The Awesome Ukulele Academy Christmas Fundraiser

On Friday 8 th September an earthquake struck Morocco. The quake had a magnitude of 6.8, meaning it’s classed as “strong”, and it struck at a relatively shallow depth making it more destructive. Morocco has suffered earthquakes in the past, but few in its history have been so powerful with over 3,000 people killed, thousands more injured, and many more left homeless.

The epicentre was about 70 km southwest of Marrakech in the area around Asni and the

Imlil valley, an area of outstanding natural beauty. 90% of the buildings have been declared unsafe and the majority of the population are living in tents or houses that they are trying to repair while getting on with their everyday lives. The areas main income, tourism, disappeared overnight, while there is food and some government support, people are left trying to rebuild their lives with little or no resources.

I travelled to Morocco in October with The Kindred Project, a charity that have a long-

standing relationship with Association Tiwizi, a community association in Asni. Since 2007, The Kindred Project has been raising money to help with various projects in the

community, from a new solar powered well, to supporting the establishment of a boarding house so that girls from nearby villages can access education.

Each year the Awesome Ukulele Academy community raise money for a small charity that is connected with someone in our community. It’s usually voted on but his year I have chosen the cause because I saw first-hand how much work is needed to rebuild in Asni and how much our support can help.

Snow is coming as winter approaches and people are just trying to rebuild as best they can with what they have. We can help speed up the rebuilding process, really make a difference, and stop the situation getting worse.

My target for this campaign is to raise €10,000 for the Kindred Project. €10 will pay for a

builder for a day, so if 1,000 people donate €10 that is €10,000 - this can affect lives immediately.

The Kindred Project will cover any fees that the GoFundMe site charge so that 100% of what you donate will go to Association Tiwizi in Asni who will distribute it directly to people there that need our help.

GoFundMe note: contest, competition, reward, give-away, raffle, sweepstakes or similar activity (each, a “Promotion”) on or through the Services are not permitted.