GIFT appears on the Lotus Flower blog
DONOR Q&A: ‘THE LOTUS FLOWER TICKS ALL THE BOXES’
DONOR Q&A: ‘THE LOTUS FLOWER TICKS ALL THE BOXES’
What the Lotus Flower’s key supporters say about the organisation.
Gift at minute 4’40
Summary of my trip to volunteer for Surfers Not Street Children
My trip to Surfers Not Street Children took place this summer between July 5th and July 23rd 2022. I had the chance to visit the program and meet the people that make this association an amazing one. Tom Hewitt is a much-respected person in Durban and in the world of surfing. He manages the organisation in a very good and healthy way. He has a good relationship with the whole crew and every single child that takes part in the project. The surf house is in a very good state and the children can access internet with the computers. They receive meals daily.
I also had the opportunity to go on a sponsored trip by Dry Robe to Jeffreys-bay with 12 children of the program. The logistic and organisation was very good and thank to Tom the kids had the opportunity to meet famous surfers and spend time with them. The kids were able to surf one of the best waves in the world and this experience gave them even more motivation to stay on the right track.
One of the two social worker Eugene gave me the opportunity to see the backgrounds of the organisation by taking me to different townships and schools. I was able to see what was really going on and how Surfers Not Street Children is changing young people’s life.
Mini the Mozambique director was also in Durban and explained me how the program in Mozambique works. I have not yet had the chance to go there but it looks like the staff and the whole association is on point there too.
Something that surprised me is that many children had the opportunity to travel to many countries and continents thanks to SNSC. It is an amazing chance for them to see new things and enlarge their horizon.
When arriving in Durban I did not really know what to expect but from what I can tell and after speaking with different children I can say for sure that Surfers Not Street Children is a life changing organisation. If I had to summarize this association with a few words, I would say that the association is under good hands, that it uses its money wisely, that it continues to help children and people that are not in the program anymore and lastly that it is a much-respected association worldwide.
Max Pelka
Switzerland
August 2022
GIFT endorses the GLIS for its efforts in channeling for women and girls and for promoting the agenda of SDG5.
Please find the link to the full report: please access this LinkedIn post or https://lnkd.in/etkjHb2B
We are very proud to support Tanzanian Children’s Fund (TCF). This NGO is committed to get a community of 10,000 out of generational poverty. It has designed a holistic, multi-pronged, and unique approach that addresses all pieces of the poverty puzzle.
We love TCF’s community-led solution. It evolves around four pillars:
By addressing all sides of poverty, TCF recognises the complexity of one’s life.
It is a privilege to welcome TCF in our portfolio of high social impact organisations.
A great evening with the Lotus Flower where GIFT thanked the founder, Taban Soresh, for being such an incredibly impactful organisation. A privilege to have the Lotus Flower in our portfolio of organisations.
Read the Blog from the Lotus Flower
GIFT is proud to announce its fourth commitment to Surfers Not Street Children (SNSC).
Surfers Not Street Children is a world renowned organisation that empowers street children and children at risk in South Africa and Mozambique.
The Surfers Not Street Children model fuses surfing, mentorship and care. The Organisation has dedicated local teams that include social workers, carers, lifeguards, surf coaches and administrators. Many children empowered by Surfers Not Street Children have transformed their lives. Some have gone from ‘street children’ to becoming coffee baristas, lifesavers, surf shop staff, restauranteurs, surf coaches and even pro surfers.
In this panel on ‘smart philanthropy’, the Lotus Flower will be joined by two inspiring guests from the world of charitable giving: Atalanti Moquette, the founder of Giving Women, and Sophie Pelka, co-creator of the Give It Forward Trust (GIFT).
As part of the Skoll World Forum’s Ecosystem Events, the panel will see Atalanti discussing the growing need to help charities with capacity-building, learning, mentoring and community-building ideas. Meanwhile, Sophie will explore the difference between “heart” and “impact” philanthropy, and present a case for unrestricted and multi-year funding.
The panel chair is Taban Shoresh, CEO of the Lotus Flower, which has to date impacted on 40,000 women and girls through three project pillars aligned to the 2030 SDGs. Representing the on-the-ground community, the Lotus Flower’s Regional Director Vian Ahmed will also discuss the benefits of flexible giving for maximum impacts.
The 60-minute panel will also welcome comments and questions on the topic of smart philanthropy.
GIFT is thrilled to support The Lotus Flower. The Lotus Flower provide women and girls impacted by conflict and displacement with the tools and opportunities they need to rebuild their lives. It was founded in 2016 by Taban Soresh, a child survivor of conflict in Irak, who was rescued with her family in 1980 by Amnesty International.
Taban has incredible energy and values and understands how to help these women and girls. The Lotus Flower operates four centres in the region of Kurdistan where it provides community-led programmes that enable women and girls to heal, learn and grow. To date, the Lotus Flower has impacted over 44,684 women and girls. Their programmes focus on three pillars matching the UN SDGs: Peacebuilding & Human Rights; Health & Safety; Education & Livelihoods.
We have been very impressed by the Lotus Flower and its capacity to impact women and girls through well designed and need-led programmes. It is a pleasure to welcome them in our portfolio. In addition to our financial support, Sophie is helping the Lotus Flower to raise additional funds. A fundraising event will be organised on June 22 in London. More information to come.