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Our Indiegogo campaign has been a huge success! We have now raised our entire goal of
$100,000! In actual fact we have
raised more than that! Thanks to an
incredible 10 year old girl, a Bollywood/Curry night in Melbourne and many other amazingly generous people who have given independently to our campaign we can now 'check the final funding box'!
The most incredible story of all our supporters is about a young man named Sam Saxena. We would love for you to read his story here.
Thank you so much to everyone who participated in the campaign. For the incredible blessing you have been to our children. We will keep the campaign information up for prosterity:
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Welcome to the
Maxton Strong School in Banbasa, India, where big changes are underway! Our school is growing so quickly, we need more space, and with your help, we're launching a campaign to expand.
Our ultimate goal is $100,000, but we're breaking it into four $25,000 steps. The each step has now been funded but there is still more work to be done; here's what it looks like:
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For all the graphic lovers out there, here's a more complete breakdown of the idea:
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With each step reached, we'll bring you updates from the field, showing you our progress as it happens. Plans have been drawn up by
EMI: an engineering firm in Delhi that caters to non-profit organizations, and work has already started.
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Here is a little update video we put together to show the construction process:
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For those unfamiliar with our work, the Maxton Strong School was built by the Good Shepherd Agricultural Mission, an orphanage in India. Founded in 1952, the Mission is run by the Shipway family and is a model of self-sufficiency. Not only do they care for 75 orphaned or abandoned children, they also operate a 60-acre farm and dairy, run their own woodworking and mechanical workshops, support a small leper colony, and offer vocational training for area women...all without any grants or government funding.
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Clifton and Rick Shipway and some of their beautiful kids!
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Always looking to improve, the Shipways launched their most ambitous project to date in July of 2013. As they envisioned it, The Maxton Strong School would not only provide a free education for all of the Mission kids, it would one day be completely self-sustaining, covering all operating costs through the collection of reasonable enrollments fees from outside students.
Well...they did it! Now in its second year, the school educates nearly 450 students from the area communities, turns a small profit, and it is already considered one of the top schools in the region.
But there is one small (but good) problem: The School is running out of room!
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When it's complete, this project will accomplish several powerful objectives:
- It will ensure a free education for all Mission children
- It will make quality education available to an additional 192 area students (at the most reasonable fees in the area)
- It will create 9 good jobs for local educators.
- It will be another step toward the Shipway's goal of complete self-sufficiency!
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And so we invite you to get involved. We're offering a variety of unique perks, including Skype calls, video tours and our first ever Orphan Album of original music! Additionally, for everyone making a donation of $10 or more, we'll include your name on an dedication plaque to be installed in the new space. Maybe it's just me, but I think to be immortalized in metal as an ORPHAN SCHOOL champion is the kind of recognition that everyone can be proud of.
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Huge thanks to Random House Publishing for
getting behind this project. They're offering a copy of campaign creator
John Marshall's new book Wide-Open World to the first
50 contributors who donate $100. This memoir chronicles the six months John and
his family spent volunteering their way around the world, including a month at
the Good Shepherd Agricultural Mission.
Christina Baker Kline, #1 New York Times Best-Selling Author
of Orphan Train says, "Wide-Open World will
move, engage and inspire you, even if you never leave the couch."
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That's about it. We can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt: These kids are worth it! From hopeless, unwanted beginnings, they now have the opportunity to learn and grow into the kind of people who will shape India's future. And we get to be a part of it!
If you can help with a donation of any amount, it will be hugely appreciated.
If you are interested in helping out in other ways, you could always:
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Share this page on Facebook, Twitter or GooglePlus. Use the share tools up above. It really does make a difference.
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Visit the MAXTON STRONG SCHOOL website, the MISSION website, or the NEW ORPHANAGE website for more ways to get involved.
This project has been endorsed and is being documented by:
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New Orphanage is focused on finding and supporting the best
orphan champions worldwide. Learn more at:
www.neworphanage.org