Raising $ for Education in Mongolia

Danny Sass is organizing this fundraiser.

Donation protected

We are Daniel, Kyle, Josh, Wilson, and Mohit.

Daniel is a Teach For America alumnus, and he currently teaches English and journalism to 11th and 12th graders in Baltimore. Kyle works in real estate in California and is an avid world traveler. Josh is an alumnus of City Year San Antonio, and he currently teaches English to 9th graders in Baltimore. Wilson is a former restrateur with two restaurants in North Carolina, and he has backpacked the Appalachian Trail and hiked the Bavarian Alps. And Mohit? Well, where to begin? He is currently using his experience as an English teacher in Ghana and his English literature degree to work for a small chemical company.

Together, we are MonGOblue, and in June, we are going to do something a bit crazy. We're going to raise as much money as possible for "Go Help ," a UK-based charity that seeks to improve access to education and healthcare in Central Asia and in other third-world countries. That's not the crazy part.

The crazy part is this: The five of us are going to buy a van with the intent to turn it into a mobile library. We are going to pack this van with books, school supplies, pens, pencils, crayons, stuffed animals, soccer balls, and a whole host of other "fun" things. Then, we're going to deliver them to schools throughout Central Asia and to the Book House, a "Go Help"-funded project that organizes homework sessions and reading sessions for children in rural Mongolia and the Book Ger Project, which does the same in Ulaanbaatar and its surrounding areas.

The even crazier part is this: As part of the 2015 Mongolia Charity Rally , we are going to drive this van from London to Ulaanbaatar over the course of fiveweeks from June-July 2015. Along the way, we'll pass through mountains and deserts in Europe, the Stans, and Asia. We'll drive through countries that you didn't even know existed and sleep under the stars in some of the most beautiful places on the planet. We'll cover slightly more than 10,000 miles -- all in the name of charity, service, and adventure, because we believe that all children, whether they live in inner-city Baltimore or in the middle of the Altai Mountains in Western Mongolia, deserve access to a quality education.

So what do we need from you?

Well, for starters, we need your help. We must raise money for, you know, the trek itself. Flights, the purchase of a car, car parts, tune-ups to the car, gas, more gas, visas, maintenance to the car, lodging, books, supplies, bribes to Soviet police officers, and anything else we might need for our journey will require money. Every dollar helps! So do donations. If you have books, soccer balls, backpacks, or other things that you'd be willing to donate, that'd be amazing! And lastly, it would be really cool if you could forward this along to your friends and family. Ask them to forward it along to their friends and family. The more the merrier!

*An important thing to note. The first $1,500 raised on this website goes directly to Go Help. Every dollar raised beyond that goes to us, and we will use this money to fund our trip, buy and register our vehicle, purchase and obtain books, school supplies, clothing, toys, and other items for children, and ultimately ensure our safety throughout 10,000 miles of driving. Please note that we will be paying for our visas and our flights ourselves.

Thanks so much for checking this out, and if you have any questions, please reach out to Daniel ([email redacted]) or Josh ([email redacted]).

Sincerely,
MonGOblue