Newsletter 2012/2

What happens when we're back in England? Well, first of all we stop to get our breath back! There's a house to look after, friends and relations to be visited, books to be written and work started to provide things needed for our next trip. We're supposed to be a couple of retired old-age pensioners but we've never been so busy in our lives. The aches and pains of old age slow us down a bit but GOES keeps us on our toes. We're often asked 'What do you get out of it?' Well, apart from the joy of being able to help people the main benefit to us is that GOES brings us into contact with all manner of good people. Look at a newspaper or watch the TV news and you might think that the world is peopled with evil, narrow minded folk who only rejoice in the misfortunes of others. We know that the world is not like that. We meet a constant stream of people who are good, tolerant and kind. From the couple who emptied their wallets for us at the airport on our way home last time to the people who have supported us, with funding or goods, ever since we started GOES, we can say that most people are good. Yes, of course there area few rogues - but they are in a tiny minority, both north and south of the Sahara! A very special ‘thank you’ to all the good people at ‘SNIPS’! - the collection box by the till has, over the years, sent children to school,  managed hospital treatment for young and old, provided mosquito nets, helped to supply clean water to Mandinari  village clinic— well done, and thank you again!

Newsletter 2012

How we raise money. Collection boxes! These provide an important, steady income. Sponsored events—Joyce raised over £200 last year by completing a 40km cycle ride. Hopes to repeat in 2012! Sale of poetry and prose anthologies by Vale Royal Writers Group.  VRWG has loyally supported GOES since its inception. Tom has written three books—travel romances—based on the typical but imaginary village of Malinding.  The books, Empty Bananas, Mussukunda and Stories for Gambian Children, are available on Amazon’s Kindle eBook site. Hopefully another book about Fatou Manneh, a village girl, will be added later in the year. All proceeds go direct to The Gambia without deduction for any sort of ‘expenses’. Regular donations from family and friends, some by standing orders from the donor’s bank accounts. Visiting our web site  - www. gambiagoes.org.uk  -gives access to the information needed to contribute this way.  Our blog - gambiagoes.blogspot.com  - is updated regularly.

EMPTY BANANAS?

Read on!

Progress

GOES aims to ease problems caused by poverty and ill-health. We believe in equality of access to education and health care. We help with grants towards the costs of school and college, medical treatment and provision of clean water supplies. We have provided mosquito nets, house repairs and grants towards setting up small businesses.
Helping people in The Gambia can be very rewarding. It's good to see a youngster, especially a girl, progressing through school and college towards a career which will help her, her family and local society.
We pay grants directly to the person, school or clinic. Any donation made to GOES does indeed go directly to where it is needed - we deduct nothing by way of 'expenses' or 'charges' or 'running costs' of any sort. If you give a pound or a penny it goes to a Gambian in need. We pay all the expenses of the charity, and when we visit the country we pay all our own expenses. 
We are in our seventies and running a charity is a full-time, exhausting, wonderful occupation! We're slowing down and we haven't changed the world. We haven't ended poverty or disease or discrimination, but, with your help, we've made a few steps on the way.
Thanks, from Joyce & Tom.