Ethiopia

I have a new favorite charity!  Charity Water.

Their mission is to bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations.  They give 100% of the money raised to direct project costs, funding sustainable clean water solutions in areas of greatest need. And they also work to raise awareness of the water crisis through events, fundraising exhibitions and other public awareness campaigns.

Clean water won't fix all the world's many problems, but it's hard to even start fixing the others if people don't have the basic need of water.

Ethiopia's numbers are staggering. Only one in every four people in Ethiopia have access to clean water. There are more people in Ethiopia without clean water than any other country in Africa. Women bear the brunt of water shortage. Many women in Ethiopia walk up to 3 hours, carrying 40-pound jerry cans filled with polluted water that is likely to make them sick. And many girls never get an opportunity to go to school because the responsibility of collecting water takes precedence.  Right now Charity Water is working to provide 333 wells in Ethiopia. 

Charity Water is running a campaign in the month of September to fund these 333 wells in Ethiopia.  They are asking that people with September birthdays have all moneys donated to Charity Water instead of gifts.  Can you help?

Their site has photos and video which show the great needs but also the wonderful Ethiopian culture. And they have already drilled the first well!!

Celebrations are always better with friends!
We are blessed to have a great and GROWING group of families who have or are adopting from Ethiopia in our region.  Yesterday, Ethioguatemama and Ethioguatepapa, of Casa de Chaos, opened their home to all of us to celebrate the Ethiopian New Year, Enkutatash. We had lots of new members in attendance... I think I counted 13 families, 6 families have their child(ren) home from Ethiopia.  People drove from 2-3 hours from two different directions to converge together.  We were able to share photos, items, food, and stories. The few dozen kids played together and had a blast!!

Coffeybunny was there with SJ and B.  Easties were there. The A Team was there. The M family was there with their new daughter Rusie. We were able to meet Robyn and the Inmans for the first time, along with a half dozen other new families who don't have blogs.

Really and truly, I can't tell you how much of a blessing this group is. We have been home with Miriam almost three years (making our family the first ET adoption of the group) and only in the last 9 months have we had these connections.  It feels so good to finally have the physical, real life connections.  Now if we just didn't have to drive 2 hours. :)   If you're in East/ East central TN,adopting from Ethiopia, and you're looking for a group come join us.

Happy New Year.... Ethiopian that is!!  Today is Enkutatash, the Ethiopian new year.  It is now 2001 in Ethiopia.
We will be celebrating with our local Ethiopian adoption group this Saturday afternoon. This promises to be our largest get together yet... I can't wait!

Looking to buy Ethiopian items and help out a good cause?  Check out this little online store. They have clothing, jewlery, toys, decor, and other Ethiopian items. All proceeds go to benefit Ethiopian Orphan Relief. Check it out.

I have an online acquaintance who made me aware of a child sponsorship program in Ethiopia. This woman knows the family that started and operates this program very well and can verify that they are legit.  Coolest part is 100% of sponsorship money goes to the child! That's amazing!! Here is the summary of what they do:

Adoption Links

• CHSFS (our adoption agency)
• CHSFS Forum (great forum for CHSFS families)
• Ethiopia Adopt Yahoo group (for all interested in ET adoption)
• Ethiopia Adoption FAQ (mainly a CHSFS family site but good info)
• East Tennessee Ethiopia Adoption Yahoo Group (for families in Eastern TN)

Here are a few Ethiopian Links.
Ethiopa World Factbook- Great facts site
Ethiopia Menus & Recipes- All about Ethiopian food. Yumm.
Imperial Ethiopia- A great site on Ethiopian histroy