As I sit here and reflect on 2018, I am extremely grateful to our wonderful sponsors, donors and volunteers. Together we were able to touch many lives and fulfill our purpose of connecting the disadvantaged to opportunities.
I am often humbled when I hear the painful stories of some of the families The Bridge Foundation serves. One recent story was that of a father in Ghana whose 10 year old son has suffered multiple strokes as a result of sickle cell anemia disease and seizures. The Bridge Foundation sent him a small donation during Christmas to buy a treat for his family. He used the unexpected gift to fill his son’s much needed prescription. My family and I have been going through a very difficult trial with the health of my son and I am often asked how I continue to smile and have joy. Stories like these help put my own suffering into perspective. My joy comes from knowing I am part of an organization which strives to help so many disadvantaged children. My experience, and I hope yours as well, is summed up in this quote: “Those who are not looking for happiness are the most likely to find it, because those who are searching forget that the surest way to be happy is to seek happiness for others.”
― Martin Luther King Jr.
Child Sponsorship Program
The Bridge foundation added 11 new children to our sponsorship program bringing the total number of children in the sponsorship program to 38. Out of these, 25 have sponsors and 13 are awaiting sponsorship. Sponsorship means everything to these children. It means an opportunity to go to school, eat 2 nutritious meals a day and receive medical checkup. They also gain self confidence, a sense of worth and most importantly a deep knowledge that someone, even on the other side of the world, cares deeply about them. Their faces light up when they tell their friends at school about their sponsors. I want that same joy for the 13 children, who even though are in the program and receive an education, meals and medical checkup, do not have a sponsor to tell their friends about. I also want that for the many children who are waiting to join the program. In 2019, our goal is find sponsors for the remaining 13 children and add 37 new children into the program. Click here to watch how Joshua, Raja and Michael’s lives have been transformed through child sponsorship.
Feeding Program
We started a feeding program back in 2017 in a small impoverished village in South India for severely malnourished children while they awaited sponsors. Most of these children were orphans who made a living begging and digging through trash for plastic bottles and other recyclable materials to sell for mere cents. We are currently feeding 34 children one meal a day at a monthly cost of $700. The program is a matter of life and death for these precious children. While waiting to join the program, 2 siblings lost their lives this past August after eating badly decomposed food from the refuse dump near their village. In 2019, we hope to find sponsors for the children so they can receive 2 meals and an education or enough funding to feed them 2 meals a day. Please watch the video to learn more.
Through Their Eyes Fundraising Gala
The Bridge Fundraising gala held on November 17th in Atlanta was a huge success. We were honored to have so many of you come and support us during our first fundraiser. We are looking forward to our 2019 gala which promises to be bigger and more fun. Stay tuned for more information. Click here to see pictures from that night. Click here to watch video one and video two from the event.
The Bridge Christmas Party
The year would not have been complete without The Bridge Foundation annual Christmas and End of Year party. 90 children in India and 60 in Ghana had an amazing time at the parties. Children in India got to eat chicken briyani, a popular Indian rice dish and one of my favorite dishes, cake and drink juice for the very first time. The children in Ghana, got a visit from Santa, played beach volley ball and participated in a dance offs. They were all smiles. See below for pictures.
In 2019, I invite you to continue this incredible journey of partnership with us and together we can change lives and brighten a small corner of the world for a child. It doesn’t matter whether you are able to sponsor 1 child or 10 children or whether you can give a large or small donation, what matters most is you cared enough to show up for one child. I end with one f my favorite quotes: “If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way”
― Martin Luther King Jr.
Thank you
Sincerely,
Adwoa Adu Acquah
Co-Founder and President