by Fresh and Green Team
Monetary donations are a crucial part of the existence of Fresh and Green Academy and the “Child Sponsorship Program” helps guarantee the school will operate and the children will be fed. Every month barely enough money is sent to cover the costs of teachers salaries, food and rent. With your generous donations all the children will receive three meals a day and a quality education.
Approximate monthly school expenses:
Rent-$800.00
Salaries-$400.00
Mothers Coop Salaries-$1000.00 (From the sales of their goods)
Food for 140 children three times a day-$3000.00
For $35.00 a month, the price of a dinner out, you will help all 140 students of Fresh and Green Academy eat three nutritious meals a day, have access to medical care, and continue to thrive in a loving and caring learning environment. You will receive periodic updates on the specific child you have sponsored but will be helping all the children.
Use the “Sponsor A Student” link to start helping today!
by Fresh and Green Team
Our “Third Annual Poker/Casino Night” fundraiser was a huge success. Over 100 people were in attendance at Connolly’s Pub NYC and a great time was had by all. The top three poker players and top two blackjack players took home thousands of dollars worth of prizes which included, Broadway show tickets, 2012 US Open tickets, Mets VIP tickets, year long house cleaning service, gym memberships, a private wine tasting party and helicopter rides to name a few. We raffled off a Marc Jacobs handbag, wine, and vacation packages. We also sold the Mothers Cooperative crafts and raised awareness of the need to
We raffled off a Marc Jacobs handbag, wine, and vacation packages. We also sold the Mothers Cooperative crafts and raised awareness of the need to insure Fresh and Green Academy continues to grow and thrive.
A special Thanks goes out to the committee members, volunteers and sponsors, without them the event would not have been possible.
Sponsors: Fitch Group, United Print Group, Marc Jacobs, Van Cleef and Arpels, 57th Street Chiropractic and Wellness, Dirty 2 Purdy, Robert Essel Photography, Mr. Dana Matthow, Jeff King LMT, Americana Tickets, Laurie Towers, Lloyd Goldsmith Fine Art, Harvey Luckman – Sport and Classic Auto Repair, Gold’s Gym, Christine Zona, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Boqueria Tapas Bar and Restaurant, Carnegie Hall, McGee’s Pub, Big Daddy’s, City Crab, Dukes, Georgette Williams LMT, Stacey Rosenberger, Ashok Sinha Photography, Kennedy’s, Natural History Museum, Dr. Rich Goldstein, Dara Manuel – Young Living, Crema, Dyker Beach Golf Course, Kate Hildebrandt – Structural Integration Rolfing
Volunteers and Committee Members: Charity Baker, Antoinette Bates, Dana Burnell, Pryor Callaway, Vivi Chestnut, Kati Curtis, Clarissa Feldman, Conner Hafner, Sojourner McBride, Mike Parng, Elyse Pasquale, Dr. Jason Piken, Craig Rosen, Jason Rubinstein, Peggy Shaw, Ed Soh, Jennifer Thai, John Winter, Jo Ann Wood
View Photos Here!
Thank you to all who were in attendance.
We look forward to an event next year!
It is not too late to donate!
by Fresh and Green Team
Friends of Fresh and Green Academy board members Trish Hack-Rubinstein, Gregg Rubinstein, Lyuba Halkyn, and International Foodie and Writer, Elyse Pasquale spent the week of April 24, 2011 with the amazing children at Fresh and Green Academy. The group arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia the evening before Easter, an important holiday for the Ethiopian Orthodox population. Orthodox ceremonies and festivities took place throughout the night and into the day of Easter.
At the start of the school week the board consulted with Ms. Muday Mitiku, director of Fresh and Green Academy, about the immediate needs of the school and its students. Construction of a new bathroom facility, which includes a separate boys and girls restroom, was a top priority and approved. The former bathroom facility was substandard and dilapidated. New facility construction began immediately after board approval. A team of eight to ten donkeys brought supplies to the school mounted on their backs lead by their herder. “It was such an unusual sight for us, as Westerners, to see how a construction project is actually implemented in a developing nation in a local community of a capital city,” stated Lyuba Halkyn. The new bathroom facility was complete by the end of the week.
Throughout the week, Dr. Gregg Rubinstein, Chiropractor, spent time with the children, their mothers, Fresh and Green Academy staff, and other locals who heard of his expertise. He performed Chiropractic Adjustments in addition to explaining aspects of overall health and wellness.
The children at Fresh and Green Academy continue to develop and demonstrate that they love to learn and flourish in their school environment. They enjoy playing games with the volunteers and are always eager to show off their written assignments and their verbal knowledge of educational and creative material. The visiting group joined in and participated in Ethiopian children’s games and taught the children some common games played in the U.S. By the end of the week the children of Fresh and Green Academy requested Western games, such as the Hokey Pokey and Follow the Leader, during times of free play.
The second and third graders attend a music class several times a week, in which a very talented music instructor teaches them how to play keyboards in addition to a more technical aspect of music theory. The music teacher assists the children to demonstrate their knowledge of the material presented, and inspires their musical creativity.
The visiting volunteers took pictures of each child with a Polaroid sticker camera and made cards for each of them to take home. The children were excited to be able to have a photo of themselves, as school photos and cameras are a luxury.
At the end of the week, when it was time to return to New York, the group regretted saying goodbye to the children. “It is always difficult for us, as volunteers, to explain to the kids that we have been here all week and now must return to our own realities. On the flip side, knowing that I will return and visit the kids sometime later this year, makes parting a little bit easier. The children’s growth and development, thanks to an excellent educational facility and three nutritious meals provided daily by the school, aids in their overall well being,” shares Lyuba Halkyn of her experiences at Fresh and Green Academy.
by Fresh and Green Team
Our August 2010 trip to Fresh and Green Academy, a school for impoverished children in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The school is funded by “Friends of Fresh and Green Inc.”, a non profit organization based in New York City.
by Kathleen
In 2005, Ethiopia had 4,414,000 orphans, the second-highest number in Africa. You could easily double if not triple that number to determine the number of Ethiopian children being raised without a father or a significant male member of their household.Among our 90 students, the number with an adult male living permanently in the household could be counted on one hand. For both the boys and the girls, it is a tragedy born of the AIDS epidemic and a patriarchal society. I say this without judgment, only stating the facts that I have witnessed and researched.
This picture was taken by Francesco, who along with Todd, comprised the two male volunteers on the April trip to the Academy. Both of them are young single men in their 20s, but they seem to me to be “old souls,” natural-born fathers, the kind who will be “hands-on” dads. Watching them interact with the kids was a delight for me, but for the children themselves, their presence must have been something altogether different.
Only time will tell how this generation of Ethiopian children will fare without fathers or father-figures. My hope is that, for the kids at the Academy at least, they will benefit from the example set by Anteneh, Muday’s husband, and their friend Hilu. Both are teachers at the local high school, and both of them spend a lot of time with the kids. Certainly the men who volunteer with Friends of Fresh and Green (including Trish’s husband, Gregg) provide wonderful examples of how a man can be both strong and nurturing at the same time.
Muday speaks highly of a local man, a pilot for Ethiopian Airlines, who regularly stops by and takes some of the boys home to play with his own children. There are trekkers who stop by the Academy often (it is a Geo-Cache site http://www.geocaching.com). All in all, Fresh and Green Academy students have more exposure to positive, male role models than many of their peers.
On this Father’s Day eve, I want to recognize all the men who are working and have worked so hard to make a difference in the lives of the children. There are many of you, including my own dad (and Trish’s dad) who taught us the value of “giving back.” And I want to acknowledge all the male sponsors, who are providing support “behind the scenes” as it were. Although the children may not know you by name, you are making a difference in their lives nonetheless.
Kathleen Murphy Vilicich, Vice President
Monetary donations are a crucial part of the existence of Fresh and Green Academy and the “Child Sponsorship Program” helps guarantee the school will operate and the children will be fed. Every month barely enough money is sent to cover the costs of teachers salaries, food and rent. With your generous donations all the children will receive three meals a day and a quality education.
