From the Field: Assembled to Celebrate

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Chelsey McNiel

This weekly post shines a light on a handful of stories from Heifer.org’s “From the Field” section.

Heifer International project participants work hard every day to Pass on the Gift® (POG) they once received and transition from recipient to donor. Sharing their success often brings participants joy and a commendable cause to celebrate.

In March and April 2013, Heifer Cambodia self-help groups (SHG) organized seven POG ceremonies. More than 820 families shared gifts of livestock, vegetables, tree seeds and rice with new project families. During one ceremony, POG recipient Chea Sambo responded with gratitude to her donor family, “Words cannot express how happy I am to receive the gifts. I promise to take good care of the animal and improve my garden so that I can pass on to other needy families, and become a donor like your family.Thanks much to your family and to Heifer.”

Heifer Cambodia participants Pass on the Gift® of chickens during an April 2013 ceremony. Photo by Toeng Rothy, Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, Heifer Cambodia.

Armenian YES! Youth Clubs gathered to celebrate the past year’s activities during the 10th Youth Parliament General Assembly, April 26-27, 2013. Thirty clubs shared about their projects, which were mostly focused on civic participation and responsibility, and the success of their small businesses. Vardouhi Torosyan, a 13-year-old jewelry-making business owner, said she was able to pass on her seed money of $100 to another club member so he could also start a business.

Heifer China project participants joyfully celebrate after a POG with a Tibetan Guozhuang (bonfire) dance. Photo by Droma Sangmo, Tibet Regional Project Manager, Heifer China

Heifer China participants prepare to celebrate after a POG ceremony with a Tibetan Guozhuang (bonfire) dance. Photo by Droma Sangmo, Tibet Regional Project Manager, Heifer China

Beneath snowy mountain peaks, farmers in Tibet applauded each other during a wintry April POG. Participants from Dan Nu, Xue Ba and Zhi Ba villages passed on a monetary fund worth about $37,342 to Xu Ba village. Three candidates were distinguished among their community for modeling exceptional behavior and a traditional Tibetan Guozhuang (bonfire) dance ended the celebration.

Learn how you can help Pass on the Gift®

NOW I Pass On The Gift

Posted on April 5, 2013 by Kim Nixon

Passing on the Gift® (POG) is fundamental to our work. It creates a cycle of giving, transforming recipients into donors, and expanding the network of hope, dignity and self-reliance.

For our project participants, it is a joyful experience to pass on the gift of livestock and training. Stories about Heifer’s POGs, like those below, can be found on our website. What amazes me most is that many project participants don’t stop after passing on gifts just once.

They do this by continuing to pass on the gifts of livestock, opening their farms to be training facilities, sharing the training they receive with everyone they meet, and more. They take to heart what it truly means to Pass on the Gift. They are so thankful and proud that they can’t help but tell others.

It is humbling to see project participants pass on part of their livelihood to their neighbors in need, creating a web of support and a world of good. We will end hunger together.

Transforming Recipients into Donors
The goats Manamaya received from Heifer raised her family income and allowed her husband to stay home to work, expanding their goat farm. She passed on two goat kids to women in her community to help them create a better life for their families. Read more.

Cambodia Celebrates Passing on the Gift®

In March, the Disability Development Services Program Organization in Cambodia hosted their Passing on the Gift ceremony where children performed traditional dances and recited poems about the hope they have for a better future. Read more.

Passing on the Gift® Has Ripple Effect

Several 4-H Club coordinators in the Philippines learned about Heifer’s 12 Cornerstones for Just and Sustainable Development and realized that their work is part of Passing on the Gift®. They help move the youth in their communities to get involved in productive agricultural and economic activities. Read more.

Start a new cycle of giving today.

From the Field: Building Strong Foundations

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Chelsey McNiel

This weekly post shines a light on a handful of stories from Heifer.org’s “From the Field” section.

To make lasting changes, Heifer International continues to base its mission, to end hunger and poverty and care for the Earth, on the 12 Cornerstones for Just and Sustainable Development and Passing on the Gift (POG). By emphasizing community involvement, sharing and caring, Heifer’s approach lays the foundation for sustainable sources of food and income worldwide.

Nepali women celebrate their success on International Women’s Day as they march through their villages. Photo courtesy of Heifer International

Holding signs that read, “Women are the key to community development,” Nepali women celebrated International Women’s Day by marching together through their villages. Through accountability and leadership development, numerous women have established a deep commitment to the Cornerstones. More than 20,000 original families have benefited from this dedication in just over one year.

Heifer Philippines held 12 Cornerstones Workshops in that country’s Caraga region preparing participants for involvement in the area’s first dairy project. The project will reach 400 original partner families and another 800 families through POG. After the workshops, participants agreed that the Cornerstones helped them realize the value of working together and how to nuture that gift.

Hmayak Najaryan, 40, of Khachaghbyur, Armenia, was trying to support his wife and two sons on little more than $100 a month. In partnership with Ashtarak Kat CJSC, Heifer Armenia provided alfalfa seeds, a milk cooling tank and artificially inseminated the family’s cow. Now Hmayak’s sons, who want to become educated professionals, have a stronger foundation on which to grow and dream.

Learn how you can help provide families with a strong foundation.

Committing to Heifer for Lent

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Brooke Edwards

Today’s post is by Linda Meyers, Heifer Communications team member.

Lent has always been my favorite time of year. Maybe becauseI know spring is coming, the days are getting longer, the animals start comingout more, and the colors start sneaking back out again on the lawn and in thegardens. It’s a time of hope, new life, and for my family more together-time aswe go out and enjoy nature as much as we can.

Lent is also a time of sacrifice. The story of Jesus’s lifeand ultimate sacrifice has always been important to me, and Lent has alwaysbeen a time to reflect on what he gave up by giving up something myself. Evenduring my 10 years away from church, I still gave something up, or chose to dosomething new and worthwhile, for the 40 days leading up to Easter. This year,I’m going to do both.

Photo by David Snyder, courtesy of Heifer International

As a member of the communications team here at Heifer, Iread and write daily about the stories of people bringing themselves out ofpoverty with a simple gift from Heifer. I upload their pictures to Flickr and pin interesting tidbits onPinterest. As I’m doing this, I feel for them and their struggles, and respecttheir abilities to overcome huge obstacles. I am drawn to help them. This year,I’m going to help by dedicating my Lenten sacrifice to Heifer.

I’ve decided to give up my Mountain-Dew-a-day habit. This isno easy task, since I love Mountain Dew and count on the caffeine to wake meup, but deciding to give the money that would otherwise be spent ($1.50 a day) to Heifer is giving me the extraincentive to actually be excited about it. To think that this small sacrificeon my part can be a part of something as big as giving people hope for a betterlife as well as the tools to make it a reality, is huge to me, and it makes mehappy. A win-win for everyone. Somethingin me even tells me Jesus would smile at this idea.

I invite you to join me, and be the difference in a family’s life. If you are thinking about donating the money you are saving by yoursacrifice, or even donating time and/or talents to Heifer or any otherorganization, leave a comment. I’m interested in reading about what you are doing this Lenten season.

Giving Up? Give Back: 40 Days to Make a Difference

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Brooke Edwards

Whenyou’re poor and hungry, you give up something each day. A parent gives up theircup of rice for their starving child. A young girl gives up her dream ofreading—tragically, poverty demands sacrifice.

Congregationsand people all around the world will today begin celebrating the season ofLent. As an expression of faith, individuals and families will give somethingup–coffee, candy, even Facebook or Twitter–as a daily reminder of thesacrifice made on their behalf. But whetheryou celebrate Lent or not, giving up something important to you can be profoundand send a powerful message if you dedicate your season of Lent to HeiferInternational.

Photo by Russell Powell, courtesy of Heifer International

Theaverage weekly wage in Uganda is just $5.38. According to zagat.com, the nationalaverage cost for a meal out in the United States is $35.37, just over sixweeks’ wages for a Ugandan family. Imagine the impact you can have by justdonating six meals during the six weeks of Lent – the $210 you’d donate toHeifer could provide a community with a goat, honeybees and three flocks ofchicks. What a life-changing gift that would be!

Youcan make this challenge even more impactful by asking family and friends tojoin you as well. Together, you could feed a whole village and give them thetools to transform. By sacrificing for a short time, you can help create awhole new life free from poverty for families who now sacrifice every day.

Thesacrifices you make will mean a world of difference to a family living inpoverty; join Heifer International’s mission eradicate hunger and poverty.

Congregation Resources
Did you know that Heifer International offers a variety of resources that willhelp deepen your congregation’s understanding of stewardship and the power andimportance of giving to those in need? From bulletin inserts to completeextended lesson plans, you’ll find some inspiring ways to share your love forHeifer in the context of your faith. Check out our congregation resources.

This is what Social Justice Looks Like

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Brooke Edwards

Today is World Day of Social Justice, as declared by the United Nations in 2007. In celebration here are four images of what social justice looks like in the four corners of the world where Heifer International works.

Social Justice is girls in Nicaragua, where 32 percent of girls over 15 are illiterate, attending school because their families don’t need them to stay home and work.

Photo by Darcy Kiefel, courtesy of Heifer International

Social Justice is a Ghanian community taking charge of their future through enterprise.

Photo by James Grooves, courtesy of Heifer International

Social Justice is a husband in the Philippines who, after attending trainings on Heifer’s 12 Cornerstones for Just and Sustainable Development, values his wife’s work and begins helping provide for his family.

Photo courtesy of Heifer International

Social Justice is a war widow in Kosovo having the means to provide for her family.

Photo by Heather McClintock, courtesy of Heifer International

Haitians Delighted with Heifer

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Brooke Edwards

Heifer’s Vice President of the Americas Program Oscar Castaneda is traveling in Haiti with CEO Pierre Ferrari. Today they are attending the inauguration of a new goat breeding center, part of Heifer’s Rural Entrepreneurs for Agricultural Cooperation (REACH) Project. Here’s the first of Oscar’s accounts of this trip.

Rosnel Jean Baptiste, general coordinator of Tet Kole.

In Mountrouis, the members of Tet Kole and Peyizan Ayisen are celebrating the opening and dedication of a first-of-its-kind goat breeding center. According to Rosnel Jean Baptiste, general coordinator of the organization, this represents a great example of collaboration and the opportunity to ensure food security while reducing dependence of imported food.

“This breeding center will also help us to be more successful in improving other community needs like access to water,” Baptiste said.

With Heifer Haiti, they will continue planting trees and transforming the landscape. This model will be expanded to reach a larger impact on other places in Haiti.

A group of singers perform at the opening of the goat breeding center.

Volunteers Will Help End Hunger and Poverty

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Brooke Edwards

Post written by Sarah Donaghy, Heifer International community volunteer coordinator. Photos taken at the 2011 Living Gift Market in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas, by Sutheera Phimolthitikul, Heifer Thailand administrative manager.

The outrage of hunger amidst plenty will never be solved by “experts” somewhere. It will only be solved when people like you and me decide to act. – Frances Moore Lappé

Such true words from a woman who dedicates herself to taking action for causes that matter to her. What matters to you? Since you’re reading this blog, it’s probably safe to say that you, like Ms. Lappé, are interested in ending hunger, as well as ending poverty and caring for the Earth. That’s the mission of Heifer International, and it bears repeating: to work with communities to end hunger and poverty and care for the Earth. Further, we envision a world of communities living together in peace and equitably sharing the resources of a healthy planet. Sounds good, eh?!

As we find ourselves in the thick of holiday hustle and bustle and approaching a new year, there is no better time to reflect on what matters to us and how we want to take action toward those causes. One such action is volunteering, and it just so happens that the United Nations has declared today International Volunteer Day. Volunteering with Heifer is a great way to demonstrate your commitment to ending hunger and poverty and caring for the Earth. Our volunteers educate the public about the issues of hunger, poverty, and environmental degradation and inspire people to take action to solve these problems.

Heifer’s Community Volunteers promote Heifer by raising awareness and raising funds by sharing the Heifer story with schools, congregations, and civic groups and by representing Heifer at conferences, benefits, and other events in their own regions. Heifer’s Learning Center Volunteers deliver education programs, care for livestock and gardens, and provide administrative and physical support at one of three specific sites: Heifer Ranch in Perryville, Arkansas; Heifer Village in Little Rock, Arkansas; or Overlook Farm in Rutland, Massachusetts. Presently, both Community Volunteers and Learning Centers Volunteers are organizing and staffing alternative giving markets across the country, which offer visitors the opportunity to learn more about Heifer’s work around the world and to purchase gifts of food- and income-producing livestock benefit resource-poor communities around the world in honor of friends and family near and dear. Last month, the Heifer Club in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas, hosted their annual Living Gift Market in support of Heifer, raising more than $40,000 and hundreds of new fans for the organization.

When you volunteer with Heifer, you are actively cultivating a world of communities living together in peace and equitably sharing the resources of a healthy planet. In honor of International Volunteer Day, learn more about getting involved with Heifer by visiting www.heifer.org/volunteer.

Heifer Supports Healthy Soil

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Brooke Edwards

Dolores shows us her composting recipe.

Today is World Soil Day. As you know, Heifer’s mission is to end hunger and poverty and care for the Earth. When we say “Earth,” we mean “earth,” too. It’s kind of a no-brainer that, as an organization promoting sustainable agriculture around the world, we’ve got a stake in helping our project communities improve their soil.

When I was in Peru, I visited the small farm of a woman named Dolores Delgado. The very first thing Dolores showed us was a poster illustrating the agroecological cycle of her farm. Part of this cycle was the elaborate recipe for liquid compost she and her husband learned through the Heifer project. You could really tell Dolores has this science down. She collects manure and urine from her guinea pigs and adds it to her vermicomposting (composting with worms, in case you didn’t take Latin) pile. When that compost is ready, she puts it and a whole long list of other ingredients into a big drum to ferment into a product called “biol.” Then, instead of spraying chemical fertilizers (which, let’s face it, aren’t good for anybody), she and her husband us a simple spray backpack to apply the organic biol fertilizer.

Dolores has crafted her guinea pig cages so collecting their manure and urine is a relatively easy task.

Dolores shows us her worm composting pile.

Although the project she’s participating in was fairly new at the time of our visit,
Dolores had already taken composting and improving her farm’s soil to a scientific level.

In addition to knowing they’re improving the soil and protecting the environment,
Dolores and her husband don’t have to worry about exposing themselves or their livestock to dangerous chemicals.

This is what a lot of the terrain looks like in the parts of Peru we visited–a bit on the barren side.

Improving the soil on Dolores’s farm–and on any other–has many implications. In the part of the world where she lives, the soil is generally pretty poor. Instead of neglecting the soil, leading to soil erosion, Dolores grows nutritious fodder for her guinea pigs, which also means she doesn’t have to spend as much money feeding them. Her vegetable garden yields significantly better results than before she began using agroecological practices.

Compare this with the photo above. A huge difference, right?

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