Cocoa Camino Fair Trade Products for Sale
During the summer, Fair Trade products and religious articles will be sold at St. Marguerite d'Youville Church twice a month, according to schedule. Products are sold by the Faith in Action group in the parish.
One of the many product lines includes Cocoa Camino, which is a line of premium Fair Trade Certified and certified organic chocolate, cocoa and sugar products produced by La Siembra Co-operative. La Siembra’s mission is to offer high-quality Fair Trade Certified organic products that improve the livelihoods of family farmers and the well-being of communities at home and abroad.
Support this initiative to ensure that workers in countries such as the Dominican Republic receive fair wages.
Update from Colombia Project
The school in Colombia has sent a thank-you letter to the ACCESS Charity for the funds sent in April. Principal of the school, Miriam Rocio, explained that they are very glad that they will be able to start construction of the recreational patio for kindergarten students, thanks to the money that ACCESS has sent. The school has offered to send us pictures periodically of the development of the project.
Here is an image of the existing school in Itagui, Colombia. Currently, this is the only area in which the kindergarten children have to play.
Charity's Spring Raffle for Colombia
During the week of April 10 - April 13, 2007, ACCESS hosted a Charity Raffle, which was open to the students and staff of St. Marguerite d'Youville Secondary School. Ticket sales were very successful, raising almost $800.00, plus a donation from Student Council. The draw was held on the afternoon of April 13. Congratulations to those who won a prize and thank you to everyone who bought tickets and supported the charity's efforts in Colombia.
Presentation at St. Jean Brebeuf School
A presentation about the ACCESS Charity, Social Justice, and the Dominican Republic took place at St. Jean Brebeuf on Friday, April 13.
Thank you to the the grades 6 - 8 students who participated, asking many questions at St. Jean Brebeuf Elementary School in Brampton. Thank you to the Staff involved in arranging this presentation. Profits from the events in the school's upcoming Spirit Week will be donated to ACCESS.
Random Act of Kindness
April 11, 2007 - A large donation of school supplies was dropped off at St. Marguerite d'Youville Church anonymously.
The items have been delivered to Dr. Simone's warehouse in Mississauga (Canadian Food for Children) and were shipped immediately to the Honduras the following day!
Thank you to the donor for your generous contribution.
Easter Greetings from the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic: The Uniform project continues, based on the availability of uniforms. I have purchased a few for students in a recently-opened school for deaf-mute students, as well as a large purchase for students living in a distant batey. The number of students who have received uniforms is certainly well into the hundreds. I have been involved with 10 schools. May the Resurrected Christ be your source of Hope and Joy! - Sister Catherine O'Shea, Consuelo, Dominican Republic
Our Colombia Classroom Project in the News
In another feature article on TheBramptonNews.com, ACCESS announces its project in Colombia. Click the link to view the article: Building a Classroom in Colombia. To learn about the details of the project, read the posting below.
ACCESS Building School in Colombia!
Since April 2007, ACCESS has been funding the construction of a classroom for kindergarten children in Colombia (see our Country Information page). The classroom is being built as an extension of an existing school in Itagui, in the province of Antioquia, Colombia. The ACCESS Charity, thanks to generous donations and fundraising, is completely funding this project.
The recreational patio is to be used for kindergarten students as a safe place to learn and play. A secondary project, with excess donations, will add toys, decorations, learning activities, and furniture to the ACCESS classroom.
Generally, the government does not supply funding for the school (the government only pays the teachers’ salaries). Therefore there is no budget to build this necessary expansion for the young students. Currently, these young children are forced to remain outdoors even in inclement weather. The dusty environment causes respiratory problems in the children there. This is where ACCESS has stepped in to help.
The project has been coordinated through a teacher in Colombia, based on a request from the Principal (Myriam Rocio Correa Arroyave) which ACCESS has received. Communication with Colombia occurs through a Colombian-born Canadian here in Ontario.
High School Donates Proceeds from Multicultural Night
On March 8 2007, Brampton's St. Marguerite d'Youville high school hosted a very successful Multicultural Night.
Thanks to the generosity of the teachers on the organizing committee, a portion of the proceeds from this event were donated to ACCESS, in the amount of $500.00. This money will go directly towards funding our current classroom building project in Colombia.
Social Justice Presentation
On the evening of Thursday, February 22, 2007, Daniel Francavilla presented at a St. Mary’s Church Justice & Peace Committee gathering, to share experiences in the third world and discuss the organization, ACCESS Charity.
An informative display board was set-up with ACCESS flyers and brochures available.
The evening was part of St. Mary's Church Lenten Reflections for 2007, which included a representative from Dr. Simone's Canadian Food for Children program.
Listed on "Charity Village" Website
As of February, we are pleased to announce that ACCESS has been added to the "CharityVillage® Nonprofit Neighbourhood" online directory. Charity Village's website includes more than 3,000 pages of information and is accessed more than 30 million times a month. It is the leading online source of information, news, jobs, services and resources for the Canadian nonprofit community. Our listing appears below:
ACCESS (International): The goal of ACCESS is to provide needy children in the developing world with school uniforms and necessary school supplies, so that they have the opportunity to receive the education required to find decent employment and support their families. Serving the countries of Columbia, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic, we are committed to providing opportunities to impoverished children in the developing world. Listed under CharityVillage® Nonprofit Neighbourhood: International Relief at www.charityvillage.com/cv/nonpr/nonpr9.html.
Donation Received from Agape
ACCESS Charity would like to acknowledge the generosity of the Agape ministry. In December the "Friends of Agape" Brampton group contributed a donation of $3000.00, to fund the projects of ACCESS. This money will be used at the discretion of the Grey Sisters in Consuelo, Dominican Republic to help improve the lives of Dominicans living in poverty on the bateyes.
School Supplies Delivered
This winter, a shipment of school supplies, collected through the ACCESS School Supply Drive in August, have been sent to the Honduras. They will be used to help stock empty schools in the Honduras that are in desperate need of supplies. The organization Canadian Food for Children is currently working in this area and has put the supplies to good use. Canadian Food for Children was able to safely ship the supplies to the Honduras, unlike the difficult shipping situation in the Dominican Republic.
Father Claire Tipping Fundraising
Thank you to the Staff, Students, and Student Council at Father Claire Tipping Elementary School in Brampton, your initiative to help the students of the Dominican Republic. In December 2006, the school raised money through a Jelly Bean guessing contest and donated their profits to the ACCESS Dominican Republic charity. The Student Council helped to organize this initiative to raise funds for the charity, after the school was visited for a presentation about the Dominican Republic exposure trip, informing them of the poverty that exists there today.
Presentation at Fr. Claire Tipping School
Both presentations which took place on the afternoon of Thursday, November 30, 2006 were a great success, due to the cooperation of the students.
Thank you to the the grades 1 - 8 students who participated and asked many questions at Father Claire Tipping Elementary School in Brampton. Thank you to the Staff involved in arranging this presentation.
A Fundraiser for the charity is also being planned by the school's Student Council, which will take place in the near future.
Thank You from the Grey Sisters
Dear Member of ACCESS Dominican Republic:
After gift of $600; sent in September has been forwarded to Sister Catherine O’Shea for the educational needs of students in the Bateyes. That is such a worthy cause! It is so unjust to see children deprived of what is their right and such a joy when they overcome so many obstacles to complete even their primary studies.
Daniel is to be admired for efforts made to raise awareness of the needs. To be admired and thanked, also, are the generous people who responded.
Know of the gratitude of the little people who receive your gift that will change their lives! God’s blessings upon you!
Sincerely,
Susan Daly, Grey Sisters of the Immaculate Conception, Pembroke, Ontario
Faith in Action Ministry Contribution
The St. Marguerite d’Youville "Faith in Action Ministry" (Brampton, Ontario) made a contribution of $300 to ACCESS Dominican Republic.
The Faith in Action Ministry is dedicated to introducing Fair Trade products into the Canadian market. They sell items such as Cocoa Camino brand sugar and Fair Trade Certified organic chocolate, which comes from the Dominican Republic – the advantage for this product is that it is made by Dominicans who are being paid fair wages. The promotion of these products is beneficial to many workers in the Dominican Republic because it allows them to receive just wages, instead of sweat-shop and less-than minimum wage pay.
A huge thank you goes out to the people involved in this ministry for their support. For more information about the Cocoa Camino products, visit www.cocoacamino.com.
Successful School Supply Drive
During the month of August 2006, the local community contributed to the ACCESS School Supply Drive. Thousands of items were collected and will be shipped to poverty stricken areas around the world, so that children living in poverty can obtain a better experience and have a chance at education with school supplies. Along with the Supply Drive, the charity raised over $1,200 during the 2 weekends of the drive. Thank you to the community for all of your incredible support.
Teen Cycles 120 Km for Charity
Keith Vaz, a grade eleven student from Brampton, Ontario cycled 120 Km over two days.
On August 14th and 15th, the dedicated teenager rode his bike from Brampton to Guelph, Ontario and back. He did the route alone, although he had the support of dozens of friends an family.
Keith stated, "I just wanted to send the poor children in the Dominican to school...its just such a good cause."
He plans to cycle the route again, making this fundraiser an annual event, and getting more people involved.
School Supply Collection on Brampton.com
The community website Brampton.com has included ACCESS Dominican Republic's August School Supply Drive in its Events Calendar. The School Supply Drive will run from August 19 through September 3, where donations can be dropped off at St. Marguerite d'Youville Church in Brampton. Monetary Donations will also be accepted towards the charity. More information, including a list of items, is available on the Upcoming Events page.