10/08/2023 Annual Pickleball
For two consecutive years, thanks to generous donations, we have been able to provide school supplies, stationery, books, uniform, and shoes to all of the children attending our kindergarten, along with those entering grades 1 and 2 at the village preparatory school.
By providing the children with the tools that they need, we have been able to ease the financial burden on their parents and thereby encourage attendance, giving these children the opportunity to gain a proper start to their early years education. In 2020 alone, the number of children enrolling in kindergarten and grades 1 and 2 in the local school doubled after we announced that their school supplies would be provided. Since then, the numbers have risen exponentially and the attendance now stands at the highest it has ever been.
We hope to be able to do the same this year but on an even larger scale. By providing school supplies for as many children as we can in Akurala and its surrounding villages, we hope to roll out the program and further increase the accessibility to education in the area.
So to kick off the fundraising in preparation for the next school year (January 2024), Teagan Galloway (our newest member on the board of trustees!) recently hosted a pickleball tournament over in the Cayman Islands.
Teagan:
“On the 22nd of July we had 16 teams (some who had played before and some complete beginners!) come out to play on a very hot summer’s day. The teams were divided into 4 pools and the games began… After an intense first round, the top 2 pairs went through to the next round. The semi-finals were tense, with children playing their parents, families vs families but after many a battle on the court the top two went through to the final! For the final we had ‘Los fríos hermanos’ (Will P and Ben P) vs ‘The Day Dinkers’ (Nina R and Malin R). They battled through 3 games and eventually the winners of the first annual KFA Pickleball Tournament were decided - Congratulations to Los fríos Hermanos!
It was a full day of fun and thank you to everyone who came out to support, we hope you enjoyed yourselves and see you next year! The winners went home with a shiny new trophy (a jar of pickles) and two lovely shirts kindly gifted from Sandridge Barton. In total we raised over £2000 which is an incredible sum that will make such a difference for the start of the school year in Akurala!”
A HUGE thank you is owed to everyone who helped and supported this fundraiser! We would be hugely grateful for any more donations as we continue to work towards this year’s goal to provide school essentials for as many children as we can in the local area.
