Corn Heading

Hello Everyone!

Top News

  • You can now watch our DVD online here
  • We have nearly 700 official hosts registered for ESTC!
  • To give us permission to contact your local newspaper about your event click here
  • For details on how to submit donations click here
  • Help us spread the word by our DVD clip to everyone you know: http://www.eatsotheycan.org/about/estc.php
  • Watch Lauren and Colin in a recent interview with Givealittle here

Welcome to the October 2009 edition of the Eat So They Can newsletter - the final edition before the big weekend!

I am sure you are all starting to feel excited and maybe a little nervous! If you have any stressful or challenging moments, be sure to remember what ESTC is all about. I was definitely reminded of this when our partner in Ethiopia recently requested $100 so that he could take the kids at his orphanage on a field trip to the zoo. It really made me proud that together we are not only providing children around the world with food and shelter, but also with opportunities to have an education and to have fun. So, if you burn your cake or it rains at your picnic, take a deep breath and remember that thanks to what you are doing we are literally changing lives. So lets 'Eat and Have Fun So They Can'!

I also want to share a quote with you that I recently came across as I hope it will inspire you and help you feel part of the wider movement to end poverty. During his message delivered on the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty in 2006, former United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan reminded us of the importance of each individual in fighting poverty. Three years later, I believe his message is as powerful as ever: "The campaign to make poverty history—a central moral challenge of our age—cannot remain a task for the few, it must become a calling for the many. On this International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, I urge everyone to join this struggle. Together, we can make real and sufficient progress towards the end of poverty."

I hope you enjoy this edition of our newsletter and that your events are all a great success! Good luck :)

Best,

Courtney
ESTC Co-Founder and GVN Foundation Director

kenya peru kenya

2009 event ideas

With nearly 700 official hosts signed up from all around the world, Eat So They Can has trully become a global event. From Austria to Alaska, Denmark to Dubai, Singapore to Switzerland, this year we have hosts of all nationalities, cultures and backgrounds coming together to take a stand and bring an end to child poverty. I encourage you to check out our world map which shows where all the events are taking place.

priya The range of events being hosted is impressive and I want to share a selection of events that will be taking place this year:

  • Tailgate Picnic at Michigan State University
  • Italian Spaghetti evening with the Omega Phi Alpha Sorority at Western Kuntucky university
  • Black and White Ball with a magician and a Neil Diamond tribute artist in Ballarat, Australia
  • Wine tasting in New York
    • priya
  • High school bake sale in Ontario, Canada
  • Buffet dinner at a hotel in Shanghai, China
  • Student enchillada night in Florida
  • Community barbeque in Singapore
  • Primary school picnic in Lower Hutt, New Zealand
  • Kenyan breakfast in North Carolina
  • Picnic at a retirement complex in the UK
  • African-themed cocktail party in Melbourne, Australia
  • Family dinner party in Mexico
  • Poker tournament in California

Photos and film

sarah We are looking for ESTC photos and video footage. We would really appreciate it if you could take lots of photos of your event and/or video it for us. We would like to use your photos for our website and future ESTC newsletters. We're also hoping to have an online 'how to host' movie next year and we'd love to include some footage from your event on this. So don't forget to get out the camera and capture all of your wonderful eat so they can moments. Please send photos and video footage to:

Get your ESTC event in the media!

All your plans and ideas have the potential to be wonderful stories for the media and Lauren, our Media and Communications Manager, would like to help you get your story into your local paper. This will help you create excitement about your event and also help to spread the word about Eat So They Can and the plight of children living in poverty.

To give Lauren permission to contact your local media on your behalf, please complete our press release form here.

To watch a recent interview with Lauren click here.

UN Special Consultative Status

In the August issue of our newsletter, we announced the exciting news that the GVN Foundation has been granted Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

Over the last few weeks we’ve been learning lots more about what this means and how we can make the most of our new relationship with the UN. Last week Courtney met with Diego Rumiany, a Program Officer in the NGO section of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Diego explained how we will now have the authority to participate in ECOSOC subsidiary body meetings in NYC and Geneva. Colin Salisbury, GVN Foundation Chairman and co-founder says that it is a great honour to be recognised by the United Nations and granted special consultative status.

"Achieving NGO status marks a significant moment for GVN Foundation. We feel privileged to be given an opportunity to lend our expertise and contribute to the United Nations’ target of meeting the millennium development goals and ending extreme poverty by 2015," Salisbury said.

Thank you to all of you who are hosting events and joining the movement to end poverty. For a full media release about our new status, click here.

tracy

The GVN ESTC Event

The GVN staff party is being organized by Tracy and Eliza this year who are planning a big bbq (or Braai as it is called in South Africa). Yum! It’s going to be an action packed afternoon with lots of food, fun, music, dancing and games. We're planning on having a raffle as well as live entertainment from a variety of local artists. If you're in Wellington, NZ and interested in attending, please contact Eliza for more details:

Now all we ask is that the weather behave itself on the day... please!

Grand Prize Trip to Kenya

I want to remind you all that an expense paid trip to Kenya is up for grabs for one lucky host who takes home the Eat So They Can Grand Prize. Also, new for 2009, all hosts who raise more than US$20,000 will also be invited on the trip! The winners will have the opportunity to visit our projects in Kenya. They will have a hand in distributing funds raised from the Eat So They Can campaign as well as have an opportunity to meet the children who will be benefiting - the biggest reward of all. Check out what our winner from last year has to say...

julie"It has been almost a month since I returned home from an incredible six weeks in Kenya. Thank you for your hard work and good wishes to send a person like me to Kenya. About a year ago today, I sat at the same computer I am sitting at now and found your website. I never would have imagined that moment changing my life in such a profound way.

This experience has brought so much depth and value to my life, and my perceptions of the world. It has made me a better nurse and a better person and has given me the confidence I was lacking to pursue goals in international healthcare and relief work. I felt safe and well taken care of the entire time I was in your program. Thank you for investing in sending an ESTC host to participate fully in distributing funds. I hope that your investment will pay off in the ripple effect that has taken place in my life. I am making changes in my life to reach out and help others in a more direct way and encouraging others to do the same. The trip to Kenya was a catalyst for these changes and I am so grateful for the insight I have gained from GVN and VICDA." - Julie Di Franco, Grand Prize Winner 2008

For more details on eligibility for the Grand Prize trip, please click here.

Recipe - Mundazi

Mandazi (also known as Maandazi or Ndao and sometimes called Mahamri or Mamri) are East African donuts. You can find these delicious donuts in large urban areas and also among the Swahili people of East Africa. Most small restaurants, called hotelis in Kenya, serve mandazi. You can also find mandazi being sold by street vendors. mandazi

Ingredients

1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
2 cups white flour
2 tsp. baking powder

Method

Bring all ingredients to room temperature before mixing them together. Mix all the ingredients together, adding more flour if necessary. The dough should be soft, but not sticky. Roll the dough on a lightly floured board until it is about 1/4 inch think. Cut into triangles and fry in hot oil. Fry until both sides are golden brown. Remove mandazi from oil and drain on paper towels or newspaper. Mandazi are best served warm.

Variations

  • Sprinkle some powdered sugar over the hot mandazi.
  • Add about a 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, ginger, all-spice, or cardamom to the dough or a combination of these spices to total a 1/2 teaspoon.
  • Substitute pineapple, orange, or lemon juice for the milk.
  • Add some shredded coconut to the dough.
  • Add ground peanuts or ground almonds to the dough.

Dates for your calendar

16 October: World Food Day

The day before the ESTC weekend marks World Food Day, designed to increase awareness, understanding and informed, year-around action to alleviate hunger. With an estimated increase of 105 million hungry people in 2009, there are now 1.02 billion malnourished people in the world, meaning that almost one sixth of all humanity is suffering from hunger.

17-18 October: THE weekend!

The official ESTC weekend! Good luck and have fun!

31 December: Last day to submit donations

The last day to submit donations if you wish to be eligible to enter the Grand Prize Draw or the $20,000 challenge.

15 January: Winners announced!

The Grand Prize trip winners will be announced!

A special thank you

We would like to extend a huge thank you to all the restaurants and businesses that are supporting Eat So They Can this year. A special thank you to:

  • Logan Brown Restaurant, Wellington, NZ
  • Downstage Theatre, Wellington, NZ
  • Briscoes, Wellington, NZ
  • Paramount Cinema, Wellington, NZ
  • Wellington Bungy, Wellington, NZ
  • Amalgamated Video, Wellington, NZ
  • Unichem Pharmacy, Wellington, NZ
  • Caucus Restaurant, Wellington, NZ

Handy ESTC links