A kitchen for Mkanda Village

Arla Leins is organising this fundraiser.

Donation protected

CHANGING LIVES WITH YOUR CONTRIBUTION

Hello and thank you for helping! My name is Arla! My daughter Sage and I, along with some friends will travel to Mkanda Village in Malawi, Africa this coming summer! We will partner with the Malawian locals and the Live Love Malawi Non-Profit Organization to build a "dream" kitchen for the women of the village.

Background:
Malawi is a very poor country. The majority of the people depend on farming. Malawian crops in recent years have been affected by drought, a surge of armyworm infestation and an unstable economy. Many are food insecure, families not knowing where or when their next meal would come from or if it would come at all. Many children go hungry and suffer from severe malnutrition.

Women and girls experience a high risk of gender violence, with child marriages prevalent in Malawi. The burden of tending to crops, and household labor falls heavily on women and girls. Girls are twice as likely as boys to drop out of school because they need to help with household work, such as fetching water for miles and firewood. Women are less likely than men to buy or rent land, and often female households produce less crops, and have less livestock as a result to land restriction challenges.

EMPOWERING MALAWIAN WOMEN TO FEED THEIR COMMUNITY

Despite all the challenges, Malawians are resilient and the women of the Mkanda village, against all odds are striving to build a kitchen, that can help feed their families, nourish their children and provide a source of income. We want to help fund this dream and build a kitchen for the women and village of Mkanda in Malawi, Africa. In partnership with the Live Love Malawi nonprofit,  a "Cookery" project has been initiated to teach the women how to maximize the use of this kitchen to not just cook meals for their families but to also use it as a source of revenue to sell the food and goods that they can prepare in the kitchen . This kitchen may seem small but it will make a huge impact. This Kitchen is a local solution to a local problem. It is not a hand out, it is a way of letting women stand on their own. Help empower the women, and in turn empower a family, a community and a country.

Please join us and turn this dream into a reality and donate NOW!!!

Changing Lives with your Contributions:

The funds collected will go directly to Live Love Malawi for materials and equipment for the kitchen, and also to help defray the cost of Sage's and my travel expenses. We will be using our own "sweat equity" as volunteers to help with the construction of the kitchen to reduce cost. We are working with a few non-profit organizations, but are not traveling with a church or large organization. This is a small local led project project, the manifested dream of women in the village of Mkanda in Malawi, made possible by my friend Kris Flecken who has visited the area twice and felt the need to do more.

Please share this Gofundme page in social media and with everyone you know, please help spread the word and lets help women in Malawi!!!!

Your donations / the gift of this kitchen will help women;

·   Improve their basic daily living conditions and provide nourishing meals
· Start small scale businesses
·   Stand on their own two feet and help improve the welfare of their children and their families
· Help them to send their children to school
· Help pay for their hospital bills

THERE'S MORE!

In addition to building the kitchen, our goal is to bring sustainable menstrual hygiene kits to the young woman of Mkanda, and educate them on the basics of the female reproductive system. We are currently working with Days for Girls Las Vegas Chapter www.daysforgirls.org

THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts!!!!

ABOUT US
Hello! My name is Sage and I am 15 years old. I currently attend West Career and Technical Academy, majoring in environmental science. I intend on living life to the fullest, radiating love and positivity to all of those around me. I couldn't have more appreciation and gratitude towards all of these wonderful people in my life. I'm looking forward towards this mission coming up this summer! What an amazing opportunity! The time we spend on the mission will be worthwhile because I guarantee that we will be positively impacting many lives. I can't wait to start this spectacular journey!

Hi There! My name is Arla. I have lived in Las Vegas, NV since 1997. I have two kids Sage 15, and Gavan 13. I love being a mom! It's really important to me to create memories with them that are meaningful. This will be my third humanitarian trip and my FIRST with one of my children. I worked in a hospital for over 10 years as an Internationally Board Certified Lactation Consultant. My passion is helping moms, babies and families as a whole. I'm currently a Holistic Health Coach with focus in essential oils and wellness. I'm so excited about this mission because I truly will be following my passion for helping families. The great reward will be knowing what we are doing will make a huge impact for generations to come. I believe that this is just the beginning.

Puzzled? We want YOU to be a part of our jouney :)
As a way to share with everybody who contributes to our Malawi Kitchen Project, we're selling pieces of this puzzle for $20 each. We'll write your name on the back of the piece(s) you buy so we always remember who helped make this dream a reality.