SEPTEMBER 2017

It's always a dilemma to decide what to include in our third quarter newsletter as it covers the start of the new school year and so many celebrations. Children have made many beautiful things but sadly we could only include a couple of them. If you would like to see more please check out our facebook page which you can find here.

Several people have been in touch to tell us that they are planning on visiting and to ask what we need. To help with this we have updated the Things We Need page on our website which you can find here. Don't forget if you plan to bring things to Goa for Mango Tree and are travelling with Thomas Cook or Thomsons we can usually arrange a free charity luggage allowance so do please ask us if you would like to arrange one. Our email address is mangotreegoa@hotmail.co.uk. We hope to see many of you soon.

ALISON MCPHEE JOINS TRUSTEE BOARD

As Mango Tree continues to grow we are happy to announce that Alison McPhee has been appointed as an additional trustee bringing our total complement to 5. Alison has been a Mango Tree supporter from its earliest days. She is a keen fundraiser, regularly raising funds through her delicious Indian cuisine, and by spreading the word about Mango Tree's work has ensured that the Charity is a beneficiary of the prestigious Apple Ball in Glasgow. You can see Alison here with husband Glen at an earlier Apple Ball.

THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR AT COLVA

Our Colva project in South Goa supports around 20 disadvantaged children whose families are mainly beach sellers. Mango Tree took over support for the project after the existing support had dwindled away to nothing. The lady there had continued to run it with no funds but it couldn't carry on. We said we couldn't possibly take it over as it was so far away from our other projects but after taking a look we couldn't refuse. Its a relatively simple project providing afternoon tuition classes and essential school supplies but hugely important to the children who attend. Children are always very excited at the start of the new school year to see what's in their new school bag and as you can see the children were very pleased to receive them again this year.

CELEBRATING EID AL-FITR

Everyone who knows Mango Tree knows that we celebrate all religious festivals. This year the very important Muslim festival Eid Al-Fitr fell on a weekend so Mango House celebrated on the previous Friday. Children made beautiful cards and posters and girls especially enjoyed having Mehendi designs drawn on their hands.

FIRST SCHOOL BAGS AT LEARNING TREE

The Learning Tree project started its first full academic year this June. This meant that for the first time children received a school bag full of lots of lovely treats. We know these things are a real boost to children's confidence and their ability to participate fully at school. It was wonderful to hear about children's reactions and to know that for these children the new school year will always bring excitement and joy.

OUR 2018 FUND-RAISING CALENDAR

Whilst we hate to mention 2018 so far in advance as we don't have another newsletter until December we wanted to mention our Fundraising Calendar. The desk calendar is of a high quality printed on glossy card. It has an Indian artwork theme and each month features a photo. The calendars are sponsored so all proceeds will go to our Brick By Brick Appeal. Calendars are £6 each plus £1 for postage up to a maximum of £3 for 3 or more and postage free for orders of 10 or more. They will be available from early November but if you would like to order it would help if you tell us soon to help us plan. Please email us at mangotreegoa@hotmail.co.uk. We are not planning to have calendars in subsequent years so please do support this venture if you can.

CHANGE OF MANAGER AT MANGO HOUSE

At the end of June children and staff said a fond farewell to Savita who has managed Mango House from the start of Mango Tree in 2012. She was instrumental in taking the House from an empty building which did not have a licence to have children there to a bustling pre-primary school and tuition centre supporting so many children. We say a huge thank you to Savita for her hard work and wish her well in the future. Savita's deputy Ashwini (shown right) took over as manager with immediate affect and can be contacted on 0091 9604654588 or by email at themangotreetrust@hotmail.com as normal..

INDEPENDENCE DAY AT CHIMBEL

Independence Day, 15th August, is the most important day in the history of India and is celebrated with a huge amount of pride and joy. All our projects celebrated this important day with special activities including a talent competition and special art and craft activities. Here, however, you can see the pre-primary children at Chimbel who learnt about and then dressed up as noteworthy freedom fighters and important figures throughout the years. We think everyone will spot Mahatma Ghandi but here we also have some of the other noteworthy figures including Bhagat Singh, Pandit Nehru, the Rani of Jhansi, Subash Chandra Bose and Indira Ghandi

SUPPORTING 450 CHILDREN DAILY

At the beginning of the school year it always takes a couple of weeks for the numbers at our projects to settle. Some children are a little bit late returning from their native villages and a few children who move from pre-primary to 1st Standard find the shift in hours from 9 to 12.30 to 7.30 to 5 a bit too much to cope with. We are delighted to announce, however, that Mango Tree is now supporting around 450 children at its Pre-primary schools and afternoon classes daily. We are also proud that girls continue to outnumber boys slightly making up 55.4% of the total. We are amazed by the progress Mango Tree has made over the last 5 years and really appreciate that it is made possible by our supporters and great teams in Goa..

TWO TEACHING ASSISTANT POSTS ADDED

Each year as part of our budget setting process we consider how things are going in Goa and any changes that should and could be made. At Mango House in particular it was clear that there was an increasing pressure on teachers as a result of the ever growing number of children and the range of duties they undertake over and above teaching. It was proposed that two teaching assistants be added to the team bringing the teaching staff up to 7. Two new ladies have been appointed and their support in class has been a very welcome addition.

 

TANIA'S FAMILY AND THE COLOUR RUN

Back in July Tania, Jim and sons Zak and Alex undertook the Colour Run to raise funds for Mango Tree. The run looked a lot of fun but its fair to say that things looked somewhat different pre and post run. Everyone set off looking nice and clean and by the end were covered in colour. The Challenge raised a wonderful £175 and we say a big thank you to all the family for choosing to support Mango Tree and everyone who supported them.

MAISY AND KITTY'S CAR BOOT SALE

Our thanks to go Maisy and Kitty who very kindly attended a car boot sale to help raise funds for Mango Tree. These two lovely sisters are regularly visitors to Mango House and have fundraised from time to time.  The girls did a great job and managed to raise a much appreciated £70 which will be used towards the Brick By Brick Appeal.

IN MEMORY OF DES BLACKBURN-STOUT

We were saddened to hear about the sudden death of Des who, together with his wife Louise, had visited Mango House in December. Louise asked that those who wished to do so to make a donation to Mango Tree in Des's honour. We would like to thank all those who honoured Des and raised over £700 as a result. We also thank Louise, for thinking of Mango Tree at a very difficult time.

POOJA AND ANUJ COMPLETE THE 3 PEAKS CHALLENGE

On the first week of June our ex volunteer Pooja and her husband Anuj bravely undertook the 3 Peaks Challenge to raise funds for Mango Tree. The event entailed climbing the 3 highest Peaks in England, Scotland and Wales in 48 hours including driving between all 3. This generous couple covered all the costs of the event and raised an amazing £730 for Mango Tree. We say a huge thank you to Pooja and Anuj and everyone who supported them and look forward to seeing Pooja later in the year

THANK YOU STYRRUP HALL SENIORS

This year the Seniors section of Styrrup Hall Golf Club again held a fundraising day. This year the proceeds from the day were split between Mango Tree and a local children's Hospice with both receiving £451. The amount raised is astonishing given the relatively small numbers of seniors involved and we say a huge thank you to the organisers and all those who chose to take part.

CELEBRATING SHIRLEY'S BIRTHDAY AT MANGO HOUSE

We were delighted that long term supporter Shirley decided to celebrate her birthday at Mango House in July. Children were very pleased to escape tuition class to party and enjoy scrumptious cake and fruit.

THE MIND REWIND TEAM CONTINUES TO SUPPORT MANGO TREE

Over the years we have been very lucky to regularly receive donations arising from the sales of the Mind Rewind CDs. The CDs are produced by DAT records and feature music from the past Goa Scene. All those involved in the project have given their contribution without any charge which has resulted in a huge amount being donated over time. The latest donation of £1,550 brings the total to a whacking £10,600 and we once again say thank you to all those involved. If you would like to learn more about Mind Rewind click here.

OUR THANKS TO THE BANK OF BARODA

We were delighted to learn that Mr Manish Kumar and his team from the Bank of Baroda at Anjuna recently visited Mango House. On behalf of the bank the team provided slates and dusters for all the pre-primary children and treated everyone to drinks and snacks. Children were very happy to receive them and we say a big thank you to the team for choosing to support Mango House.

3RD STANDARD ENJOY AN OUTING TO THE TALKIES

The 3rd Standard children at Mango House were super excited to have a visit to Heera Talkies to see Spiderman. The trip was made possible by friends Jan and Victoria who sponsored trips for both the 3rd and 4th Standard children. The latter visited the Goa Science Centre earlier in the year. Outings and the new experiences children enjoy are a huge deal and we say thank you to Jan and Victoria for making these two special days possible.

 

SUPPORTING MANGO TREE

There are lots of ways to help Mango Tree to transform the lives of disadvantaged children. You could

  • Donate
  • Sponsor a Child
  • Organise a Fundraiser
  • Shop Online using the Give As You Live Scheme
  • Take Much Needed Items to Mango House
  • Spread the Word

You can make a one-off or regular donation by visiting our BT MyDonate page here. Please do not be put off by thinking you can only afford a small contribution. Every little helps, so be assured that if you can make a gift of any amount that gift will make a difference.

CONTACT US

Mango Tree Goa

12 Black Horse Drive

Silkstone Common

BARNSLEY

South Yorkshire

S75 4SD

Email : info@mangotreegoa.org

Facebook :

http://www.facebook.com/

mangotreegoacharity

Copyright 2017 Mango Tree Goa : Charity Registered in England and Wales : Charity Number 1148049