Hi All

We are back and have had a few days to recover and reflect on what was an amazing experience. Out team of 18 from Professional Advantage achieved some goals that no other team has yet managed with the RAW (Raising Awareness Worldwide) team including completing a house build in 4 days and planting 211 bamboo plants at the Sustain Farm which was a real achievement. In addition to funding the house we built, your contribution to our combined fund raising effort also assisted RAW in having enough funds to:

• Build an additional house
• Provide 2 toilets
• Build a community centre at the village
• Fund additional groundwork to keep the inland lake out when the rainy season starts
• Purchase irrigation equipment and pumps for the bamboo farm
• Fund ongoing social work activities
• Fund additional teacher training (5 sessions for 100 teachers) and
• Purchase a generator for the main office so they have continuous power (currently gets cut by up to half of every work day limiting productivity)

While the above fundraising outcomes are significant in ensuring RAW can continue to grow their capacity and ability to deliver on their goal of providing 120 houses for those in critical need, the most powerful moment to come out of the trip was when we handed over the house to the family who had helped us in the build; and they shared their story. The father had lost his job with a local fisherman so in order to provide for his family, he strapped a barrel to his back so he could float down the river catching fish. This enabled him to earn enough to buy a boat which his family then lived on. These small boats have low sides which made them unsafe for the children. At night, they tied string around the ankles of the children so that when they fell asleep and rolled off the side into the water, they would be able to locate them and pull them back onto the boat. As a consequence, the parents found it difficult to get any sleep as they were worried about the welfare of the children. The impact on all of us as the mother shared their story via an interpreter was immense and one I will never forget. This bamboo house suddenly looked as good as any mansion you would see back here in Australia due to the impact this will have on the life of this family going forward.

Thanks again for your support in assisting RAW in living out their two key goals of “Giving a Hand Up not a Hand Out” and “Every Piece Matters” (https://www.rawimpact.org/).