"Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared." -- Guatama Buddha

WHY SYLVIA’S CHILDREN?

          … because children are so vulnerable and do not deserve the conditions under which they live. 

In May of 2003, I had the unique experience of being invited to visit Africa .  Because I was invited as part of a humanitarian effort, I saw parts of Africa not visible to most tourists.  We went into villages with no running water or electricity, visited homes with dirt floors and thatched roofs, homes where a single parent, grandparent or NO parent is the head of the household, many numbering up to 16 people. 

In Masaka , Uganda , we saw the ravages of HIV AIDS.  We met families where both parents were dying of AIDS, saw homes where 70-year-old grandparents were left with the care of young children because both parents had died of AIDS or homes where the head of the household was a 17-year-old boy who had assumed this role since he was 11.   We saw children living on the streets … orphans with no families, no homes, no education and no hope.

            The most devastating aspect of these conditions is that children are not being provided for … parents unable to afford education, children having to support themselves, children going hungry, children having nowhere to live.  During this trip, the Mbiriizi Primary School near Masaka , Uganda ‘adopted’ me as their grandmother.  Out of this was born Sylvia's Children (501(c)(3)).  Currently, the school has 805 students, of which 205 are orphans.  I genuinely believe that education is the key to providing someone with the ability to raise themselves out of a life of poverty.  Sylvia’s Children will undertake to educate as many children as possible. 

            In June 2007, we returned to Africa to visit the school, assess its progress and to dedicate the new dorm housing 80 boys which was made possible by our efforts. We also helped purchase two acres of land for expansion and buy a computer with internet service.  Now we have instant communication!

Of course, there is so much more to be done.  The classrooms have 84 to 100 students per room and they must sit on crowded benches; teachers are dedicated but grossly underpaid; of the 205 orphans, we have succeeded in getting 80 of them sponsored annually but that leaves 125 children without sponsors.

Education is the key to empowering a person to rise above an impoverished life and become an active and productive member of the community and, maybe some day, of the world.  Knowledge = understanding.    And, whether we educate 3, 300 or 3,000, we have contributed to a broader understanding of the world and improved an individual’s quality of life.  They don’t have to be poor; they don’t have to be hungry; they can have personal pride and dignity.

Sylvia’s Children can do this with your help.   Can we count on you?  It is 100% tax deductible and 100% of your donation goes to the kids.  Sylvia Allen pays all the administrative costs.

            Sylvia B. Allen    
            sylvia@sylviaschildren.org