say one last thank you to Nanny. She lived a long life and helped many people along the way. For this I am extremely grateful that I got the time that I did.

SWAK

Ladies Night in Africa #1

On May 1st, my Mom hosted the first of two Ladies Nights at her house. Since I am away teaching in Korea, I was unable to attend, so my mother wrote a short writeup of the evening:

The May 1st dinner had 13 guests attend and many dressed in African dress...Everyone seemed to have a good time...we had raffles, door prizes, listened to African music and enjoyed a dinner of African food..  Everyone was given Madagascar vanilla truffles to take home along with a special tulip shaped cookie and thank you note for supporting Michael.
All in all it was a successful evening (despite the events of a few days prior - the next post will explain all) and I raised quite a bit of money from several of my mother's friends. These are the people who attended and/or donated money (in no particular order):

• Florence Demacio
• Helen Rigby
  
• Barb Drake Land
• Josie Knill
• Barb Martin
• Debbie Polkinghorn
• Karen & Michael Bromilow
• Susan Gillies
• Roberta Wood
• Debbie Skerrett
• Barb Beamish
• Carol Ann Thompson
• Peggy Martin
• Colleen Meyer
• Margaret Lewandowski
• Anna Marie Southon
• Bob & Betty Hambrook
• Mary Jazvac

I'd also like to take the time to thank the people who volunteered their time to make this event (and the 2nd dinner) possible:

• Judy Morley
• Heather Davidson
• Sarah Chisholm
• Florence Demacio
• Lorri Poutney
• Lauren Smyth
• Debbie Bulir
• Helen Rigby
• John Davidson
  

Last but not least, I'd like to thank the people who donated door prizes for both of the dinners:

• Debbie Polkinghorne
• Cindy Olynyk
• Caroline Bonner
• Everton Blair (owner of Blair Elements)
• Janet Gefre

One final thank you I need to give is to my mother, Sharon Davidson, who spent more time than I probably know getting things organized and inviting everyone she could think of. The amount of money that her efforts have brought in have already far exceeded the amount I thought I could raise.

I find it really incredible the number of people who have been supportive of my volunteering in Tanzania (and this is only a small part of the people who I will be thanking in posts in the coming days - I have at least two more long lists). It makes me feel that this is more of a community effort than an individual one. So a big thank you to everyone who was involved

In closing, here are a few pictures of the evening:

Website Launch!

Michael Without Borders is proud to announce the launch of our new website. The website will be used to coordinate several different aspects of Michael Without Borders. You can find the site at http://www.michaelwithoutborders.com.

Included in the site will be a link to this blog. Other resources on the site will include a link to a message board where you can discuss any issues that are relevant, a link to a store where you can buy Michael Without Borders merchandise (and whose profits go to Michael Without Borders), and links to more information about my volunteering.

The website also contains information regarding fundraising, other projects I am working on or have completed, and pictures of some of my travels so far. There is also a page on the site dedicated to thanking those who have given their time or money to my efforts.

Please take the time to visit the site, and pass on the link to people you know. Even if you cannot help me directly, by referring someone else, you may help me in the long run.

Thank you all once more for your support. For more information, please check out the site.