We have just received our figures for the 2010-2011 accounts and I am delighted to say that we have reiased a remarkable £270,000 (US$445,000. This is our best year to date. All the funds have gone directly into our grassroots projects in Zambia. Our annual report and accounts will shortly be circulated and available on the Charity Commission website.

Supplies donated to Machenje pre-school     New football to replace ‘bag & string’

Despite a quiet start to the new financial year we have a had a great boost to the funds during July and August from both individuals and corporate who have visited Mukuni Village. During their cultural tour they took the opportunity to visit The Butterfly Tree projects. Donations of blankets, mosquito nets, sports equipment, stationery and clothing have helped a number of vulnerable people in addition the clinic and the school received money. Two companies Brady Italia and Canon Australia have generously offered on going support. Individual donations came from the UK, the US, Europe and Australia some of them in the form of orphan sponosrship.

The three schools we are currently building, two in the Musokotwane Chiefdom and one in Mukuni are well under way and should be completed by the end of the year. This has been made possible thanks to grant aid form the Jersey Overseas Aid Commission. We are now reaching out to fifteen schools in the Kazungula District. In addition we are supporting three clinics and many villages.

Most of our existing donors have liberally continued sponsoring orphans. The first orphans to be on our prgram have now completed grade twelve and our aim is to source funds for futher education. The Mukuni Village Fund in South Australia is now sponosring fifty orphans through our charity. However many more sponsors are needed. Due to the gloabl recession and lack of employment fra too many children, even those with parents, are failing to pay their school and exan fees.

Peter sponsored orphan completes school    HIV/AIDS education for Mukuni pupils

This month I was invited to Zurich to receive a substantial donation from ENRC Marketing AG. Unknown to us their employees held a fundraising campaign and the benficiary was to be an NGO working in one of the many countries where they operate. The Butterfly Tree was selected for haivng the best proven records of transparency and for the fact that we are all volunteers both in the UK and Zambia. All the staff gave generously with matched funding provided by ENRC’s Head Office in London. The funds rasied totalled an amazing $27,000 and will be used to build a teacher’s house at Mukuni Village, five community house for orphans and to support our HIV/AIDS prevention for children, which will include peer education, workshops and feeding programs.

Jane accepting ENRC Marketing’s donation     Employees involved in challenge

Saga, who’s charitable trust, is one of our major donors, are challenging their employees to raise funds to build a bore hole and a shelter for boarders at Mukuni. We have constructed an additional building at our maternity clinic, funded by The Besom, this will provide accommodation for women prior to labour who live a long distance from the clinic, ensuring a safer delivery of their babies. Thanks to Just a Drop four new latrines have been added to the Mukuni schools and a bore hole at Libala Basic School.

   New latrine for Mukuni pre-school              Women’s shelter – Mukuni Village

Next month, after winning a team place we are to participate in Cyclothon UK, a cycle challenge initiated by Victor Umbugo of VU Ltd and former England rugby prop. The event is to be held at Brands Hatch on the 15th September from 7am. Our team ‘The Flying Butts’ needs your support. Donations would be greatly appreciated and can be sent to The Butterfly Tree, 3 Gannaway Court, Norton Lindsey, Warwick CV35 8JR or made using our secure Just Giving page. If you are in the area any time during the day from 4pm onwards, when the excitement reaches its peak, please go and support the team and see many of the International rugby players taking aprt. We are grateful to CRB Solutions, Academy Leasing and Geddes and Associates who are are three main sponsors.

This summer we have a number of volunteers who are working at Mukuni. Mutsa Marau is doing a peer education project to tackle the HIV/AIDS issues, Peterri Alpi from UCL is improving the maths and English standards and Hannah Lainton and Claire Richards will share their business skills with womens groups

Thank you to all the individual, corporate, schools, clubs, volunteers and philanthropers who have ginven so generously to support our grassroots projects, which have improved the lives of thousands of children and vulnerable communities in Zambia.

The Butterfly Tree is the beneficiary of a fundraising campaign initiated by Jim Cochrane, CEO of ENRC Marketing AG based in Zurich. When Jim suggested that one of his colleagues should grow a moustache to raise funds for charity, the flippant remark developed into a challenge to raise funds for an NGO working in one of the countries where ENRC operate. Unknown to The Butterfly Tree we were being strutinised along with hundreds of other charities that provide education, health and social care for disadvantaged children throughout Africa, Asia and South America.

The campaign had been organised by Marilena and Tatiana who worked tirelessly to coordinate the objective until they reached their target of 20,000 Swiss francs. Eventually three charities were selected and the employees had to vote on a winner. Amazingly The Butterfly Tree was chosen as the charity having the best records of proven transparency and for the fact that we are all volunteers both in the UK and Zambia. In just one month the employees at their Zurich office, helped with match funding from head office in London, raised a staggering $27,000 (over £16,000).

Funds for Children’s Health & Education: Jane with ENRC Marketing employees 

I was invited to Zurich where I gave a presentation on our work in Zambia before receiving this generous cheque. It was a wonderful opportunity to meet all the participants and to see the collection of moustaches and beards. The perfect day ended with a summer party on board a boat which sailed across Lake Zurich. I felt very privileged to be with such an caring group of people and inspired after learning that The Butterfly Tree was their preferred charity.

Fundraising campaign raise $27,000 for The Butterfly Tree

The funding will be used to build a teacher’s house at Mukuni Village, five community houses for orphans and the remainder will be used to boost our HIV/AIDS prevention projects for children, which will include peer education, worshops and feeding programmes.