Kenya 2011: Embarking on Trip Number 4

Spanda Inc. is excited to embark on its fourth trip to Kipkaren, Kenya. The team will leave Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on January 12th and will return January 26th.
The 2011 team includes: Mark and Lauren Cannon; Jim and Joan Chalupsky; Sharon Dieter, Carolyn Hamilton; Jennifer Pershing; and Dr. DeAnn Fitzgerald.

This year’s team will focus on the following goals:
· Installation of an industrial chlorinator for use at the clinic well
· Soil testing and analysis for a possible passion fruit farm
· Irrigation strategies and methods for crop production
· And, 500 dolls hand-knitted by Cedar Rapids, Iowa, volunteers Mary Uthe and Lorie Meyer will be distributed to the village children.

“This is an exciting time for all of us at Spanda Inc. It will be gratifying to see the wells in operation as well as the new dental chair being used at the clinic! A huge thank you to everyone supporting Spanda with your time, money and positive thoughts as we embark on this awesome journey," said Spanda Inc. founder, DeAnn Fitzgerald.

Clean Water at the School

Last month's Dental Banquet was huge, we are still so greatful for all those who participated and made the fundraiser a success. However, a new dental chair at the Kipkaren Clinic wasn't the only exciting thing to happen last month. September also brought clean water to the Chebaiywa School. Check out these amazing pictures to see how excited the school children were.

KipKaren has a dental chair!

Saturday was the big banquet! We had a great turnout with over 250 people present in the ballroom of the Crowne Plaza. Local channel 9 news anchor, Beth Malicki was our Mistress of Ceremonies; and both Dr.'s DeAnn Fitzgerald and Karen Besler gave presentations. The night included a fabulous silent auction with over 60 items and a live auction with 6.

Thanks to our awesome sponsors and our many volunteers who worked to make this event a success, we were able to meet our goal and send a brand new dental chair to the KipKaren Clinic! Jeremiah is still in training, but when he gets back to the clinic he will now have a great place to treat his patients.

Downtown Farmer's Market

Spanda Inc. will be at the Cedar Rapids Downtown Farmer's Market tomorrow morning, Saturday August 7. We hope you will come see us at our booth and learn more about our fundraisers and projects to help our friends in KipKaren. Don't forget, we have the KenYa See MY Future In Your Eyes Dental Banquet coming up next month. Visit www.spandainc.com to learn more about how you can attend or donate!

Dental Services are Vital!

Won’t you help us help others? Here is the type of dental services currently received in Kipkaren, Kenya:

“Today at the clinic, we saw some interesting patients. We saw a boy with an infected tooth cavity and he needed to get it removed. The extraction was intense and pretty hard to watch. There was no dental chair, spotlight or x-ray machine. Teeth must just be pulled. I watched as the dentist just climbed over behind the poor boy with one leg up and loosened, then yanked the tooth out.”
~Nursing Student at Kipkaren Clinic (8-11-09).

September 18, 2010, is the KenYa See MY Future In Your Eyes Dental Banquet at Crowne Plaza in downtown Cedar Rapids. Tickets can be purchased by going to www.spandainc.com or by contacting Dental Associates, (319) 363-0267; Dr. Fitzgerald & Associates, (319) 366-3500; or Spanda Inc., (319) 364-2311. All proceeds will benefit the Kipkaren Clinic and help them to receive those vital dental services. Tickets are $40, $25 fair market value, or $350 for a table of 10. The evening will include a live and silent auction, and feature Kenyan food. Hope to see you there!

Find your May Basket Treasure

Help Spanda Inc. raise money for the Kipkaren, Kenya health care clinic by attending our garage sale on May 1st from 8 AM-3PM at 1925 Parkland Drive in Ely. Be prepared to find almost anything at this "cadillac" of garage sales: children's clothes/toys; holiday decorations; tools; fresh baked cinnamon rolls; and much, much more. You are sure to find a perfect "May Basket" gift.

"Life is not a dress rehearsal"~Rose Termain

For the people living in the village of Kipkaren, Kenya, what a true statement. Each day they go about the business of surviving. When the Spanda team visited and worked at the clinic and in the village this past October, it was a common sight to see the villagers carrying water on their heads, bundled tree limbs on their bikes (if they had a bike) so they could boil the dirty water they had retrieved from a ditch or the river, all in the effort to survive. Amazingly, they did so with smiles on their faces and praises of thanksgiving for another day.

Julie McGowan who founded the Living Room, a nonprofit dedicated to providing hospice care for the villagers of Kipkaren who are facing life-ending illnesses, recently provided some sobering statistics on the stark and harsh realities of poverty. Did you know?

• According to UNICEF, 24,000 children die each day due to poverty. And they"die quietly in some of the poorest villages on earth, far removed from the scrutiny and the conscience of the world. Being meek and weak in life makes these dying multitudes even more invisible in death."
• Water problems affect one half of all humanity.
• Almost 2 in 3 people lacking access to clean water survive on less than $2 a day, with 1 in 3 surviving on less than $1 per day.
• Millions of women each day spend several hours a day collecting water. (UN Human Development Report, 2006).

You bet life is no dress rehearsal.

What does that mean for you and for me? I believe it is telling us that if life were truly a dress rehearsal, we could have many do-overs, several takes, before we got things absolutely right. But we don't. We have this one chance. And with this one chance, we should seize the opportunity to put our hearts, our knowledge, and our passion to work together for the advancement and betterment of all.

If you would like to learn more how to support this village and be a part of the Spanda team, please visit our website at http://www.spandainc.com/. There are many opportunties for all of us to work together to be a part of one of life's greatest acts. You will receive much more than you give!

"Water Is Life!"

"The truck arrives to start drilling the borehole"

At 3:25 AM on March 18, 2010, the Kipkaren well project officially began! Michelle Kiprop, clinic director, reported on the arrival of the trucks and the resounding cheers of the villagers shouting "Maji ni uhai ~Water is Life". By the end of April, the pump should be supplying fresh, clean water!

We will provide updates as we receive them.

A heartfelt thanks to everyone who has made this possible--and to Dr. Fitzgerald for her fervent perseverance in making this a reality!