On the 11th of December, G.R.O. held its annual holiday party in Leribe. Members from all projects were invited for an afternoon BBQ.  G.R.O. Volunteer Jason Clark made 6kgs of cheeseburgers and taught the students the art of grilling ‘Canadian style’.  The students also helped grill up an additional 5kg of sausage and 50 hotdogs.  What a party!

Visitors from OHAfrica Alicia Homer and Ian Campbell joined us in celebration and assisted as we distributed the holiday food hampers.  Holiday food hampers contain staple food items such as rice, sugar and flour along with other necessities like washing powder and soap.    With many thanks to the Grannies support group and their chicken project, each food hamper this year also included a live broiler chicken!

It was a fabulous day and we are thankful to everyone who made it possible.

Posted under Notes from Lesotho

In Lesotho, many students fail to make it to graduation due to unexpected tragedies and life crises, such as family unemployment, chronic illness, food insecurity or the loss of a parent. G.R.O.`s Family Scholarship Program provides financial, academic, and social support to students. Our peer educators and academic advisors have designed specialized “crisis kits” for students in difficult situations - kits may include funeral support, monthly food bundles, health care, blankets and paraffin heating. Your gift of a Student Crisis Kit makes sure that students have the support they need to continue on with their studies even through difficult life changes.  Give this gift.

Posted under The Movement

In Lesotho many students fail to make it to graduation due to the overwhelming financial burden of tuition fees. The tuition fees for public education are often too high for a family to afford, leaving some of the brightest and most talented students without an education. Orphans of HIV/AIDS and students caring for sick parents are also often left without guidance in building their future. Your gift can provide a student with a partial or full academic scholarship. Our scholarship program links students to peer advisors, extra academic support, career guidance and lifeskills sessions. A donation of $450 will sponsor a student for the full year. $30 covers one month of the scholarship, and $100 covers a quarter year.  Give this gift.

Posted under The Movement

Many of Lesotho`s small businesses are run entirely by women, many of whom have never received formal business training. Through G.R.O.`s partnerships with local business professionals, we provide business skills training to support women with small business management and operations, including planning, sales and marketing, and bookkeeping. Your gift can help a woman in Lesotho gain solid business skills to grow and strengthen a small enterprise.

Give this gift.

Posted under The Movement

The AIDS pandemic in Lesotho has left many grandmothers caring for orphaned grandchildren and terminally ill people living in their communities. In Leribe, Lesotho, an industrious group of grandmothers started the Grandmothers` Support Group to provide better organized home-based health care in their communities. To fund improved care, the Grandmothers` Support Group has started a small-scale poultry business. A gift of $30 will provide the grandmothers with 15 baby chicks, chick grain feed, and agricultural supplies. These supplies will help the grandmothers to to expand their business, the profits from which are used entirely for care in the community.

Give this gift

Posted under Uncategorized

Statement made on 21 October 2009 by Senator Jane Cordy

Hon. Jane Cordy:

Honourable senators, I take this opportunity to highlight the good work of Global Relief Outreach Foundation of Canada. Global Relief Outreach, or G.R.O. Canada, is a Toronto-based NGO, which is currently operating in Lesotho, South Africa.

G.R.O. Canada’s goal is to provide assistance to projects that are already in existence but lack the necessary resources and support needed to succeed. In Lesotho, G.R.O. is supporting projects that were initiated by local groups working in collaboration with development workers already living in their communities.

G.R.O. has three major projects in Lesotho: The Family Scholarship Fund and two social enterprise projects, Artisan’s Collective and the Grandmothers Support Group.

The Family Scholarship Fund provides academic support to orphaned and vulnerable high school students affected by HIV and creates environments that encourage collaborative support, strengthening students as young advocates to join together in supporting each other and their communities.

For the Artisans Collective project, the G.R.O. Foundation has provided start-up capital and supplies, facilitates handicraft training for women living with HIV, and has connected them with business opportunities locally and abroad. Over the past year, the collective has become completely self-sufficient, facilitating business growth with their profits.

The third major project, the Grandmothers Support Group, is an initiative that was created to help sustain a local HIV home care operation, run almost exclusively by grandmothers. G.R.O. has worked closely with the “grannies group” to build a small poultry production business where profits are invested in health care kits that allow the grandmothers to provide, and expand, home-based health care services throughout their community. As part of G.R.O.’s sustainable social-enterprise model, this project has also become entirely self-sustaining.

G.R.O. was created in 2006 by Canadian development worker James White and two American counterparts, Jean Margaritis and Greg Felsen, with start-up financial support provided by Toronto businesswoman Sharon Oatway. Two of G.R.O.’s founders continue to live in Lesotho and work closely with the project partners. G.R.O. Canada is now also governed by a volunteer board in Canada, including Dr. Megan Landes, Terry Aldebert, James White and by a volunteer executive team. The Canada-based G.R.O. operations team acts as secondary advisers to local projects, primarily focusing on linking local groups with international resources and maintaining the trust of donors through project follow-up.

As G.R.O. continues its work in Lesotho, Canada, the United States and throughout the world, they continue to guarantee that 100 per cent of donated funds are sent directly to Lesotho for direct project support and to benefit the project partners of the communities they engage in. G.R.O. Canada seeks to extend its mandate and mission throughout the world’s developing communities, committing to global development initiatives that respect cultural differences, provide direct and tangible support and link the people of Canada with projects making real difference in struggling communities everywhere.

Representatives of G.R.O. will be on the Hill this week. I look forward to meeting with them, and I encourage other interested senators to do the same.

http://www.liberalsenateforum.ca/In-The-Senate/Statement/6799_Global-Relief-Outreach-Foundation

Posted under Uncategorized

Although a belated entry, G.R.O. members Toby and Megan can’t help but announce the lovely gesture made by their friends Sarah and Chris on their wedding day.  G.R.O. was pleasantly surprised to be included as guests at their fabulous Labour Day wedding in Winnipeg!  Instead of the usual shenanigans to make the bride and groom kiss (tinkling glasses, a gong etc) they created a G.R.O. donation box.  It was announced that for every five dollar donation placed in the box they would kiss, for ten dollars they would dip and kiss etc!  G.R.O. benefited tremendously - and would like to thank Sarah and Chris and their wedding guests for helping us out!  Here’s to a long and happy marriage for you both, from G.R.O.!

Sarah and Chris kiss for G.R.O.

Posted under The Movement

G.R.O. Scholars finished their last day of school for the 2009 term!  A big congratulations to Kopano who finished his senior year and will begin applying for university in February.  We are so proud of the students and the hard work they put in this year. Thank you to those of you who made it possible for 17 students to attend school this year.

A full-year, comprehensive student sponsorship is only $400 a year, or $100 a quarter.  Join us in ensuring that vulnerable students in Lesotho recieve an education that they need, and that they deserve, by sponsoring a G.R.O. scholar.  You can also support students who experience an unexpected crisis such as the loss of a parent through a G.R.O. Crisis Kit or help a graduating student like Kopano apply for university.  Join us in helping us support more students in the new 2010 school year.

Posted under Uncategorized

In October, Megan Landes, Chair of the G.R.O. Canada Board and James White, Director of G.R.O. Canada/Lesotho travelled to our nations capital to speak with various MPs and Senators about G.R.O.!   We had the opportunity to meet with the Honorables Mike Savage (MP - Dartmouth/Cole Harbour), Glen Pearson (MP - London North), Bob Rae (MP - Toronto Centre) and Jane Cordy (Senator).  Megan and Jamie spoke about the work G.R.O. is doing in Lesotho and our future directions, particularly in Canada.  As a result we learned a great deal about Canada’s position on development and foreign aid.  We commend those working in Ottawa to make Canadian investment in developing countries have a tangible impact on the poorest and most vulnerable global communities.

Additionally, G.R.O. was announced on both the floor of the House of Parliament by the Honorable Mr. Savage and the floor of the Senate by Senator Cordy.  G.R.O. would like to thank everyone who helped make this possible, and we look forward to further developing our Canadian initiatives in 2010!

Megan Landes and James White in Ottawa

Posted under The Vision

www.grofoundation.org

Posted under The Movement