Alden and Willow in the local paper

For those of you who are not local, I thought you might be interested to see the article in the Portsmouth Herald this morning.

Fun to see the picture and hear (in their words) what makes the experience meaningful to them. We'd be lying if we said we weren't proud!

Click here to read the article

Packing Barrels

We're madly hauling books from the basement and adding them to the 4 55-gallon shipping drums. Last year we crammed all the supplies into 2 barrels. This year we purchased 4 barrels, knowing that we had more books. As we began packing, however, it became clear that even with 2x the space to ship this year, we don't have enough barrels! It seems that every day we're receiving new boxes. Some are dropped off by friends, others by people we don't even know. The outpouring of support continues to amaze and humble us.

This excess of supplies is a good problem to have, though. It just means that we'll be shipping in two different deliveries: one now and the other the first week of February. The priority items will all go in this first shipment, especially the heavy duty wheels we purchased for the book shelves.

We have a carpenter lined up to build the shelves. He comes recommended, but we don't have much to go on other than this recommendation from a friend. Like many of the things we do when we're there, we have to be flexible with our expectations.

In any case, barring highly unusual, the first shipment of barrels will be there when we arrive, and the others will hopefully also arrive while we're still there.

Thanks to all of you who have supported this effort, whether with books, checks to help with the cost or words of encouragement.

Just to make it easier if you'd like to help...

My super-techie sister, Heidi, suggested that I add a widget (that's basically a feature) on the blog that makes it easier to donate. Rather than sending a check, you can click on the Chip-in link and donate on their secure site that's associated with Pay-Pal. Ah, technology! So I figured it was worth explaining this addition. Still trying to figure out the best place to put this on the blog, but in the meantime, here it is for those who are inclined to help but don't feel like using the old school method of cutting a check and sticking it in the mail.

Hey, consider this a carbon-reducing alternative!

Building a Library

Below is a letter that Alden wrote and is sending out to friends and family. While our fund raising techniques to support this venture are pretty basic, the costs for it continue to increase, especially this year as we prepare to ship bookshelves down for their library.


Dear Friends and Family, January 3, 2011

My family and I are traveling to Dominica, an island in the West Indies. This will be our fifth time traveling to Dominica. Dominica is a small, poor island. The people there are happy, yet many of them have so little. The schools are very different from the schools we have in America. The schools are made of plain cement blocks. They have graffiti on the walls and a single blackboard hanging on the wall of each classroom. They have few books, pencils, paper, crayons, colored pencils, or even pens! Academically, they also have little.

Our family wants to help by building a library in their school. Building a library is a big commitment, but if we get enough supplies, we will be able to do it. We have already gathered thousands of books and school supplies. My sister and I have the chance to go to school there for a month every year. We have both found differences and similarities to ours in their culture and schools. All of the subjects that kids learn about in school are approached in a totally different way because they don’t have enough supplies. Even a spiral notebook is a huge donation. When we give them books and school supplies every year, they award us with their gratitude. They are always so grateful for our donations.

This year, we are hoping to raise $1,500 in order to ship supplies as well as bookshelves for the St. Joseph School Library. We hope you can help us with donating any amount you can. Little things make a big difference. Thank you so much!

From,
Alden and Willow Forbes
698 State Street
Portsmouth, NH 03801