Hope for Latvia Blog http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/ Wed, 08 Feb 2012 02:57:11 +0000 SmartWeb Content Management System Pictures of the Christmas hampers http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/48-pictures-of-the-christmas-hampers We recently held our Christmas hamper appeal and were able to supply 40 Christmas hampers to Latvian families. These were packed with all the essentials for a traditional Latvian Christmas meal along with a few luxuries to make it a special occasion.



Thank you everyone who helped make this possible.

]]> John Lee Sat, 21 Jan 2012 15:49:48 +0000 The contrast between living conditions within Latvia http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/47-the-contrast-between-living-conditions-within-latvia We have uploaded new photos to our facebook page highlighting the contrast between living conditions in Latvia. You can view them here.

]]> John Lee Sun, 04 Dec 2011 14:19:28 +0000 Photos from our latest trip http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/46-photos-from-our-latest-trip You can view some of the photos from our latest trip to Latvia on our Facebook page. They show some of the families we support and highlight their living conditions. We will be adding more photo over the next couple of days.

]]> John Lee Sat, 26 Nov 2011 17:35:39 +0000 Krajabanka http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/45-krajabanka If you have been affected by the closure of Krajabanka, live in Riga and need assistance, email johnlee@hopeforlatvia.org with your contact details and an indication of what you need. We will try and help where we can. Please share this and spread the word.

Ja jums ir skārusi slēgšana Krajabanka, dzīvo Rīgā un ir nepieciešama palīdzība, e-pasts ar Jūsu kontaktinformāciju johnlee@hopeforlatvia.org un to, kas jums ir nepieciešams norādi. Mēs centīsimies un palīdzību, kur mēs varam. Lūdzu, dalīties un izplatīšanos vārdu.

Если вы пострадали от закрытия Krajabanka, живут в Риге и нуждаются в помощи, по электронной почте с johnlee@hopeforlatvia.org ваши контактные данные и указание нато, что вам нужно. Мы постараемся помочь и где мы можем. Пожалуйста, поделитесьэтим и распространения слова.

 

]]> John Lee Wed, 23 Nov 2011 16:19:30 +0000 Come Dine for Latvia http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/44-come-dine-for-hope-for-latvia

Fundraising does not have to be time consuming, stressful or even raise thousands of pounds. It can be fun, exciting and every pound that you raise can be significant in empowering Latvian families to break the cycle of poverty. It could be as simple as hosting a dinner for a group of friends and instead of your guests bringing a bottle of wine they could bring a donation for Hope for Latvia.

If you want to put on a great night for friends and raise money for Hope for Latvia, get in touch with us, we can supply material that allows your guests to find out more about our work; freeing your time to concentrate on making your favourite dish.

If we can help you to raise funds contact johnlee@hopeforlatva.org

We always love to receive stories and photos of people having fun and raising money so please email them to us.

]]> John Lee Sat, 08 Oct 2011 15:23:15 +0000 a new home http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/43-new-toliets We received some great news this week that left us very excited. One of the families we support had been living in a run down, wooden accommodation block with shared toilet and bathroom facilities but they have now been re-housed. One of my favourite aspects of the story is the reaction of the children.

Andrej (12) and Denise (10) have spent most of the last week playing and sitting in their new bath or on their new toilet.

You might consider this strange behaviour for two young boys but consider this;


This is the tap where they collected water to wash with. The corridor had no lighting, to take this picture we had to hold the outside door open (in freezing conditions) and use the flash on the camera. Their toilets were worse than the one below; the smell made me gag when they showed it to me.



This is the first time in their life that they have ever had access to their own bathroom, they are totally in love with it!

Another significant improvement is that the new accommodation block is made out of concrete. Our constant worry was that one of the 100 residents of their former building would accidently start a fire putting the whole accommodation block at risk.

They were able to be relocated after constant campaigning by their mother and the monthly support provided by our sponsors.

On behalf of Vera, Andrej  and Denise THANK  YOU

]]> John Lee Thu, 15 Sep 2011 16:41:51 +0000 Thank you http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/42-thank-you Thanks for your ongoing support and interest in the work of Hope For Latvia .

The need of Latvian people continues to astound us: ‘Alise’ one of the mothers we work with, supports her 4 boys on £300 a month; this barely covers their food, heating and rent (Latvian prices are similar to UK ones). They live in a single room flat in a wooden accommodation block heated by a wooden fire with water collected from an outside pump.  The family are too ashamed of their living conditions to build relationships with other families and as a result have become socially isolated. Sergej Kazakevichak, one of the Pastors at Good News Church, works alongside hundreds of Latvian families, he spoke of the severity of this situation; “even I have not seen this before, what can they do? Just exist?!”

Through your donations we are able to work with the family to help develop Alise’s confidence so that she can search for work. We are also working with her boys to help improve their grades at school and see them go on to have successful lives.

Our partners at Good News Church have launched an exciting new initiative to help some of Latvia’s poorest women.  Every Saturday morning there is a line of women queuing up to have their hair cut for free. Most of the women who come to receive a haircut have not been able to afford one in the last year as the living conditions have become increasingly difficult during the recession. This simple and practical assistance helps increase their social confidence and shows them that they are loved and valued.

Thank you for your support.

]]> John Lee Fri, 17 Jun 2011 10:27:03 +0000 Family Success http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/41- This month we had some exciting news about a family we have been supporting since 2007:

Inga has two sons, Ibragim (11) and Aleskers (10), who have often missing school due to poor health. Inevitably they struggled to keep up and ended up being held back a year. Inga was worried about their eye sight and was convinced that this was part of the reason the boys were not performing at school. Unfortunately Inga, who is out of work and looking after 2 year old daughter Maria was not in a position to pay for an expensive eye examination, she is barely able to pay for the flat.

However, through the support Hope for Latvia provided Inga was able to save enough money to pay a doctor who diagnosed the boys has having a rare sight disorder. They have now qualified for a place in a school for the visually impaired. Enjoying school and with all the support they need, they boys’ grades are improving and Inga is a proud mother!

This is the story of just one family who through your support we are able to help. As an organisation which is run entirely by volunteers, we rely on our supporters to raise awareness of the terrible living conditions experienced bythousands of Latvian families.

There are a number of simple ways you can help:

Share our Facebook Page. Re-tweet us on Twitter. Forward this e-newsletter to a friend and encourage them to sign up to receive it. Run a Fundraising event, you can find an A-Z of great ideas on our blog.

Please consider how you can raise awareness. Thank you for your support.

]]> John Lee Thu, 26 May 2011 20:20:38 +0000 Marathon http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/40- Its warming up, spring is here and there seems to be a lot more joggers out with the sun.  Maybe you’re the running type, or maybe you just want to take on a new challenge, but there’s plenty of Marathons, half marathons and fun runs you could get stuck into with a sponsored run for Hope for Latvia.

I’ve been looking and thinking about a few recently:

The City of Norwich Half Marathon, Sunday 27th November http://www.cityofnorwichhalfmarathon.com/

Norfolk Coastal Marathon, Saturday 8th October 2011 http://race-calendar.com/norfolk-coastal-marathon-26-2-miles-kelling-081011/10455/

Coastal Half-Marathon, Portsmouth Sunday 12 February 2012

Kings Lynn 10 K, 2nd May http://www.greateastangliarun.co.uk/

Sponsored runs are rewarding, good for you and a great way to raise money to help lift people out of poverty in Latvia.

]]> Jonny Pollard Wed, 27 Apr 2011 14:35:20 +0000 How You Can Help http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/39-how-you-can-help You don’t have to give up vast swathes of your time or empty your bank account to make a difference in Latvia. There are plenty of other ways in which you can get involved. The key is to do what you can - whatever that looks like for you. 

Here are some simple ideas: 

Speak to friends, family and colleagues about the need in Latvia. Show them our website for further information. If you are an Ebay junkie, you can now donate a percentage from every sale to Hope for Latvia. Do your shopping through www.easyfundraising.org.uk. This costs you nothing but enables retailers to donate on your behalf. Spread the word online; twitter, Facebook, blogging- however you use social media why not promote the work of Hope for Latvia.

Collect change regularly and send it to us to make a change in the lives of Latvian families.We love to hear stories of how people are helping to make a difference, please get in touch, we would love to hear from you.

]]> Jonny Pollard Thu, 31 Mar 2011 14:40:36 +0000 Emergency Food Aid Distribution http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/38-emergency-food-aid-distribution-

Through the generosity of our supporters we we able to help our Latvian partners Good News Church purchase a refrigerated container to help in the distribution of emergency food aid parcels.

These photos were taken at a weekly event where the food parcels are given to the families along with a hot meal.

]]> John Lee Fri, 18 Feb 2011 12:34:26 +0000 Holding out for a hero http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/37- If you're looking for a fun and creative way to potentially raise funds for Hope for Latvia this could be it!

 ITV are launching a new quiz show where the contestants are given the chance to win funding for a small charity of their choice.

why not download their application form to find out more?

]]> Jonny Pollard Tue, 08 Feb 2011 15:24:27 +0000 We\'ve done it - Thank you. http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/36-weve-done-it--thank-you WE’VE DONE IT! A massive thank you to everyone who donated, spread the world and volunteered to help make the Winter Fundraising Campaign successful. We have surpassed our target of £1,800 and at this point in time have raised £2,015 to help provide emergency food aid to Latvian families.

Latvia is currently experiencing freezing cold temperatures and thousands of families are facing a bleak start to the year.  Pastor Tom Rawls recently visited Latvia and sent us this update on the situation out there

“Riga is snowed under. Night time temperatures are falling below -10 degrees and even lower some nights down to -20 degrees. This has complicated life immensely here. Each week a death toll is mounting as mostly the aged are dying because of lack of heating and care. The river running through Riga has frozen over! Snow is mounting up everywhere and people are suffering.

Combined with unemployment and poverty some in Riga are struggling. Those struggling the most are the city’s most vulnerable."

Whilst in Latvia Pastor Tom visited one of the food distribution points that our partners Good News Church facilitate and saw them feed over 530 families. We hope to have more updates and photos to follow in the next week.

Thank you for your help.

]]> John Lee Sat, 22 Jan 2011 21:45:11 +0000 BBC Radio Norfolk http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/35-bbc-radio-norfolk John Lee and Phil Temple were recently interviewed by BBC Radio Norfolk about the Winter Fundraising Campaign. Play the mp3 below to see how it went!

]]> Clement Chew Fri, 07 Jan 2011 15:54:36 +0000 Fundraising Champion http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/33-fundraising-champion- Barbara is one of our fantastic volunteers who has been baking for our Winter Fundraising Campaign. Her method is very simple and effective so I have asked her to share it with us below.

I love this time of year – snow on the ground and plenty of festive food to tuck into!

But it’s easy to forget that not everyone is as fortunate as we are. So many people around the world will be cold and hungry this Christmas, and this thought inspires me to raise money for Hope for Latvia.

One way for anyone to make a difference is by doing what I do – get baking! For the cost of a few cheap ingredients you can help raise money and awareness by selling yummy treats at your work or place of study.

Recently I set aside a couple of hours and made chocolate and coconut truffles and glittery star biscuits (with edible glitter – how cool is that?!) It was great fun and afterwards I felt quite proud of what I’d accomplished.

The recipes weren’t particularly fancy or complicated to follow – one came from a supermarket magazine! But the baking went down a storm in my office! I didn’t ask people for a set fee per item, just asked them to donate an amount of their choice, and only if they wanted to.

Normally if people at work are hungry the only option is to go to the vending machine, so I figured given the choice they would probably choose home-baked biscuits over the usual bar of chocolate! And I was right!

As well as raising money, this is also a great opportunity to raise awareness. People buying my treats were shocked to hear about the living conditions of Latvian families, especially as Latvia has EU membership.

I would definitely recommend baking to anyone who wants to help make a difference in Latvia. It’s simple, great fun and you get to eat some great food afterwards  – what could be better?!

]]> John Lee Tue, 14 Dec 2010 07:06:51 +0000 Update on Winter Fundraising Campaign http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/32-update-on-winter-fundraising-campaign

I often think about a comment from one of children whom we support in Latvia. It was -30c outside, their house had windows which didn’t quite fit in their frames and it was infested with damp. They simply said

“I put on extra clothes to go to bed so that I don’t freeze to death”

They were already wearing a coat, hat and gloves. They had enough food to cook one meal a day and the concept of having a warm drink such as a hot chocolate was foreign to them. This is the reality for thousands of Latvian families and I am so excited that we have an opportunity to help them through our winter fundraising campaign. I am really proud that because of the efforts our supporters and volunteers we will be able to help provide thousands of families with emergency food aid.

The campaign is running really well and so far we have raised £1,000. There is still an opportunity for you to make a difference so why not make a donation online now?

]]> John Lee Tue, 07 Dec 2010 14:21:21 +0000 Latvian Stories http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/31-latvian-stories Words are often inadequate to accurately describe the harshness of living conditions in much of Latvia. We often talk about the significant contrasts between the wealth of Old Riga and the poverty of the rest of Latvia, but again it’s hard to paint the full picture. We hope the following video helps to make these realities more tangible.

Originally filmed in 2007 the video highlights the stories of some of the families who we work with. Since it was filmed, the Latvian economy has shrunk by 18%, forcing thousands more families into poverty and exacerbating the situation of those who were already struggling.



We would love to hear your thoughts

n.b Isaiah House is a project mentioned in the video. Our vision is to build 30 residential flats alongside retail outlets and training rooms to help families become truly self-sufficient. We have the land, the plans and the government approval and are just waiting for the economic situation to become more stable before we press ahead with the project. We are currently out working the vision of this project through our business training sessions and winter fundraising campaign, click here to find out how you can get involved.

]]> John Lee Thu, 25 Nov 2010 23:57:33 +0000 A - Z of Fundraising Ideas http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/30-a--z-of-fundraising-ideas Inpsired about how you can help provide emergency food aid for Latvian families this winter, but stuck for creative ideas on how to do it? Check out our A-Z of fundraising ideas.

This list is not exhaustive - ideas will take you as far as your imagination allows.

A - Auction of items or promises; Antiques fair; Art exhibition.

B - BBQ; Bike ride; Book sale.

C - Cookery lessons; Car boot sale; Coffee morning; Comedy Evening; Cake Sale.

D - Dress down day at work; Disco; Dog walking; Duck Race.

E - Easter ball; Egg hunt; Eighties night.

F - Fancy dress party; Football match; Fashion show; Face painting.

G - Games evening; Garden party.

H - Halloween party; House party; Head shaving.

I - International Theme Night.

J - Jumble sale.

K - Karaoke night.

L - Leg wax (for men).

M - Music evening; Masked ball; Murder mystery evening.

N - Netball tournament.

O - Outdoor pursuits; Online auctions.

P - Party; Pub quiz; Pampering party.

Q - Quiz night.

R - Raffle.

S - Sponsored event; Skiing; Swimming gala; Scrabble competition; Silent auction.

T - Treasure hunt; Talent show; Tombola; Tea party; Television Theme Night.

U - Ultimate challenge (e.g. Sky Dive, Bungee jump).

V - Variety show.

W - Walking; Wine-tasting evening.

X - Xmas ball; Xmas drinks.

Y - Yoga.

Z - Zorbing.

Whatever it is you decide to do, remember to have a lot of fun!

Happy Fundraising

]]> Charlotte Tucker Fri, 19 Nov 2010 11:58:13 +0000 Winter Fundraising Campaign http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/29-winter-fundraising-campaign We have been putting the final touches to our winter fundraising campaign over the last couple of days. Our partnership with Good News has opened up a fantastic opportunity to help in the distribution of emergency food aid on behalf of the EU.  Good News Church currently distributes food parcels to over 300 people each week. However the food suffers in the extreme temperatures of Riga's seasons and Good News Church do not have suitable storage to keep the food fresh and safe from the elements. This is where we can help; through your support we will purchase a refrigerated container that maintains a constant temperature, enabling the church to increase their capacity to store food and reach families in need.

I believe that it is going to be a life changing campaign, to find out more and get involved please visit our fundraising page.

Last night some of the UK team came over for a meal and to help with the fundraising campaign, check out some of the photos from the below.



]]> John Lee Fri, 12 Nov 2010 19:33:45 +0000 BBC Radio Norfolk Interview http://www.hopeforlatvia.org/blog/blog/post/28-bbc-radio-norfolk-interview Back in July Owen Morgan and John Lee were invited to speak on BBC Radio Norfolk about the work of Hope for Latvia. We promised to make the audio availavble to supporters who live outside of the broadcasting area, so here it is:

]]> Tudor Howell Tue, 09 Nov 2010 08:18:28 +0000