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Back in eNzinga

We are back in eNzinga again. To spend the evening sitting on the grass mats around the fire pit in the middle of the main mud round and catch up with the Zumas again, is amazing. A few quick thoughts because we’re exhausted and have a long day tomorrow:
– Fantastic meeting with Food and Trees for Africa (FTFA) this morning before we left Jo’burg. Good organization. Real good partnership opportunities. Very exciting.
– Seeing Miranda and Patrick, the young program manager from FTFA, get excited about the potential future of young people, and their power to form that future was something I was very happy to be able to hear and watch.
– After alternatively spelling the name of the village we live and work in Nzinga, Inzinga, and iNzinga over the last 2+ years, tonight, when driving down the dirt road here, we saw a new sign that simply read eNzinga. Well, at least now we’ve seen it officially written somewhere…
– I know we were ready to get a break from the heat of July in Atlanta, but it is extremely cold here tonight, which makes the walk to the outhouse seem pretty far. It’s all relative.
– Talking to Nonjabulo tonight was awesome. She really has taken on the leadership role; she knows the people, the issues, has a great sense of the needs, the best way to solve them, and can really articulate it clearly. She is a strong, smart woman, and a great asset for her community, and our nonprofit. We could not have done better in our first and most important employee. The impact she will have on other women in this village through her example has the potential to fundamentally alter lives. Simply inspiring.

More soon!

MORE auction items — they just keep coming!

Art collectors rejoice!   Isipho has just received three awesome pieces of art for the Celebrating Hope silent auction next weekend.    

Choose from a 20” X 24” oil on canvas by Kim Karelson;

 a 23” X 30” acrylic on glass by Mark Karelson;

 or a 25 3/8” x 32 7/8” signed Itzchak Tarkay serigraph.

The Karelsons are good friends of ours (they’re attending the event!), and their daughter, Katie, is one of my close friends and is volunteering as the stage manager during the event! Be sure to check out the awesome art!

Miranda

P.S.  28 hours until Nonjabulo gets here!!!!!!!

Bono on Aid in Africa (Maybe we could get him to work with Isipho? :D)

“Aid, it’s clear, is still part of the picture. It’s crucial, if you have H.I.V. and are fighting for your life, or if you are a mother wondering why you can’t protect your child against killers with unpronounceable names or if you are a farmer who knows that new seed varietals will mean you have produce that you can take to market in drought or flood. But not the old, dumb, only-game-in-town aid — smart aid that aims to put itself out of business in a generation or two. “Make aid history” is the objective. It always was. Because when we end aid, it’ll mean that extreme poverty is history. But until that glorious day, smart aid can be a reforming tool, demanding accountability and transparency, rewarding measurable results, reinforcing the rule of law, but never imagining for a second that it’s a substitute for trade, investment or self-determination.”

- Bono   –  in an Op-Ed column in the NY Times

Wow. Well said, Bono! And we’re not only blogging about this because we love that U2 walks on, but because this is yet another person who realizes that giving a man a fish is not the solution! We must teach the man how to fish. This idea is spreading, and hopefully, very soon, people will learn to take the time, and work with the people in need instead of dropping bags of rice that postpones death one more day.

I am you and you are mine
Love makes no sense of space
And time…will disappear
Love and logic keep us clear
Reason is on our side, love…
   — U2 — Miracle drug. The first song that dad and I listened to leaving the village in 2008, and probably the reason I wanted to start Isipho. There is love, and power there that can break out!

To read the full article; http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/18/opinion/18bono.html?pagewanted=1&hp

Peace and love!

Miranda

Update….

Hello readers!

Two more weeks until Nonjabulo gets here! Two weeks and a few hours! We can’t wait, and were very excited for her arrival! I am counting down the days. It is worth waking up at 3 AM on a Friday morning to go to the airport

Silent auction items; autographed items!

Item #3!

Autographed Virginia Willis Cookbook! A cookbook of Virginia Willis, her daughter, and her grandaughter;                 Bon Appetit, Y’all: Recipes and Stories from Three Generations of Southern Cooking

Willis’ “simple is best” philosophy is what made her not only Atlanta’s favorite chef, but an international icon.

Item #7!

Get Slaughtered at the Beach! Ten of Karin Slaughters best-selling novels, each autographed, in a lovely beach bag to take with you on a trip to the beach!  “Karin Slaughter is one of the best crime novelists in America” — The Washington Post

Item #20!

Autographed John Smoltz Baseball! This baseball was autographed right on the sweet spot by Atlanta Braves superstar and Futire Hall of Famer John Smoltz. No certificate of authenticity is included, as this baseball was hand-signed at a game and handed directly fro John Smoltz to its recipient. Includes acrylic display case.

awesome!

Celebrating Hope — Auction items! (Miranda)

In preperation for the event, I have decided to post about 2 Silent Auction Items per week, just to let you all know what we have in store for our event guests!

OUR FIRST SILENT AUCTION BLOG ENTRY—-
Item #1 –
A gift certificate for Pixorium, enough to make a 10-15 minute DVD show of your photos and choice of music to honor a loved one or celebrate an big event!
INCLUDES; +Approximately 100 photos
                        +3-5 pieces of music
                        +Basic photo correction, panning and zooming
                        +A data disc with the scanned photo images

http://pixorium.com/
Cool, huh?
aaand

Item #2 -
One week at a Big Canoe Mountain Cottage!!
Three bedroom, 2.5 bath cottage in Big Canoe, Georgia. Just over one hour away from Atlanta, but feels farther!
Explore beautiful waterfalls, creeks, go hiking, and come home to a stone and gas log fireplace! No smoking, and no pets!

www.vrbo.com/44161

We have a bunch more! Cottages in Europe. Signed baseballs, pictures, and books. Gift certificates, and even something very close to the heart of the starting of Isipho Inc. PLUS something AWESOME for the event!!!
Keep checking back in!  For the whole list, and more info about the event, please visit www.isipho.org/hope. 
And thanks for reading!

Miranda

Incredible First Board Meeting

(Miranda) Tonight we had our first board meeting! The energy was great, and everyone got along really well. We had a nice time talking about how each of the members got involved, making a nice toast, and munching on South African foods. We also covered a great deal, some which was on our agenda, such as when our meetings should be, and what we will do during said meetings. We also covered a lot of other stuff, and threw some ideas into the Isipho Cauldron of Wisdom and Ideas ©. I really think this is a good foundation for our board! Off to sleep! I want to be rested for my Friday!

Miranda

P.S.  The Isipho Cauldron of Wisdom and Ideas is not actually copyrighted. I made that with skill and craft, and witty expertise (copy and pasting).