Stop n'donate
So Alexa decided to raise money for the UN Refugee Agency and World Refugee Day, an annual celebration of the strength, resilience, and contributions of the world’s refugees. Along with her friend Ava, Alexa set up outside her neighborhood Super Stop and Shop in Simsbury, CT one Saturday morning and asked grocery shoppers to donate to the lifesaving programs of UNHCR. In one morning, the girls raised over $250. Alexa wrote a letter to her classmates, entitled Kids can Help the World, and asked them to join her by bringing spare change to class or coming to the local Stop and Shop with their parents. UNHCR is lucky to have advocates, just like Alexa and Ava, who are willing to donate their time and money to help the millions of refugees worldwide. To find out what you can do, visit our community fundraising page and organize an event in your neighborhood.
Dedicated to her family
In 1992 the Bosnian War enveloped a small town named Bugojno where Damian Brundage-Guinn's cousins, aunts, uncles and grandmother, a mix of Serbians and Croatians, had spent their entire lives. Over the proceeding months, they were forced to flee for their lives or fight against those they called friends.
Of those in her family who could escape, ten people crowded into the one-bedroom apartment of a relative in Austria. Conditions were unbearable as her family sought a country that would accept refugees and still allow them the opportunity to support themselves. Once the United States refused to allow her relatives entry, Damian and her parents left the United States and relocated to Germany in hopes of providing security and a future for her entire family. It was pitch black the night her parents showed up with her grandmother, aunts and young cousin. Other family members had sought refuge elsewhere in Austria, while the rest remained to fight in Bosnia. Damian watched as her family lost its pre-war life--friends, family, education, career, the ability to guarantee food, safety and shelter--virtually overnight. To honor the losses of her family and millions like them, and to help people facing similar horrors today, she plans to run a half marathon on May 31st. To date, she has succeeded in raising $870.00 in donations for USA for UNHCR and plans to meet her goal of $1,000.000 before the race.
The Bosnian War resulted in over 2.2 million refugees. Some returned home, some built new lives in new places, and some, like her uncles and cousins, did not survive. Without the protection and support of the U. N. Refugee Agency during this time, many more in her family would have never even made it out of Bosnia alive.
Today, there are over 32 million refugees worldwide, almost half of which are children. Each day they struggle to find food, water, shelter and medical assistance.
Running this race is Damian's way of raising awareness of the needs of many. She writes, "many of us work in an environment where we are dedicated to protecting our country and the lives of our families and friends, but our efforts do not come without consequences".
Damian thanks all those who work everyday to support those in need and says, "My run is for a bigger race than just my own".
Boston Marathon to Benefit Refugee Children
As Joanna Ritcey-Donohue trained for the Boston Marathon, she decided to dedicate her run to the refugee cause. A mother of two young children, she called, emailed and set up a Facebook Cause asking friends, family and colleagues to donate to ninemillion.org - a UNHCR initiative that provides refugee children with better access to education, sport and technology by 2010. Joanna has run only one marathon previously - 15 years ago. When she finished that marathon in Washington, DC, she vowed to run one marathon every decade of her life after that (30s, 40s, 50s, etc.). She felt it was time once again "to bite the bullet and hit the pavement". As the miles accumulated, though, she craved "some additional inspiration". Joanna decided she needed to make her goal about something bigger than herself and her family. Joanna had worked at USA for UNHCR (the UN Refugee Agency) several years ago, so she decided to set a goal to raise funds for refugees. When she learned about the ninemillion.org campaign, she asked supporters to donate the ninemillion.org campaign in honor of her marathon. The ninemillion.org campaign believes every child has a right to play and a right to learn. Joanna has run hundreds of miles for these children, and raised over $600 for refugee children. Learn more about the ninemillion.org campaign at www.ninemillion.org.
“Hope for Peace” Bracelets
She had been studying metal jewelry making and decided to combine the newly acquired skill with her growing passion to help refugees. The result is the beautiful “Hope for Peace Bracelet”, which Natasha began selling to friends and family and as a fundraiser and is expanding to select stores in the Philadelphia area. Natasha makes the bracelets by hand and donates the entirety of the profits to the UN Refugee Agency. The first few lines on the card accompanying the bracelet read: Hope for Peace Bracelet HOPE. That is exactly what you are giving a child when you buy this bracelet.
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