LittleStars-Luxor

Nov 30, 2007 at 07:52 o\clock

Working in harmony with others

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Luxor, Egypt, children, Egyptian, Food, Bank, Karnak, charity, hospital, manacare, disabled, little, stars, association, funds, poverty, wheelchairs, Association, Muslim

   

Yesterday Little Stars representatives had a very productive meeting with the administrators of Karnak Charity Society and mapped the way ahead for three charities to work together in harmony.  This is a wonderful example of what can be achieved if charities co-operate with each other for the benefit of those they aim to help.  Karnak Charity Hospital, Manacare and Little Stars have a positive attitude to Egypt and the problems that face Luxor’s disabled children and will jointly operate the clinics on both sides of the River Nile. 

   

Little Stars has also been very busy forging links with Egyptian Charitable Associations and on Wednesday of this week, two of the Trustees spent the whole day with senior representatives of a well known Muslim charity assessing the situation in outlying villages on the East Bank that receive no outside help because present funds will not stretch that far.

 

The poverty we witnessed was too intense to adequately describe, but thankfully support for Little Stars has been so superb that we were able to offer assistance.  A decision was quickly made on our supporter’s behalf that instead of sending food parcels here and there we would adopt a whole village and provide help to that village in any way that we could.  We believe that we are in a position to offer support in the form of food parcels, from the Egyptian Food Bank, for up to 100 families per month on a regular basis. 
   
The Egyptian Food Bank is a charitable oganisation that aims to "overcome hunger through accepting monetary, material and moral support from different organizations and individuals to supply appropriate food to the true needy on a continuous basis."  They are doing a wonderful job in providing bags of food at very low cost for people who have nothing where even a small amount of help is gratefully received.   

   

On Sunday Little Stars will be busy again.  In the morning they tour the outer villages of the west bank with the representatives of the same Egyptian Charitable Association, to assess where they can offer assistance.  In the afternoon, the new wheelchairs will be delivered to the west back clinic.  Hopefully the repairs, which were delayed by a Coptic festival, will have been completed by then.  We will report the situation to you in the near future. 

   

Your support is vital if Little Stars work is to continue.

Nov 28, 2007 at 06:32 o\clock

Location of the Clinics

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Luxor, clinics, children, Manacare, Karnak, charity, society, wages

  

While the clinics for disabled children are only part of our work they have aroused interest and we have been asked through Guestbook entries about their location so that visitors can find them more easily.   

   

The clinic on the west bank is in Soel.  To get there you have to get either a taxi or a service car up to the north end of the west bank and head for a village from Quabawy.  Soel is the next village beyond Quabawy.  When you get into Soel the road forks to the left and right.  The clinic is several metres along on the right hand side the right fork.  There is a Manacare sign above the gate and soon there will be a Little Stars sign on the wall. 

   

The East Bank clinic is at Karnak on the ground floor of the building owned by Karnak Charity Society.  The manager is available most days and will explain to you about the clinic and what it, along with Little Stars and Manacare, aims to achieve.  The Manacare sign there is in the process of being replaced and a Little Stars sign will be displayed soon. 

   

If anyone wishes to visit the clinics they will be made welcome.  Little Stars at present pays the salaries of all members of the staff involved in the clinics (twelve people) and for transport to the clinics from outlying villages.    

   

As with most things, the process of renovation is always slower than we would wish it to be especially when religious festivals intervene.  But, the main thing is that progress is being made and all of it is because of your help. The new wheelchairs and walking frames have been delivered and are being taken to the clinic this week.
   
We have been told of supplies of used wheelchairs that are available in the UK but need transportation to Luxor.  If you know of anyone who can arrange tranport for us then please let us know so that the children can benefit from items that are useful to them but have been discarded elsewhere.

Nov 26, 2007 at 09:17 o\clock

Latest Update

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Luxor, charity, manacare, children, disabled, wheelchairs, clinics

 

 

- 
Another month is coming to a close and soon we will have another Newsletter on our main site together with photos of what Little Stars is achieving with your donations.  Donations last week reached £870 which means that you have contributed over £2,000 sterling in the last two weeks.  We cannot express how grateful we are for your help in achieving the Trust’s aims.
    
The hydrotherapy unit was delivered to the west bank clinic this week and gratefully accepted by Dr. Mohammed.  Again I am grateful to Metrospa for helping us choose the right system for the children.  They even made sure that the unit had the right plug on it.  Should anyone else need their help, a link is given below.  This was bought in the UK and brought out to Luxor because we could not get what was needed in Egypt within the same price range.
    
   
The clinics which we have accepted responsibility for were started by and still come under the wing of Manacare.  Manacare is also a British registered charity but works in many countries of the world.  It is at the request of Manacare that Little Stars agreed to ensure that their clinics are running efficiently and have all the equipment that they need.  Manacare have a massive financial commitment to their project in Sri Lanka and we were happy to relieve them of the extra financial responsibility of their Egyptian projects.  It is a wonderful example of what can be achieved if charities work together.  The clinics are just a small part of Little Star’s work as the remit covers all disadvantaged children in Luxor not just those that are disabled
     
Fortunately, Little Stars has now found a local source of wheelchairs and walking frames.  Wheelchairs have been bought for the west bank clinic and we have also purchased equipment that is needed for the children to use in their own homes. Standing frames are easy to get: it is the belts that hold the children into the frames which are difficult to find.  However, we are sure that we will find a source.
      
Providing equipment for children to use in their own homes is an innovation for Luxor where little help is available on an individual basis.  Dr. Mohammed will assess which children will benefit in this way.  Dr. Mohammed is also getting further information on what he refers to as the “Spiderman” unit but which I am sure has a long and complicated name which no layman would ever understand.
     
The other main thrust of Little Stars work has been making sure that underprivileged children can stay warm this winter.  Some families are living in mud houses with palm frond roofs that will not retain heat and there is no protection again the winter cold.  Blankets have already been distributed to these and other needy families.  Warm clothes will be distributed soon although it does seem to be anomalous that cold can be a problem in such a hot country
. 
We cannot do anything at all without your help.   

Nov 19, 2007 at 09:16 o\clock

New Target Set

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Luxor, charity, target, little, Stars, clinic

 
New Target Set
 
Little Stars has had another wonderful week as in addition to the wonderful dollar gift, donations reached an all time high of £1,287
 
£1,287
 
The combined total is over £1,500 for the last seven days.  There is so much that can be done with that money and every pound brings us nearer to opening the clinic at the southern end of Luxor
. 
The new target that we are setting ourselves has been set more in hope than anything else as chickens should never be counted before they are hatched, but who can blame us for reaching for the stars when it is for children who have so little.
   
The new target is for the charity to reach £10,000 by the end of the year.  Please help us to achieve it.

Nov 18, 2007 at 07:49 o\clock

Blog Hit Counter Not Working

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Little, Stars, charity, children, disadvantaged

Our hit counter for this Blog has been stuck on 430 hits for a week now but that is far from a true reflection of the interest in Little Stars and its charity work.
 
The support we have had is tremendous and more volunteers have come forward in Luxor and in the UK with a wish to help Luxor's disadvantaged children.  We cannot thank them enough.

Nov 17, 2007 at 07:44 o\clock

Thank You Everyone

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Luxor, Egypt, disabled, charity, Air, Cairo, school, education, children, medical, Samir, Farag, Customs, wheelchairs, equipment, clinic, west, bank

www.LittleStars-Luxor.org  

Knowledge of Little Stars' achievements is spreading world wide and we wish to offer thanks to an International Organisation for their magnificent donation of $500 which came yesterday.  It has been put towards the cost of buying wheelchairs for children in Luxor.    

We would also like to thank Egypt Air for their generous baggage allowance which allowed us to get the hydrotherapy unit to Luxor without any excess baggage charges.  Sending the unit by post would have cost £160 sterling and this sum can now be used to buy blankets. Cairo’s Customs and Excise people were understanding and no duty was charged on the unit.   

The unit is being delivered to the clinic on Sunday when, in consultation with the clinic’s doctors, an assessment is being made on what further equipment is needed.  We already have details of an exercise bike that has to be made especially to fit the dimensions of disabled children rather than fit adults for whom they are usually made, and this is being sent down from Cairo. Fortunately there is now a medical supplies shop in Luxor and some of the requirements can be bought locally. 

Thank are also due to the English couple that left the pens for the children in a local restaurant.  Stationery items are always needed.  We have been paying school fees for those who really cannot find the money to pay the fees themselves and being able to give the children pens and stationery also lightens their burden. 

Little Stars is a British registered charity, bound by the Charity Commission regulations and Trust Fund laws.  We work in Egypt with the approval and knowledge of all the Egyptian authorities and we wish to again thank Dr. Samir Farag for meeting us and offering his support.  When we began working in Egypt we considered seeking dual registration as an Egyptian charity but then abandoned the idea as we wish to remain a British charity that helps children in Egypt.  Think of the problems Oxfam would have if they had to reregister in every country they worked in.   What would they call themselves in each case?  Where would their headquarters be?  Their wonderful work would grind to a halt simply under the weight of the paperwork.  Little Stars has a job to do and it doing it with success. 

The success of Little Stars is not due to us, it is due to you because without your support we could do nothing.  A UK branch, which will aim to provide medical equipment for disabled children will be operational in January and we hope that you will support that too.   Please keep making your donations, every penny counts.     

Nov 10, 2007 at 09:25 o\clock

October Newsletter

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Little, Stars, Luxor, child, children, charity, newsletter

www.LittleStars-Luxor.org  

 Our October newsletter has been completed and passed to our webmaster for uploading.  Copies of previous newsletters, including those from our old site are available on request.  Just send a large stamped-addressed envelope to our UK registered office and they will be forwarded to you.  Alternatively, e-mail us on contact@LittleStars-Luxor.org and we will send them to you as attachments.

If you know of a child, or a family with children, in Luxor who is in need of assistance then please tell us and we will do our best to help.  Charity is said to begin at home, but to many Luxor is their home.

  

Nov 8, 2007 at 07:42 o\clock

Children In Need

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Luxor, Egypt, children, need, charity, Wogan, BBC, Pudsey, charities, Little, Stars

www.LittleStars-Luxor.org 

Children in Need

November 16th is the BBC’s Children in Need day.  Each year millions of pounds are raised for children in the UK through the efforts of Terry Wogan, Pudsey the bear, the BBC and thousands of fundraisers who are willing to go to great lengths to raise cash for deprived children's charities.

 

While thinking of children in need, please remember those in Luxor Egypt who desperately need your help too.  Little Stars has charity fundraisers who have done a magnificent job but we still need your help.

  

Nov 6, 2007 at 03:53 o\clock

Lest we Forget

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Remembrance, poppy, appeal, charity, Luxor, Egypt

 

 

www.LittleStars-Luxor.org

  

We will always ask you to remember those who are less fortunate than yourself but this week is one of remembrance for those who gave their lives for the freedom of others.  Lest we forget.

 

 They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning,

We will remember them.  

While we still wish you to donate all that you can to Little Stars Luxor, Egypt please remember those who are still serving throughout the world and, through the poppy charity appeal, help them too if you can.. 

http://www.poppy.org/

 

Nov 3, 2007 at 22:05 o\clock

Fantastic Supporters

by: littlestarsluxor   Keywords: Luxor, Egypt, Little, Stars, Nash, wheelchairs, charity, health, cigartettes, risk, help, medicine

 

  

We are stunned by the level of this week’s donations and the magnificant support that you have given to Little Stars.   Your faith in what we are aiming to achieve is inspiring.  In the last six days donations have been :-

 £1,250  

Donations now stand at over £4,800 and less than £200 is needed to reach that initial £5,000 target.  Help us to reach it and give the disadvantaged children of Luxor the support that they need.

 

Help us pay for those wheelchairs that will mean that mothers do not have to stagger under the weight of carrying their growing sons over their shoulders.  Help us buy the equipment that may mean that these children may one day have a hope of walking.  Discard that packet of cigarettes.  Your own health will improve if you do and the money saved will buy enough medicine to give health to others.

 

The poem below is a reprint of a posting that was made on our old blog.  It was written specially for the blog and is as relevant now as it was when it was first posted. 

WHAT IS TOO MUCH?

By J.L. Nash

 

Is it too much to ask

To be blatant enough

To say to you

You have more than they do

To expect you to fill in the gaps

Of waning systems and

Patch over the holes left behind by others

Perhaps it is

 

Perhaps it is easier to read of success stories

And in those moments bolstered by the energy of others

You can reach into the bag or back pocket

Unfold the notes

And dedicate them

Warm in the sharing

It’s good to back a winner

Everyone likes an assured result

No risk.

 

But risk that tiny edge of your own

Existence that is transitory and reclaimable

Not knowing whether the gamble will pay off

Not knowing whether the result will be enough

To patch over or fill

To make you feel warm or cold

To win or lose

Risk it

 

The only surety

If you don’t

Will be the negative space

Where legs might have walked

Where bodies might have moved

Where laughter might have been heard.