Reflections of a Week in Celebration

Issah, Gifty and Rose look over
Stories From The Streets

From the walk, to the book launch and then the homecoming celebration, we have had quite an extraordinary week. One of the biggest delights that I had was watching the Street Girls Aid staff looking through Stories From The Streets and finding a photo, or a statistic or a story that made them smile. As we sat on the steps, Issah, Rose and Gifty ran through the names and stories of some of the girls featured in the book and reminisced.

These lovely book bags made by the girls in the
S.Aid commemorative fabric
will be available for a limited time

  

Mary reviews the facts in Stories From The Streets
in this photo she is reading about why children
come to the streets.

In the sewing room where we were picking up our outfits and book bags made from the commemorative fabric, Mary, reviewed the statistic tables about street children and then read them aloud to the others listening.

The C/Kathys were mistaken for twins
and here with Vida triplets

 And then at the homecoming, some of the women featured in the book conducted a mentoring workshop for the girls currently in the refuge offering firsthand hope and inspiration. The energy and celebration activities were electric and joyous.

One of Cathy Smith's highlights included the recognition of staff, this clip demonstrates the approval of the girls when Ma Rose received her award.

We have so many things to share from this exceptional trip and I would like to leave you with this thought - when you purchase the book Stories From the Streets, you are supporting Street Girls Aid and their work. If you want to host a book gathering, a reading, a book signing, in a library, your home, your church or community group - we will be happy to create those opportunities - so please ask away, I can assure you that you will be glad you did. Be looking for more information about events at locations near you, and send a message using the contact form to invite someone to come to your community and share the multi-faceted book, behind the scenes videos and lots of extra goodies.

Street Girls Aid, "Serving Street Children - Impacting Generations"

Street Girls Aid 20th Anniversary Cocktail Party and “Stories From The Streets” Book Launch

You Are Cordially Invited to the

Street Girls Aid 20^th Anniversary Cocktail Party and

“Stories From The Streets” Book Launch

June 30^th 2015

6:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Salma Auditorium

Best Western Premiere

Accra Airport Hotel

17 White Avenue

Accra, Ghana

$50 USD in advance/$65 USD at the door

2014 marked the 20^th Anniversary of Street Girls Aid work of serving street children on the streets of Accra. This milestone offers an opportunity to celebrate and look back on the impact of the organization as well as reflect on the importance of S.Aid to many children on Accra’s streets. Reflection, impact and celebration will all be on the agenda at this 20^th Anniversary Cocktail Party.

The book launch of Stories From The Streets will be celebrated during this 20^th Anniversary celebration. This book is a passionate celebration of Street Girls Aid. Twenty inspiring stories represent the many thousands of children who have gone through the S.Aid programs, and the twenty years that S.Aid has consistently served children on the street. Written by Rotarian Kathy Stutzman, with Introduction by Rotary District 5960 Past District Governor Cathy Smith, the book supports Street Girls Aid’s efforts.

There will be a short program celebrating Street Girls Aid, its founders, staff and supporters as well as a book signing for “Stories From The Streets. Join us for food, entertainment, refreshments, 20^th Anniversary commemorative goodies and readings from the book.

The Anniversary Party and Book Launch is limited to 70 people, so please reserve your seat today. If you are unable to attend, we will be offering live-streaming opportunities; your ticket fee will be donated to the Street Girls Aid Legacy Fund. And, if you are interested in supporting Street Girls Aid Staff at this event, 12 tickets are available for sponsorship. Register at Eventbrite: Book Launch

If you would like to purchase the book prior to the book launch, you may do so by clicking on this link: Stories From The Streets

To learn more about Street Girls Aid, for more information about this event, or to learn about other 20^th Anniversary Celebration events (200 Feet Walk – June 27^th or the S.Aid Homecoming - July 2^nd) contact Vida Asomaning Amoako or Irene Engmann at 233 0208154807 or 233 0244611703 or via e-mail at streetgirlsaid@yahoo.com or Kathy Stutzman at 011 507 2190912 or kastutzm@smig.net

Follow all of the activities and events on Facebook at: Street Girls Aid on Facebook or Return to Ghana: www.csksghana.blogspot.com

Celebrate 20 Years...Impact Generations...The Time Is Now

Street Girls Aid 20th Anniversary Fabric

Dear Friends -

I am writing to you because you supported one of the three prior grants for the Street Girls Aid Ghana project which was featured in the August 2014 “Rotarian” magazine.  Thank you for that support!  The grants helped us achieve far more than we dreamed.  As a direct result of the strategic planning work that we conducted at Street Girls Aid, they are holding a week long 20^th Legacy Celebration in June involving all of their international and local partners.  Contact me or go to SAid’s Facebook page for more information if you are interested in participating.

Today, I am writing to you for a related reason.  During the strategic planning the Street Girls Aid management team identified the need to seek out former street children and interview them in an effort to find ways to improve services, as well as to learn about the impact of their accomplishments.  They spent the past year doing just that and have accumulated some amazing stories of impact.

Street Girls Aid has asked me to help them compile these stories into a book and then publish the book so that these powerful stories can be shared globally.  I have agreed.  But to accomplish this monumental and important task, I need your help!

Our team has launched a Kickstarter to help underwrite the costs associated with the writing, editing, publication and distribution of the book, as well as the funding of the book launch in Ghana as part of the Anniversary celebration. To comply with the Kickstarter rules, I have launched the project in my name as a writer because I have experience and will be spearheading the efforts.

Additionally, I am charging the project for only a small portion of my time and hourly rate as a means of contributing to the project and keeping expenses down.  (Kickstarter rules do not allow me to back my own project financially - so reducing my charges is a way I can contribute indirectly.)  I have cleared my calendar and am not taking any new work for the next two months while this producing the book.

The most important thing about this Kickstarter project is that the proceeds from the book will benefit Street Girls Aid.  The book will be sold on Amazon and some of the benefits of bringing this book to the publisher unencumbered are a greater opportunity for global distribution and an increased revenue stream and visibility for Street Girls Aid.

Kickstarter may be new and unfamiliar to you.  It does not run fundraisers; rather, it connects backers and participants with artistic and innovative projects like publishing “Stories from the Streets.”  Its web page is easy to use.  Pledges are not redeemed unless the project is fully funded and time is extremely limited.  The Kickstarter for “Stories from the Streets” ends on May 10^th and I am writing to ask you to participate in getting this important book into print and available on Amazon.

You can follow this link -  http://kck.st/1It8o36 - or go to the Kickstarter home page and put my name, Kathy Stutzman, into the search and you will find a site loaded with info about the project including videos and photos.

Please contact me if you need more information or have questions. This opportunity is important and will provide Street Girls Aid with increased engagement, visibility and funding. Thank you for becoming a backer of “Stories from the Street!”

Thank you – Kathy Stutzman