Busy!

Now is a really busy time for Algerian Action, our Eid appeal is well underway and lots of fabulous items are being donated for children in need. One shipment of Eid gifts and clothes has already been sent over and we plan to send another two before the end of Ramadan.

If you would like to help us make children smile this Eid ul fitr we would love to hear from you! We need donations of sweets, small toys, balloons and clothing which will all be given as gifts to children that have very little.

Of course, all of our other projects are ongoing and lots of gorgeous things have been donated to those too, in particular some lovely things for our ‘Baby pack project’ and some beautiful knitwear.

It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to get my sewing machine out but, these gorgeous dresses donated by Carole have really inspired me to make some time…..

Just to remind you, in a couple of weeks it is small charity week and we will be participating by holding an online Auction which will raise money for our food aid programme.

Lots of lovely things have already been donated to the Auction including a stunning candle set from this talented Henna artist.

 If you are a crafter,artist or business owner and would like to donate something that can be auctioned off do get in touch!

Have a great week everyone!

Emma x

Save the date!

 

Just like last year, we will be providing poor families with food parcels during the month of Ramadan. We run a food aid programme which assists such families all year round but, during Ramadan and at Eid ul Fitr we give to even more.

To coincide with ‘Small charity week’ we will  be holding an online auction with all funds raised going towards the cost of providing food parcels to those in need.

The event will be taking place on 21st-22nd June on our facebook page. So please do show your support by bidding on some of the fabulous items that will be up for grabs including gorgeous jewellery, fabulous perfume, books and much more.

If you are a business or a crafter or indeed, anyone else  and would like to generously donate something to be auctioned please do get in touch at info@algerianaction.co.uk Your help would be much appreciated!

It’s been a while…

It seems such a long time since I posted here, well actually it IS a long time since I posted here!

Lots has been happening to me personally, my family and I are planning a big move in the summer so really, every spare moment has been spent preparing for that. Along with a million other things that just seem to keep coming along……

`Anyway, despite my lack of reporting here, our lovely supporters have been as generous as ever- so many fabulous things have been arriving and the volunteers in Algiers have been working hard at distributing to those in need.

You may remember earlier in the year that we were fundraising for a wheelchair and thanks to your generosity two girls actually got chairs- here is one of them below with her new wheels. The girls and their families were over joyed!

Plans are moving steadily forward for getting the library up and running- the books are being shipped and other equipment is being bought- Exciting times! If you live in Algiers and would like to help with this project please do get in touch.

Details of our Ramadan / Eid gift appeal are just being finalised and once known I’ll let you all know.

Thank you so much for all your help and support.

Have a great weekend!

Emma x

Looking forward – 2013

It’s a bit of a tradition for a lot of people to start the new year with new plans and resolutions. Whether it be to lose 10 stone, book up a holiday of a lifetime or simply to eat more fruit, the start of a new year focus’s the mind on what one hopes to achieve in the coming months. So looking forward, along with continuing with all our usual projects here are just some of the goals that Algerian Action are aiming for in 2013-

The baby pack project- From the very beginning we have given clothing and essentials to destitute mothers for their newborns. We have always distributed these to women in the community but from this Autumn we have started to give them to women in the maternity ward of a hospital. In 2013 we intend to expand the project further by offering the packs to women in more hospitals and to supply an orphanage that specialises in assisting abandoned babies.

A travelling library- This is our new big project. Starting in the summer we plan to operate a travelling library in Algiers. We will be visiting children in hospitals, orphanages, schools and other community venues and provide them with the opportunity to have books they would otherwise not have access to. We will also be holding fun story telling sessions and craft workshops too. The first step to achieving this aim is to reach our goal of collecting 1,000 books.

Last year our Eid Appeal enabled us to give gifts, sweets and toys to 762 children. In 2013 we plan to reach even more children by adding 2 new areas to our list.

In addition, we have recently found out about a women’s refuge based in Algiers that are really in need of help. Organisations like refuges are  very few and far between in Algeria yet they are most definitely needed and a vital resource for some women. We are currently in discussion with the directors about how we can best offer help and support so, offering assistance to those women in need is also an aim for 2013.

A year in review

If everyone in the UK donated just £1 each over £62 million would be raised. Imagine how may water wells that could build in Ethiopia, how many people it could feed in Liberia, how many cataract operations it would fund in India or indeed how many blankets it could provide to the many thousands of homeless people living on the streets of the UK itself ………

Okay, I know that is not going to happen but, my point is that collectively even the smallest  individual gestures made by a group of people can make a big difference to people in need. That if everyone pulls together things can happen and do happen.

Do you remember Abdel Kader? we bought him a wheelchair back in March. Through your donations of glasses we were also able to help 123 people with their sight problems.

Do you remember Abdullah Salim? In October we were able to contribute to his medical fees. We also bought medicine for over 200 people who were unable to pay the costs themselves.

 

Through our baby pack project we have been able to  provide hundreds of mothers with clothing for their newborns.

Plus items donated to our Eid Appeal enabled us to give gifts, sweets and new clothes to 762 children in the summer.

We have been able to provide food  to children and families in need and distribute thousands of items of clothing.

 

All of these people have been assisted by money raised through our fundraising efforts: Our spring fair, attending events, individual donations and the sale of our cookery book. They have been helped because the general public have been supportive and donated a huge amount of clothing, toiletries, toys and other essentials and of course not forgetting all those that generously donate their time.

Collectively we have made a difference: through our gestures we have made the lives of some of those experiencing the effects of poverty a little bit easier. So thank you, thank you all for your enormous generosity and for caring enough to want to help .

There is still a long way to go and so much more that can be done. So, I really hope I can count on your continued support throughout 2013!

Some exciting things are planned but, more on that in my next post.

 

 

Eid Appeal up-date

We did it!

HUGE thanks to all of those that contributed to this years Eid Appeal by sending in donations of clothing, toys, sweets and money to buy those things!

Right up to the last minute people have been sending in and dropping  off treats and goodies for the children in Algeria.  Thanks to everyone’s over whelming generosity we reached our target of 750 gifts, well actually we surpassed it by collecting a grand total of 762!! The last of these Eid gifts were parcelled up today and will be shipped tomorrow.

So far July is proving to be a busy month,what with all the last minute Eid Appeal preparations and general goings on. We did also attend a local school event on the 7th of the month which despite the rain was a really fun day!

The rest of the month will be spent putting the finishing touches to a really exciting fundraising event being planned for early October. I hope all you crafty types will be willing to lend a hand as lots of hand-crafted goodies will be needed!

Enjoy what’s  left of July and for those that participate,

Emma x

June round-up

June was a busy month, lots of fabulous donations of clothing plus special gifts for our Eid Appeal were received. Along with the everyday stuff we also had the on-line craft Auction and attended a local School fair.

The Gwynn Jones school event was lots of fun! This weekend we will be having a stall at another one- Downsell Road Primary School so, if you are in the area do come along and say hello.

This month we will be continuing with our Eid Appeal, to ensure that the gifts get to the children in time donations must be received by July 14th. We will also be putting the finishing touches to our fundraising cookery book, in addition to planning a fabulous arty crafty event that will take place in October as part of the international campaign for drawing.

Thank you so much for your continued support.

Have a joyous July everyone whatever you get up to!

Emma x

Eid Appeal 2012

Our Eid Appeal for 2012 is now well under-way, in fact there are just two more weeks left to collect donations!

People have been so generous sending things in, simple treats like balloons, sweets and small toys- all the things that children love in addition to some new clothing.

This year our aim is to give gift parcels to 750 children. So far, we have 510 -which is more than we gave out last year or the year before that but, we still need 240 more to reach our target – Can you help?

A busy month

April was a busy month for Algerian Action in many ways.

Two fundraising events were held on our behalf, the first was a ‘ Krazy Kids fundraiser’in Reading which raised £350 for us. It was a very successful evening and the organizers were also able to give the same amount to a project in Pakistan in addition to a donation to aid those suffering in Libya.

The second event was a charity bazaar  held last Sunday in London, there were stalls, lots of kids activities and delicious Algerian food.  The amount raised is still being calculated but, a fun day was had by all!

Huge thanks to everyone involved with arranging those events, your help is very much appreciated.

This year’s Eid Appeal was also launched in April, We have a target of almost 500 gifts and already  we have collected gifts for  125 children! We need small toys, sweets, balloons, pencils ect.  More details of this special appeal can be found here.

People have also been very generous in donating clothing and other essentials.  Beautifully knitted jumpers, blankets, toothbrushes, shoes, underwear and summer things are just a few of the fabulous things that arrived in April.

This month, the final preparations are being put into place for an exciting new project which will offer additional help to some of the poorest families living in Algiers- all will be revealed shortly!

We haven’t got any events planned for May but, Algerian Action will be having a stall at three events in June so we will be busy organizing ourselves for that, if anyone would like to make things to sell at these events you are very welcome to do so or if you would like to help out at these type of events in the future please do get in touch.

As always, thank you so much to all of you for your support and contributions, without your  help Algerian Action just couldn’t exist!

Have a marvelous May everyone!

Emma x

Eid Appeal update

You supporters have been so generous with your donations. Treats, clothing and bags have been pouring in for The Eid gift appeal which is just fantastic!

Today I had a sort through all of the lovely things that have been sent in and made them up into gift bags just to see what is still needed.

Well I am delighted to say that between us all we have managed to get together 102 complete bags, each one is different but they all contain an item of clothing, pens/pencils/ craft materials, a toy,sweets balloons and a few little extras. 102, isn’t that just wonderful!  

There is still a way to go before we reach our target, but we have done marvellously well so far. Thank you so much for your support and enthusiasm. Best wishes as always, Emma x