Marble Art
Does anyone know where the first four months of the year have gone? It is May already!!!! Which means the fun really begins for us!
It is this time of year where we crunch all the numbers and decide just how many students Propel can help. It was easy 8 years ago when there were just four kids. It wasn’t so bad 6 years ago when there were only 30-something. The 2024-2025 school year will see 160+ kids blessed by everyone who has supported Propel over the years. Yes, 160+!!!!
How does such growth happen? Regarding students…it is easy. We’ve meet up with parents and kids in the villages for registration. This is when we get info on all the kids in the family. So, there is a constant supply of kids getting old enough to start school. Earlier this year we did the first registration for new students in a couple of years. This included at least 30 news students from the Big Pit (we finally got our foot in the door of this Roma village).
One other way is through Launchpad (our preschool preparation program) Mary and Maja are running the workshops now. They are teaching moms and dads how to be their kids’ best first teachers. The whole program is designed to get kids ready to enter the all too unfamiliar and scary world of first grade. So, finding more students is never an issue.
Does any of this help….help? Well, in June we will see the largest number of kids graduating from 8th grade in Propel’s history…14!!! But wait, there’s more….all 14 are going on to high school!!! Speaking of high school, we are proud to say this year we see 5 kids graduating and one is applying for university. So, the answer is….yes.
How can Propel manage to help more and more students? This is always on our minds. We never want to set any false expectations with newly registered families regarding helping their kids. So, we ask. We ask for new sponsors. We ask current sponsors to share about Propel with their friends. We share at churches. We send letters. We send emails. We post on Facebook… and we have our annual fundraiser affectionately known as The H.I.K.E.
This year The H.I.K.E. 2024 will be in Lake George NY. Our intrepid team will be taking on the Lake George 12ster Challenge…a series of 12 Adirondack peaks just waiting to see if we have the right stuff. Looking for more details? Cool….you can check it out >>>>The H.I.K.E.
After we get back from NY the real fun begins!!! Remember those 160+ kids mentioned earlier? Well for each student we need to order textbooks and sort out who gets school supplies, sneakers, bus passes, etc. It can be a bit of a logistical nightmare, but Mary is a pro and when we keep in mind why we do it…it is worth the stress. Thank God (really…not just using the expression) we have the blessing of the wonderful energetic Maja this year!!!
Another couple of blessings in the mix…the students’ parents are “getting it”. They are taking more and more responsibility and even helping out at camp! Plus!!! Plus!! We have been able to partner with one of the local elementary schools. They have introduced us to a new village, allowed us to use space at the school, and some of the teachers are volunteering to help with camps this summer.
Speaking of summer. In July we have the honour of hosting our first team in four years!!! A whole bunch of love disguised as a team from Next Level Church (Fort Myers FL) will be here to help with an Education Camp. We can’t wait!!! The kids love camp, and they get really jazzed when people come from far away to love them! Bless you NLC!!!!!
OK…enough for now. Stay tuned for updates, pix, and more!!!
We are running on faith, but we are not running alone.
Paul and Mary