Hi All! I hope this message finds you well.
We have fantastic news. Casa Hogar will be able to buy the land they need with the discount, thanks to all your help!!
The owner of the land offered an extension until the end of the month. The money we have raised on GlobalGiving combined with the rest of the $23,000 US raised by my sister Ariana during the first year of Expand Casa Hogar as well as money raised by Coco and with help from a 0% loan offered by a generous volunteer at Casa Hogar will enable Coco to purchase the land!
This is exactly the dream we have been fighting for during the last month (and long before I became part of the project!). Thank you for your incredible generosity; you have made all this possible.
But the news just gets better: we have the unique opportunity to win $50,000 for Casa Hogar just by voting. This money would enable us to pay back the loan we used to purchase the land, as well as pay for the construction of the new house!
This opportunity is very exciting for us because we do not have to ask for money or time from our supporters—this voting process takes seconds. Merely log in with Facebook vote to for our project here: http://www.cultivatewines.com/cause/49258/. We are thrilled to be able to offer you the unique opportunity to change the world with the click of a button!
Your daily votes and shares would be much appreciated. Please respond to this email to receive a daily reminder to vote, or to be removed from this contact list.
Warmly,
Sophia and Ariana Zaia
Links:
Hi Everyone!
I hope the school year is off to a great start for you and your families. This is Sophia Zaia, newly inducted Co-Director of Expand Casa Hogar writing to you with my first report on recent urgent updates at Casa Hogar!
I spent the last 5 weeks at Casa Hogar in Oaxaca, Oaxaca, and returned to my home in Austin two days ago. During my time at Casa Hogar, I saw many shining faces, as the number of children residing under Coco's loving care has now reached 55. There are many new developments--a talented new cook, a fresh paint job on the bus which now displays a rainbow of little hand prints, and the focus of this report--further developments on the purchasing of land and building of the new house which Expand Casa Hogar has been working hard to fund.
When my sister and Co-Director Ariana Zaia reported last on July 12th of this year, she explained:
Coco says the pieces of property are very over priced, and they are (despite the fact that Oaxaca has one of the highest property values in all of Mexico)."
In the last few weeks, the situation has changed:
Setting Piece #1 on the backburner, Dona Coco and Expand Casa Hogar have made it a mission to raise the $24,000 US we are missing in order to make the purchase on September 15th. The 20% discount will save us $9,300 US.
Coco is currently in possession of land in another state and parts from two buses which she is willing to sell in order to reach the deadline, but this alone will not be enough.
Please help us to reach this goal! Many of you have already shared generously financially, and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Continued actions such as sharing the cause on Facebook, through email or through word of mouth, and liking us on Facebook in order to receive updates on the campaign, are invaluable. Please help us spread the word and meet the $24,000 US goal which we have under one month to complete!
Thank you so much for your time and support!
Sophia
Links:
Hi All,
It has been three months since our last progress report. I have been waiting to write you until future plans are set in stone, but now it looks like that might be a while.
Right now I am staying at a friend's house in Oaxaca, México. I have been to visit Casa Hogar several times within the past week. It appears that everybody is doing well and that the kids are busy with many new activities including soccer, ballet classes and preparing for a small party/carnival they will hold at Casa Hogar.
About a week ago I spoke with Coco (the founder of Casa Hogar Hijos de la Luna) about buying the land. I was excited to speak with her because during a recent phone call I thought she had told me that the land with the existing one-bedroom building would cost around $8,000. This was far less than I had been previously told and I was very happy because this meant that we would be able to purchase it while I was in Oaxaca in July. Unfortunately, it appears I had heard her wrongly and was very mistaken. During our most recent chat Coco explained to me the following:
Coco says the pieces of property are very over priced, and they are (despite the fact that Oaxaca has one of the highest property values in all of Mexico). She let me know that another option is to buy a piece of land farther outside of the city where the property value is lower.
This was frustrating news, but we must push on. Whatever happens is going to take time and patience.
Now, for some good announcements. I will be leaving to attend Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota at the end of August. I predict that acclimating to my new environment and my studies will not leave me enough time to properly continue this project during the next year. Conveniently, my sister, Sophia Zaia, who will be a senior in high school, would like to take on the responsibility of project leader. She has my approval and complete support. Sophia is intelligent, hardworking and inspired. I know that I will be leaving my project in good hands. I have not yet officially passed the project on to her, but I will soon.
During the coming year Sophia would like to work on grant writing. This is something I felt I should attempt, but never had the time to do so. I am delighted that she will be working on this because I feel it is the next step on our way to success. I am excited to see what she will be able to achieve.
Another piece of good news is that Doña Coco was chosen by my class at the Austin Waldorf School to receive what is known as the Michael Award at the 2012 graduation. This is an award given to somebody who has used his or her will power to better humanity. I will honor Coco with the plaque within the coming week and will post pictures both on our GlobalGiving and Facebook pages.
I will leave you with this for now. I hope you are all doing well. Thank you so much for all of your support. Please keep it coming and don't forget to tell your friends and family about this effort!
Warmly,
Ariana Zaia
Hi all!
If you read my last blog post at www.expandcasahogar.com, then you have already read this.
I have arrived back in Austin from Oaxaca, Mexico and it’s long overdue that I update everybody on Global Giving about Casa Hogar! I felt that they had progressed immensely since I had last seen them. The organization seemed to be better, and the children happier. It was wonderful getting to see all of the familiar faces as well as the many new faces. It’s was also getting to hear some of the success stories of the children who are no longer there. “Gordito” and his brother Adelo went with there mother to another city where she was able to open up a shoe shop and Yazmin and Azucena were adopted by a family member. It was sad for me not to see them there, but also wonderful to know that they are now able to have a steady home life and be with their families once again. Now, as for Casa Hogar in general…
WHAT’S NEW:
1) Do you remember that one of Coco’s (the founder) dreams for the future of Casa Hogar was to provide basic education for the mothers? Well, they now have a haircutting class every Thursday giving them the opportunity to learn a trade that they can turn into a profession. 6 (out of 26) attend.
2) They have finished out the one-room house that stands on the land they are now renting but would like to buy which means they have a third bedroom for the children. Now, the older boys sleep here. There is a small bathroom with a toilet and sink for them to use.
3) A homework tent with desks where the teacher helps them with homework after they arrive from school.
WHAT’S THE SAME:
1) The plan. They still hope to buy the piece of land next to them and build a second house.
2) The problem. They are still unable to accommodate teens.
So, that’s it for now everybody! Keep up with us by liking our Expand Casa Hogar Facebook page if you haven’t already! If you don’t you might miss some pretty good stuff…if you are in the Austin area or are part of the Austin Waldorf community, don't miss my project presentation at the Austin Waldorf School on Friday April 13, 2012 at 8:30. After the presentation I will be auctioning off two wooden moons painted by the children along with photos of the children who painted them. Don't miss the opportunity to bid and/or hear all about the process of conducting and creating this non-profit project!
Sincerely and with gratitude,
Ariana Zaia
Hi All,
It's been a while since I have posted. I took a break of about two weeks, but I am back now more ready than ever to continue progressing as quickly as possible.
So, you're probably wondering, "what's new?"
On January 14, 2012 there was a large benefit concert held for us in Fribourg, Switzerland. This concert was held by the organization Macrocosm, on the behalf of the College St-Michel and featured the groups Mungo Aside, The Animen and Eiko. Approximately 500 people showed up, many choosing to pay the 15 franc entrance fee rather than the 10 franc cover fee. We are still waiting to hear how much was raised, but it is estimated that we will receive about $8,000 from the proceeds of this year's and last year's concert combined. Overall the concert was extremely successful. A big thanks goes out to my friend Ana Odermatt for being the project leader in Europe and nominating us as the beneficiaries of this event!
Next in line is a benefit that is much closer to home for those of you living in Austin, Texas. 6 am on Monday (February 6, 2012) I will be helping Alejandro Silveyra put up some of his photography in the Magnolia Cafe at 2304 Lake Austin Boulevard Austin, TX 78703. Everything Alejandro earns from sales he will generously donate to Expand Casa Hogar. Alejandro's work is beautiful and I suggest that if you are in the area you check it out!
I am trying hard to create a benefit concert here in Austin. If you have any suggestions as to musicians who might be interested in performing for us, please let me know at: ariana@expandcasahogar.com
I have begun promoting the idea of text donations through posters I have made. I will attach the poster document so that you may print out posters to put up if you would like. It's a great and easy way to continue helping out if you feel so inspired! I have found that cafes are a great place to put them up, and we have received several text donations as a result.
Well, that's about it for now! Things have been very slow since we finished the Open Challenge. It is important to let people know that we are not finished yet. Including what we believe will come from the benefit in Switzerland, we have about $16,000 total right now (which is wonderful!) but we still have $34,000 to go.
I will be attaching some photos along with this report of the benefit concert in Fribourg, Switzerland. I hope you enjoy!
Thank you so much for your support. I hope you are all doing well and enjoying the new year!
With gratitude,
Ariana Zaia
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