ART FOR AFRICA: fundraising for children education in Africa

The second chapter of Wisdom Spring’s vision is education. Currently in Africa, the rate of education is very low. Burkina Faso comes among the last, with about 22 to 27% of its people receiving any formal education. This is even less so in remote villages where the rate is often 2-3%. Burkina mainly has public schools, except for a few private schools established for wealthy people and foreigners. In theory, education is free in Burkina. But in fact, even the public schools require a parental contribution to enroll each child, and this, along with the cost of books and other school needs, is more than many families can afford.

Once enrolled, there are still many obstacles to succeeding in school. These include accessibility of schools (some children are many miles from the nearest school, and have to walk), having means to keep up with school dues, trying to concentrate with an empty stomach, overcrowded classrooms (sometimes first grade has over 100 students with only one teacher), and the quality of teachers and administrators, which often suffers, particularly in rural areas.

Also, from first grade to 13th grade (Burkina has 13, not 12) a student who is lucky enough to attend school will have to pass three (3) required tests, at the end of 6th, 10th and 13th grade. Each student is required to pass these three tests to continue. If they fail, they can only repeat the test one more time at the end of the following school year. But if they fail again, then they are out, with no further access to education. These tests systems, along with the lack of financial means and lack of schools in some areas, have left some children wandering the streets or migrating to neighboring countries.

The good news is that a relatively small amount of money by Western standards can make a tremendous difference, bringing education to many. Our first fundraiser for the education project -- a silent auction called Art for Africa --was held on April 22, 2006 in Davis, CA. This project is spearheaded by Catherine Liikala, a 16 years old who is living her dream through art & 14 year old her sister Carolyn Liikala. They are assisted by other teenagers who want to make a difference. Please consider donating your art, asking your friends for art donation and/ or coming to join us at the silent auction.

WE INTEND TO CONTINUE HOSTING THIS FUNDRAISER EVERY YEAR. LET US KNOW IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HOST ONE IN YOUR AREA.

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WISDOM SPRING, INC.
And
ART FOR AFRICA
Present

AFRICA ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
AT THE INTERNATIONAL HOUSE

DAVIS, CA

April 22, 2006

Benefactor Commitment Form

Name of individual authorized to make commitment: ____________________________
Print name of individual(s) or business as it should appear in printed materials:
________________________________________________________________________


Address: ________________________________________________________________


City: __________________________________ State: __________ Zip: _____________

Phone: ________________________________ Fax: _____________________________

Email: __________________________________________________________________

Level of Commitment: $

$25 Sends a child to elementary school for one year
$50 Sends a high school student to school for a year
$100 Allows two high school students to attend school for a year
$200 Allows a high school student to attend school for 4 years
$250 Funds schooling and supplies and Donor name goes on T-shirt
$500 Funds schooling and supplies and Donor name goes on Banner and T-shirt
$ For

- I would like to donate the following art piece Value: $

- I would like to buy an Art For Africa t-shirt: Children $10.00 Adults $25.00 $____________

- Checks/cash payments:† Please make all checks payable to Wisdom Spring, Inc. and mailed to: PO Box 542, Leesburg, VA† 20178

- All Art donations must be mailed to: Wisdom Spring, Inc.
5960 South Land Park Drive # 200 Sacramento, CA 95822-3313

*** To be one of our sponsors, please fill out a commitment form to ensure inclusion on the T-shirts and Banner. NOTE WE WILL NOTIFY YOU FOR THE NEXT AUCTION.