Paul is a timber dealer who is married with 2 children. He began his business 8 years ago by selling scrap timber and later moved on and purchased logging machines. He looks forward to being an exporter and importer of timber and timber products in the future. The extra income from this loan will enable Paul to educate and feed his children.

Maria lives with her 2 sons and her father. She is also taking care of her 3 nieces because their mother, her sister, died four months ago. Her business involves the sale of antojitos (snacks) including roasted bananas and empanadas. The loan will help her stock her business. Maria’s goal is for her business to be prosperous so that she can help the entire family and cover household expenses.

We wish Paul and Maria all the best from all of us at Mash Towers and a very Happy Christmas.

Watch this space for next month’s Kiva story.

ISMAT provides accessible, high quality, professional education to the deserving young, with continued emphasis on the under privileged and vulnerable. This school is one of only a handful nationwide to base admissions solely on merit, utilizing its parent body OGRA to support those in financial need.

2008
In 2008 MASH sponsored the building of 2 new classrooms at ISMAT – the OGRA funded International School of Medicine and Advanced Technology here in Kisumu.

One of the new rooms is used as a standard classroom, while the other is a computer room.
Shortly after the completion of the building, ISMAT applied to the Kenyan Clinical Offices Council (equivalent of UK GMC) to teach a diploma in clinical medicine (a 3 year course producing clinical officers). At the inspection, which involved the Minister of Health, the COC was so impressed with the resource centre that they offered ISMAT a license to teach a full medical programme.

This made ISMAT the fourth medical school in the entire country and the very first in Kisumu!

2009
In 2009 MASH sponsored the shipping of textbooks to ISMAT, with the idea of steadily building a library at the charity medical school. The books were donated by final year medical students and from medical libraries. Fate shone down again, this time the books arriving just in time for the Clinical Offices Council inspection of the ISMAT facilities. A glowing report followed, and Moi University, (the second largest University in Kenya, signed an agreement to allow ISMAT students to sit their exams with their pupils and issue a joint medical degree.
2010
This year, yet again, MASH stepped up to the plate, sponsoring the shipping of textbooks to Kenya, though in much greater numbers than before. A more coordinated effort than last year has seen a far more successful collection. Currently, sat proudly aboard an enormous hunk of floating metal, a small library is steadily making its way across the seas to Kenya. Hoping to avoid all Somali pirates and arrive in time for the new term!

Thanks to the efforts of all at MASH, a charity medical school in Kenya has been furnished with not only a new classroom and computer room – leading to its licensing as a medical teaching facility, but now a new library for its students, lecturers and researchers!

On behalf of the students and staff of ISMAT and OGRA I would like to thank all of you at MASH for your continued support of this great cause.
Dr Timothy Walker

Maddie, whose mother lives in South Street in Caistor, was diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma in January last year, has undergone chemotherapy and radiotherapy at St Thomas’ Hospital in London and now wants to raise money to support the charity.

This is her first report from the Challenge…

I’m sat in a sandy valley having lunch on day 2. Lunch is curry and white carbs. I have eaten curry twice a day since I have been here so that’s 7 in total to date. Still not eating meat though.

Yesterday we covered off 62kms. We didn’t set off until 11am so it was unbelievably hot. The day was split in to 4 sections. By the 2nd section I was flagging. My chain came off so had to wait for the guys to come and fix it (we have a team of 20 marshals that go up and down on bikes to monitor us).

Then I got a bit of heat stroke so had some anti sickness treatment from the doc and cycled at the back for a while. We realised we were heading directly through a huge religious festival so a police escort had to arrange to take us though.

You wouldn’t belive the roads! Camels, horses, cows, bikes, mototbikes, tuk tuks, buses and tractors were all on the road scurrying around – it was quite terrifying and very hot.

I got stung by a hornet, first time I have been stung in my life! Everytime we go through villages all the kids run to the road and shout good morning to us and wave , the braver ones ask for money. We saw a dead boar being eaten by dogs. Got to camp at sunset. Slept in a tent with an en suite ( a western toilet dumped in the corner, not plumbed in and a tray with bucket of water for a shower)

Up and out of the road for 7.30. We went through a really dodgy town where we had to go in groups as the kids are known to cause trouble with us but again we had a police escort so it was okay. Done 57 kms already today, HILLS, lots of HILLs. We have 92 kms in total to do and then tonight we are staying in the palace. YESSSSS

My legs, arms, neck and bum ache…

If you would like to support Maddie in her challenge please visit www.justgiving.com/Madeleine-George or by contacting the Lymphoma Association fund-raising team on 01296 619419.

More Maddie updates coming soon…

“I am taking part in the second Big C Cycle Challenge to support the work of four special charities: Marie Curie Cancer Care; Children with Leukaemia; Ovarian cancer action and The Lymphoma Association. I will be among a group of more than 50 people from across the UK who, from 6 – 15 March 2010, will get on their bikes for the challenge. A highlight of my adventurous trip through rural Rajasthan will be a visit to the amazing Taj Mahal followed by a tough five-day cycle ride staying in campsites along the way.

This challenge is very close to my heart and my decision to do this came after I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in early 2009. In what was the most distressing part of my life, I was given support and hope from friends, strangers and charities like these, this is my way of paying something back to all the people that supported me.

Taking part in this challenge will raise funds for these charities which will enable more people to be supported through life threatening illness.

This is far from a holiday, in fact it will be a 5 day gruelling, bumpy and saddle-aching challenge, but we are doing this for all those affected by cancer and that, along with my supportive cycling buddies, will be what gets me through the cycle ride of a lifetime!

So please dig deep and donate now to help us support 4 life-changing charities: Marie Curie Cancer Care; Children with Leukaemia; Ovarian cancer action and The Lymphoma Association.

http://www.justgiving.com/Madeleine-George

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

Fraser Doherty, the teenage entrepreneur behind the hugely successful start up Superjam, had a vision: A world in which he hosted the most amazing tea parties for the elderly in his native Edinburgh.

Egged on by his Gran, who used to take cream teas to house bound elderly residents in her area, Fraser decided to act:

‘I was inspired to get involved in entertaining housebound elderly people by my Gran. When she originally made jam, she would make jam and scones and cakes and take them to all the elderly people in her area. These were people who didn’t ever get out of their homes and rarely had visitors, so my Gran would take my brother and I with her and we would play our musical instruments or share stories with them to brighten up their day”

As an astute business man and purveyor of fine jam, Fraser had a great base from which to launch the Superjam tea parties.

He rang round a few of his favourite business partners to get their support. With their help, the parties started to take place. Since April 2008, he has run well over 100 events, with up to 500 guests at each, all over Scotland, England and Wales.

Now offering live music, dancing and, of course, SuperJam and scones, the tea parties have gone far to improve the lives of the elderly that participate.

The guests have a wonderful afternoon every time, and are grateful for the invite. One guest even said that it made him ‘feel like a person again’, since he had made such a great new group of friends.

Fraser soon realised that the tea parties were very popular, and had real potential. He decided to call in a favour with his buddies over at Mash.

The idea was to work in partnership, utilising each parties strengths – Superjam providing the jam, Mash coordinating the next event.

The aim is to get the right partners on board, and roll these tea parties out, nationwide. We are full of ideas, and open to suggestions – why not come down and get involved at the next party?

Ideally, by 2010, we want to be hitting six cities, once a month, with a total of 72 tea parties throughout the year.

We are sure you’ll agree, these tea parties are a great idea. As clichéd as it sounds, you don’t often get an opportunity in your working day to give something back.

At the Superjam tea parties, we aim to:

Put on a spread – tea, scones, cakes
Get active – music and dancing
Build friendships – swap recipes AND home baked goodies
Learn something new – knitting and bridge

At the next Superjam tea party, 200 guests are expected.

Get involved – for more information please contact Emma Massie-Taylor on 0207 939 7670 or emmamt@mashmarketing.co.uk

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We’d also like to make special mention of the band who played for us all at the Superjam party last Sunday. The fantastic Gabby Young & Other Animals had played until 4am at the Wiltshire Jazz festival that morning but arrived with a real desire to get involved and appreciate what the event was all about. They went down an absolute storm with some beautifully harmonic and haunting melodies and ensembles. A real treat.

Please do look them up as they are well worth going to see live.

For more info on the band please go to www.mypsace.com/gabbyyoung or email: gabbyyoung@gmail.com

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