Randstad Kilimanjaro Challenge 2019

your actions, not your words, change the world - your donation can change the life of a young girl in Tanzania
My Story: 
The opportunity to raise money for young women in Africa, Trek Kilimanjaro and then visit the recipients of our fundraising in Tanzania,  is an opportunity of a lifetime.
I celebrated  21 years with Randstad in March of 2019. I have "talked" about volunteering through our partnership with  'Voluntary Service Overseas' for years, but didn't take action until this year. I set a goal for 2019 to participate in VSO and inspire my team to volunteer and get involved in helping others. When I read about the Kilimanjaro challenge, I knew this opportunity was meant for me. Not only would I accomplish the goal I set, but as a mother of two (Sophia 12 and Julian 10), I have always believed that I need to show them, through my actions, what they are capable of accomplishing. I also want them to help others, have compassion, learn about different cultures and the list goes on.   I found out a few weeks ago that I'm 1 of 30, from around the world, representing Randstad!  I'm grateful for the opportunity to help others, trek through Kilimanjaro and spend time with the young women that will benefit from our fundraising.  I also happen to enjoy a good challenge and I have been craving the discipline of training!

The Challenge:
In Mwanza, on the edge of Tanzania's Lake Victoria, VSO's Lake Zone Youth Empowerment supports marginalized youth, with a focus on young mothers excluded from education, into employment. Starting now, I must raise a minimum of $6000  by September, 2019. The funds I raise will go directly to the youth empowerment project in Tanzania.  In November, I will trek through the Tanzanian countryside including Kilimanjaro National Park, and to the summit of Mount Meru, with 29 of my Randstad colleagues from around the world, all in aid of young women in Tanzania. After the challenging trek, we will visit Mwanza, the  beautiful Lake region of Tanzania, to visit VSO's projects focused on employment and skills development. The adventure will be both physical and emotional and one that we will never forget. 

The Purpose:
In Tanzania, approximately 700,000 youth enter the labor market annually, with only a fraction of them securing stable jobs. The Lake Zone Youth Empowerment project  aims to increase awareness of 3,000 vulnerable youth, with a key focus on girls and women, on career opportunities that enable them to actively secure resilient livelihoods.

Your donation: 
1. Provides start-up kits for selected youth entrepreneurs to kickstart their businesses after their training. Every start-up kit will be different and in line with ambitions, talents and needs of the youth entrepreneur.
2. Include Theatre for a Change performances in the project as a key tool to enable girls and young women to access the career pathways of their choice by addressing social barriers that currently obstruct them from doing so. The theatre performances are highly interactive and include a wide range of community members, including men and boys, who can support girls and women to pursue the careers they envision by taking down identified barriers. All performances end with a community action plan.
3. Run additional training cycles with girls and young women to increase the reach of the project.

What does the project want to achieve?
• 3,000 girls and young women are aware of available and future job opportunities in their district
• 3,000 girls and young women have influenced positive change in social norms to help reduce teenage pregnancies and instances of GBV
• 400 girls and young women enrolled in outreach and apprenticeship schemes
• 80 income generation associations formed with 400 member
• 27 youth saving and loan associations formed among the 400 youth to enhance saving habit
• 80 income generating groups are registered with the local government to access loans and other opportunities
• 75% of 400 enrolled youth in outreach and apprenticeship schemes to have employment within 6 months of the completion of their course

VSO: 
VSO is an international development charity that works through volunteers to fight poverty in some of the world's poorest areas. Volunteers are key to our success, bringing different skills, backgrounds and experience to work together to achieve sustainable development. 
For more information, please visit: https://www.vsointernational.org/

THANK YOU!
Please support me on this journey; keep my teammates and I in thought, donate to help end poverty and share my page to help spread the word.

Follow me on PIF to see how my training and fundraising is going, I will post pictures and videos throughout my training, on the hike and in the village!  I can't wait to share this awesome experience with you all!! 

**Please note, a group fundraising page was created for the team on PIF, gofundme is an easier platform to use in the US so i'm using both. If you would like to learn more about the team and follow our progress as a team, please visit the following page for more info**

https://www.pifworld.com/nl/fundraisers/joUZ8hkSFFY/marleen-r-barnes

Love and blessings,
Marleen R. Barnes

Tax Info                                                                                                                                              Voluntary Service Overseas USA INC. 
Donors can deduct contributions made under IRC Section 170.
EIN [phone redacted]27                                                                                                                          For more information on the exemption status or IRS determination letter please contact me.