You know we love you, right?
Because we really, really do. We love your passion, your enthusiasm and how much fun we have with those of you who come down to see our programs in action or join us at our biggest party of the year. We love how invested you are in breaking the cycle of poverty in Guatemala.
In honor of Supporter Appreciation Month, we want to share five of the million reasons we love each and every one of you. Enjoy!
- You never back down from a challenge.
Television personality, adrenaline junkie and member of the CoEd Best Friends Club (that’s not currently a real thing, but it totally should be, right?! We’ll start designing the t-shirts) Ryan Van Duzer recently agreed to live with families in Guatemala benefiting from CoEd’s programs so that he could shoot videos and other promos for us (stay tuned for more!). He had to get out of his comfort zone and intimately deal with the poverty around him, but never for a second thought about quitting.
Speaking of the comfort zone, you may remember a certain Mr. Chris Bailey, who got real uncomfortable for the kids of Guatemala with his Run Ride Read Challenge. Yes, he biked, ran and swam 640 miles to raise funds for CoEd. It wasn’t always fun. It wasn’t always easy. But (and we think he’ll agree with us) it was most definitely worth it.
2. You are always ready to dance and eat for the children of Guatemala (although maybe not at the same time—that sounds messy).
Besides all the times we force encourage our tour participants to dance at the schools we visit, we have also had high school classes use the art of dance to help raise funds for CoEd. Centerville High School went a step further; not only did they hold a Zumba dance fundraiser for us, but they also put together a 300-person pasta dinner to raise a total of $40,500! We hear that calories don’t count when they’re for a good cause, so thank you to everyone who carbo-loaded for CoEd!
3. You form lasting bonds with your scholarship students.
As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, so instead of telling you about how sweet it is to see these relationships form and grow, we’ll just show you some real cute photos of sponsors with their students (it’s definitely not because we’re crying too hard to type right now).
4. You know how to party.
Year after year, we plan a lil’ party we like to call Fall Fiesta. And year after year, you blow us away with your generosity. We love getting the chance to catch up with our donors at the event and share some of the exciting new developments in our programs. The open bar doesn’t hurt either. See you in November?
5. You are the reason we have been able to help kids in Guatemala for the last 20 YEARS.
You come to Guatemala. You give generously of your time, talent and treasure. Over the last 20 years, together we have helped 162,700 students through 184 textbook projects, 43 computer centers, 62 literacy projects and have 254 kids currently benefiting from scholarships. We hope to continue doing this for the next 20 years and beyond, and we are confident that we can succeed all thanks to YOU.
I see this program being blessed by God who has touched the hearts of many to support the very poor in Guatemala. It is amazing to see how the recipients respond with gratitude and joy. They too see that they are getting an opportunity to break the poverty cycle. When I go personally and see these children running to us with hugs and smiles of appreciation I also am uplifted in fulfilling something very important with my life, time and money in that country. This is our life with a purpose to do something that really counts and leaves educated and inspired results for the people and their country. May God continue to bless Co. Ed and Rotary as they join together to do His will for the poor.