http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor Little Stars is a successful British registered charity that works with orphaned, abandoned, disables and disadvantaged children in Luxor Egypt. en littlestarsluxor littlestarsluxor Tue, 09 Feb 2010 10:03:00 +0100 daily 1 www.Littlestars-luxor.org and www.Littlestarsluxor.com   Little Stars on Ebay At the request of some of our supporters, Little Stars is now a registered charity on Ebay.  The registration with Mission Fish, which is the charitable arm of Ebay, is now complete.  If you are selling items on Ebay, you can support Little Stars simply by nominating Little Stars as your favourite charity and a percentage of your sale will be donated to Little Stars automatically.  Please help if you can as every penny counts and every penny is put to very good use. There are a lot of Egyptian items offered on Ebay, if just a few sellers nominated Little Stars as part beneficiary of a sale, it would make a real difference to the lives of many children in Egypt. Thank You   Tue, 09 Feb 2010 10:03:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Little-Stars-on-Ebay/143/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Little-Stars-on-Ebay/143/ www.LittleStars-Luxor.org   and  www.LittleStarsLuxor.com Wonderful Donations Little Stars has been exceptionally lucky this week as we have received a magnificent donation of £800 from Peter Allingham at Ancient World Tours.  The funds were donated by travellers on one of his most recent tours of Luxor.  We are particularly delighted as it means that more work can be carried out on the new Training Centre. In addition to this sum, we received a cheque for £100 from Barry Ross at Stuart Ross Publishing to be used to help one of the sponsored families.  That particular family, and others, are desperately in need of cookers and this will easily cover the cost of two gas cooker and gas bottles that will be delivered to Haja Marise. To put icing on the cake, we have received a box of lenses from Vision Support in North Wales.  The lenses are for those who are marginally to severely visually impaired and will be shared between the... Fri, 05 Feb 2010 21:57:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Wonderful-Donations/142/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Wonderful-Donations/142/   www.Littlestars-Luxor.org   and  www.LittleStarsLuxor.com Training Centre for village women   We have been able to sign a lease on the premises above the Qurna clinic.  The space will be used to provide classrooms where village women and girls can learn skills which could lead them to self-sufficiency and an ability to care for their families without handouts.  Work will start on preparing the premises in the very near future. Classes will be offered in sewing, beading and weaving, simple hairdressing skills suitable for use among village women, animal care and cheese making, plus basic literacy where possible. We need your prayers that Allah will provide as although we have a donation of £1,000 to start the work, it is going to cost a lot more.  Investigations are being made into the possibility of applying for an EU grant. Without you none of this would be possible.   Sat, 30 Jan 2010 11:07:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Training-Centre-for-Women-and-Girls/141/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Training-Centre-for-Women-and-Girls/141/ www.LittleStars-Luxor.org   and www.LittleStarsLuxor.com Cairo Shopping Trip for Equipment We have been able to buy all the tables, chairs and storage boxes for the new nursery school in Luxor but we had to travel to Cairo to buy all the larger items of equipment.  The items were shipped down to Luxor and we are now just waiting for building work to be completed before everything is put in place. We are now seeking smaller items that are robust and stimulating.  If you have any large-piece jigsaw puzzles that your children have outgrown would you consider taking them out to Luxor with you when you next visit of perhaps post them to the Little Stars UK office so that we can take them out there.  Every little thing helps. While we were in Cairo we were able to buy all the equipment for the new dental surgery.  This arrived in a large wooden crate and will be installed as soon as the necessary plumbing has been completed. ... Thu, 28 Jan 2010 11:19:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Cairo-Shopping-Trip-for-Equipment/140/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Cairo-Shopping-Trip-for-Equipment/140/ www.L ittleStars -Luxor.org   and  www.LittleStarsLuxor.com The Villages We have been out in the villages this week for the first time in 2010.  The baby we have been caring for is now able to hold its head up but the skin infection we have been fighting in a little girl has unforuntately returned and has again spread to her face. Some major repair work is being done in two homes thanks to a donation from Lynne Weyman who is a family sponsor.  A small amount of money goes a long way in Egypt and the donation enables a cement floor to be put in to cover the mud that is there now and will allow the electricity wiring to be replaced and a toilet added.  In Europe this would cost thousands of pounds but in Egypt the cost is small.  There will be some left over for luxuries. Unfortunately the blankets we were hoping to distribute have not been delivered from Cairo so we could not distribute them along with the... Wed, 06 Jan 2010 09:27:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/The-villages/139/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/The-villages/139/ www.LittleStars-Luxor.org   and www.LittleStarsLuxor.com . Happy New Year . On behalf of the many children and families in Luxor who are helped by Little Stars, may we wish you a Happy and Prosperous New Year.  We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our supporters for their extreme generosity in 2009 and for our work to continue in 2010 we are reliant on you for continued support. .  The videos that we took in November have been uploaded with a link on our main website and might be of interest to you.  Our Wish List on the website has also been updated with an indication of the cost of a variety of items being added. .  Donations for the half year to the end of November 2009 reached more than £45,000 and this is a fantastic achievement for a small charity.  We are deeply appreciative. Mon, 04 Jan 2010 00:40:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Happy-New-Year/136/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Happy-New-Year/136/ www.LittleStars-Luxor-ork   and  www.LittleStarsLuxor.com In Memory Donations Life is very hard when you lose a loved one and it is difficult to decide how someone should be remembered.  Little Stars now has an "In Memory" section on the website where people can donate in the memory of those they cared about.  A donation could be for a general or specific purpose and if you wish a piece of equipment in the Nursery School or a room in the Clinic or the Training Workshops could named in their memory. What better way to remember those who have died than by helping those whose lives are still in front of them but have so little to help them on their way.   Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:02:02 +0100 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/In-Memory-Donations/135/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/In-Memory-Donations/135/ www.LittleStars-Luxor.org   and  www.Littlestarsluxor.com Project Developments At the beginning of this month, our clinic was visit by Lord and Lady Carnarvon who accepted a cheque for 25,000 le from Mr. Ehab Gaddis the Honorary Consul.  The cheque was a donation from the British Embassy Port Said Fund towards the completion of a dental facility in the clinic.  Lord Carnarvon added a generous donation of his own to Little Stars and there is now sufficient funding for the project to go ahead. Little Stars has also been given a donation of £1,000 to start Project Libra which involves the setting up of training workshops were widows and girls can learn a trade that will help them earn a living to support their families.  The donation is given in memory of Dorrie Sharp by her daughter Lynne Weyman who is one of our family sponsors. The donation is specific to this project and will be used to start work on completing an area of the floor above... Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:29:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Project-Developments/134/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Project-Developments/134/    www.LittleStars-Luxor.org   and  www.Littlestarsluxor.com    Gas cookers for sponsored families .      We have located a source of second hand cookers in working order. So far we have ordered 10 of them to be cleaned ready for distribution. They are costing 100 le each which is about £11.    This will be a major improvement in many homes as it will allow families to cook without having to make a fire. For others it wil l protect children from burns as the small gas rings are usually on the floor. (Gas is about 6 - 10 le per large canister which would last a couple of months.)    The cookers will be kept in our East Bank Distribution Centre. Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:52:00 +0100 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Gas-cookers-for-sponsored-families/133/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Gas-cookers-for-sponsored-families/133/ www.Littlestars-Luxor.org   and  www.LittleStarsLuxor.com  Little Stars on Facebook Facebook has millions of members and is the the favourite networking site for many people.  Little Stars has a Facebook page which is added to on a very regular basis.  For up-to-date information on the charity's work in Luxor, Egypt, have a look at our page.  Becoming a fan on the site allows us to email you when we have important news.  http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=94512927330&ref=ts Come and join us. Wed, 23 Sep 2009 10:23:20 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Little-Stars-on-Facebook/132/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Little-Stars-on-Facebook/132/     www.LittleStars-Luxor.org    and   www.LittleStarsLuxor.com   Gift Aid and Sponsorship There was a pile of mail waiting to be sorted on return from a recent visit to Luxor, including Gift Aid Forms from new sponsors - thank you everyone.  Gift Aid adds 25% to every donation you make .      Sponsorship makes so much difference to a family and our family sponsors are wonderfully supportive.   In one family we have a new baby girl who is now one month old.   The baby's mother's milk has completely dried up and she cannot feed it.   Baby milk is subsidised in Egypt but she has such a small income that she still could not afford it without a sponsor's help and the baby would without doubt die through malnourishment.   Fortunately we are able to buy the milk the baby needs.   Malnourishment is very different from starvation.   There is... Wed, 09 Sep 2009 08:47:56 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Gift-Aid-and-Sponsorship/131/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Gift-Aid-and-Sponsorship/131/   www.LittleStars-Luxor.org   and  www.LittleStarsLuxor.com   Little Stars Nursery School      Little Stars' nursery school should be able to open in a couple of months.  We intend to start work on the premises next week but will not open until all the paperwork is completed.     In most Egyptian nursery schools there are up to 70 children in each class but we intend to go for quality not quantity and shall aim at 24 - 30 children who will come mainly from our sponsored families.  We hope to be able to teach the children to recognise and write their name as well as the basics of counting and the Arabic alphabet.  The school will not be religiously based and will not teach either the bible or the Koran.  There are other places for that.  Fingers crossed that all the paperwork is completed soon.  We have more than 175... Mon, 24 Aug 2009 10:48:00 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Little-Starfs-Nursery-School/128/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Little-Starfs-Nursery-School/128/ www.Littlestars-Luxor.org   and  www.Littlestarsluxor.com Joined Just Giving Little Stars has joined the Just Giving fund raising group.  It is a site that allows people who have a fund raising idea such as a sponsored event to create their own fund raising page.  In the past, supporters have completed sponsored half marathons and bike rides in aid of Little Stars projects, now they can create their own Internet page and email it to their friends and family.  They can add photos and keep a blog of their training and progress while raising money for a good cause. If you have a fund raising idea then please add it to the Little Stars page on Just Giving.  Thank you. Fri, 21 Aug 2009 10:01:00 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Just-Giving/125/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Just-Giving/125/ www.LittleStars-Luxor.org www.Littlestarsluxor.com    Fund Raising for Vehicle Back in the UK and back to fund raising.  Distributing food and items in Egypt is not easy but raising the funds to do it is even harder.  We can do nothing without our supporters.  Most of our funding comes from the United Kingdom where our Chairman and Honorary Treasurer will soon be attending a Fund-Raising Seminar to see if they can find ways to increase support. There may be a deep recession throughout the world but Little Stars has been lucky.  We now have some of the money required to buy the vehicle Little Stars desperately needs.  The ideal vehicle would be a Toyota Double Cab.  We can get children on the backseat, helpers on the front seat and food parcels or wheelchairs on the back.  Fingers crossed that we will soon have the funds to buy one. With you we can do so much. Without you we can do nothing. Tue, 11 Aug 2009 11:27:23 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Fund-Raising-for-Vehicle/122/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Fund-Raising-for-Vehicle/122/ www.LittleStars-Luxor.org   and  www.LittleStarsLuxor.com - Increasing size of food parcels - On Saturday we deliver food parcels to the village of Haja Marise.  Prices in Egypt are rising again but due to your generosity, we have been able to increase the amount of flour in the food parcels to 5 kgs.    This will mean that extra bread can be made.  We are also able to increase the number of food parcels given to larger families depending on the number of children in the family. A family with between one and four children will receive one food parcel and half a kilo of poultry per person. A family of more than four children will receive the same half kilo of poultry per person but will get two food parcels instead of one. Each parcel containes, 5 kgs flour, 1 kg rice, 1 kg beans, 1 kg sugar, 1 kg macaroni, tea, salt, stock cubes, tomato paste and 1 litre of cooking oil.  Dates will be... Sat, 01 Aug 2009 04:04:00 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Increasing-size-of-food-parcels./120/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Increasing-size-of-food-parcels./120/    www.Littlestars-luxor.org     and   www.LittleStarsLuxor.com .   Wonderful effort. . We have had a lovely surprise.  A little boy of 9 years old was recently in Egypt on holiday and was upset by the poverty of the children.  When he went back home to Devon in the UK he did a sponsored bicycle ride and cycled 22 miles to help the poor children. Remember he is only 9.  He has raised more than £300 for Little Stars.  Well done.  What a magnificent effort and we are very grateful that he and his school thought of us to donate a cheque to. . . Fri, 24 Jul 2009 13:32:00 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Wonderful-effort-from-a-9-year-old-boy./118/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Wonderful-effort-from-a-9-year-old-boy./118/ www.Littlestars-Luxor.org   and   www.LittleStarsLuxor.com     Starting Charities Many people on holiday in third world countries and ones that have been subject to strife, are overwhelmed by the poverty they witness and want to help but do not know how.  When we first started our Blog, we said that we would pass on our experience of starting Little Stars to anyone who was interested in the process.  We are about to compile a small book simply called "So you want to start a charity" outlining our experiences.  If you would like a copy when it is finsihed then let us know. Thu, 16 Jul 2009 10:36:00 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Starting-Charities/117/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Starting-Charities/117/ www.LittleStars-Luxor.org   and  www.LittleStarsLuxor.com Videos on the Little Stars' Website Our chairman is returning to Luxor next week and will be visiting all of our sponsored families.  If she can master the video camera that we have on loan then we shall upload videos onto the website which will give a proper account of what Little Stars is achieving.  It is hoped that eventually there will be a video to accompany every project. If a DVD of our sponsored families can be created then we shall send a copy to every sponsor later in the year. Thank you for your support. With you we can do so much.  Without you we can do nothing.   Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:35:00 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Videos-on-the-website/114/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Videos-on-the-website/114/ www.LittleStars-Luxor.org   or  ww.LittleStarsLuxor.com Red Letter Day Donations Reach Six Figures Donations to Little Stars have now reached six figures at £104,478.  That is an incredible sum. On behalf of the children of Luxor we would like to thank everyone.  Please continue with your support for our projects.  The children need you.   Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:29:00 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Donations-Reach-Six-Figures/113/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Donations-Reach-Six-Figures/113/ www.Littlestars-Luxor.org   www.LittleStarsLuxor.com   End of year Accounts The accounts for the financial year to the 29th May 2009 have been completed and sent for approval. Donations totalled £60,744. That is fantastic. It has been an exciting year. With the grace of all that is, next year will be even better. Little Stars has now been operating for two years and the combined total of donations is over £95,000. Had it not been for the drastic fall in the value of sterling we would now have collected around 1,000,000 le. Two years ago we would never have thought this possible. Everyone who loves Luxor and Egypt has seen or knows of the desperate need of most of the children there and has responded - thanks to everyone.    To view the accounts please go to our main site (link given above) and look at the About Us page, there are links there to the accounts for 2227-2008 and... Sun, 21 Jun 2009 11:18:00 +0200 http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Donations-reach-nearly-1-000-000-Egyptian-pounds/112/ http://www.blogigo.com/LittleStarsLuxor/Donations-reach-nearly-1-000-000-Egyptian-pounds/112/