alternative giving
Give the gift of hope this Christmas
Last Christmas one family raised an amazing £1,000 for iThemba. Could you do the same?
The idea was simple. Rather than buying the usual Christmas presents for each other, they donated the money they would have spent on presents to iThemba instead. Now we’re not a big enough charity to be producing fancy alternative gift websites where you can donate to “buy” a cow, toilet or water tap for someone special. That wouldn’t be a good use of resources for us. All we ask is that you discuss this idea with your friends and family, pool your contributions and then send in a cheque for the total raised.
This gift is for life not just for Christmas
You will be bringing hope for today, tomorrow and eternity to people affected by HIV and AIDS in Burundi, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa and Tanzania. The work that our partner projects carry out faithfully throughout the whole year provides practical, emotional and spiritual support to people in their local communities.
Our partner Izandla Zethemba sent us a letter written last Christmas by a parent who is HIV-positive and has three children in one of the support groups. She was writing in appreciation of the ongoing work and a Christmas party attended by her children: "I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart. I was so surprised when my kids showed me the gifts they received. I know there are other groups that are involved and I would like to send them our big thanks – they bring smiles and hope that there are people who love the children even when their parents are no longer with them."
Here’s an idea of the impact your gift can have:
£300 or $600 buys gardening equipment for an agricultural initiative to ensure food security for families in South Africa.
£500 or $1,000 buys a year's nursing supplies for a home-care team in South Africa.
£1,500 or $2,700 enables the production of 1,000 sets of devotional material for teenagers affected by HIV and AIDS in South Africa.
£2,500 or $5,000 pays the salary of a full-time youth worker in a South African community school for six months.
And it doesn’t have to stop at Christmas. You may like to use this idea when celebrating a special birthday or anniversary as well. We would be happy to supply you with some iThemba thank you cards for you to send to those who contributed.
How to give
Please send a cheque made payable to “iThemba AIDS Foundation” to iThemba, Widcombe Manor, Church Street, Bath BA2 6AZ. Thank you so much for your support.
