More than Me & Givology to Host Kick-off Fundraiser to Raise Funds for Safe House

For more information and to RSVP, go to www.anightofpromise.com

EVENT DATE: JANUARY 28TH, 7-11 PM AT MARQUEE
TO JOIN THE EVENT AS PRESS, PLEASE E-MAIL KATIE@MORETHANME.ORG or JOYCE.MENG@GIVOLOGY.ORG

Remember the good old days back in high school? After the last period of the day, guys and girls would leave campus in their Mustangs, Corollas, or Accords, or simply take a nice stroll home. The only thing on our minds at that point was: what is my work for the day? Or, when am I hanging out with my friends? What are we doing?

These simple nuances and plans occupy our daily mindset all the time. Indeed, safety is seldom an issue in these cases. Unfortunately, this is not the case in Liberia, where 60% of children, the majority girls, are out of school and on the dangerous streets of Liberia’s capital, Monrovia. Since then, the More than Me foundation has has delivered the gift of education to numerous girls in the slums of the city and given them the opportunity to finally live normal lives.

However, the fight simply does not end there. Granting a child an education is only part of the process of ensuring his or her wellbeing. After school, these girls are susceptible to dangers that lurk every corner in Monrovia, including sexual abuse. A safe house is necessary in the capital: a place where the girls can stay away from the streets while receiving tutoring, therapy, vocational training, class trips and an opportunity to participate in sports, art, and yoga classes that teach self-esteem and soft skills which will make them successful beyond their basic education.

More Than Me from What Took You So Long? on Vimeo.

And that is where More than Me and Givology are trying to initiate a great deal of change. The More than Me Foundation, a nonprofit focusing on education development in Liberia, and Givology have partnered to host a fundraiser at Marquee Nightclub, in Chelsea, on January 28th from 7-11PM. Featuring DJs Sammy and the Lost Boy and Han DieNasty, an open bar, and remarks by Multi Media Exposure, Inc. president and More than Me board member, Prince Lorenzo Borghese, and More than Me founder, Katie Meyler, A Night of Promise will bring together some of the brightest minds in marketing, charity, and social media.

Givology has partnered with More than Me to help the nonprofit reach its $40,000 goal. With the partnership, Givology is helping to bring community-based development work and the world of marketing and PR together for one amazing night. “We’re incredibly proud to partner with More than Me on this event – the work they are doing in Liberia is truly inspiring and the urgency to create the center for girls never greater,” said Joyce Meng, co-founder of Givology.

A Night of Promise is sponsored by Bacardi Rum, Radeberger Pilsner, and Wodka Vodka. Tickets for the open-bar event can be purchased online before January 28th at www.anightofpromise.com for $50, or at the door for $60. All proceeds will go toward More than Me’s I Promise Project.

More than Me, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was formed in 2009 after Katie Meyler returned from war-torn Liberia determined that one person with enough drive can make a difference. Meyler now speaks to schools and organizations about how to "be the change” they want to see in the world and to raise awareness of education issues in Liberia. The More than Me Foundation operates with paid staff from the community in Liberia, through partnerships with community groups, and with a network of dedicated volunteers around the world.

Liberia has the fourth lowest per capita income in the world and, for most families, survival takes priority over education. Since 2009, More than Me has enrolled 100 girls in school. The girls in More than Me’s program live in West Point, one of the worst parts of Liberia’s capital, Monrovia, and their parents cannot afford the fees required to attend school. With an education, the girls in More than Me’s program are less likely to contract sexually transmitted diseases, less likely to have children before age 15, and will have a greater opportunity of earning a good living in the future. However, some of the girls also face commercial and sexual exploitation once school is over, many do not have a safe place to study, and most do not have the support they need to succeed after their first day of school.

The event’s $40,000 goal will go toward the purchase of a safe house in Monrovia, Liberia’s capital. Tickets for admission are available for purchase at the event website, www.anightofpromise.com. Marquee is located at 289 10th Avenue, between 26th and 27th, in Manhattan.

A Life With Electricity
For those of us who live in a modern city, turning on a light switch is often overlooked. We don’t even know how to live without electricity. With our heaters, iphones and lights, a life without any electricity seems far from the norm.

A Life Without Electricity
However, the children of the Chazon’s Children’s Center have to live it everyday. Currently, the school has no electricity and cooking is done over a three-stone fire. During times of rain or bad weather, kids are unable to learn because of the dim lighting. Many students also do not have electricity at home, which restrict the students from doing work at home.

When Dr. Virginia Duffy discovered the school on a trip to Kenya, she made a commitment to change the electrical standards of the school. She took initiative to contact AHEAD Energy. Although they donated a pump and turbines to help generate electricity, the school is still in need of rechargeable lights for kids to bring home and LED lights that allow for learning on dim days.


Although prepared and credible teachers allow for a good education, electricity is just as important. The new electricity would improve security at night and result in a huge impact in education.



Please help this project, Light for Learning, by donating. If we can’t imagine living a life without electricity, how can we expect others to do the same?

To donate, Click Here

To learn more, Click Here

Sometimes my friends at my public high school in Southern California joke about missing school to avoid an exam or other unpleasant task. Yet jokes aside, very rarely do we consider being forced to stay at home due to financial issues or extreme tragedy in our personal lives.

After I read the story of Victor Ouma from Kibera in Kenya, I realized how foolish our jokes were about missing school. As much as some students dread waking up to study US History, I recognized how fortunate I was to be accountable to almost nothing besides exploring my intellectual interests.

After the deaths of both his parents and eldest brother, Victor had to take an leave of absence from school in order to support his other siblings as they struggled to feed themselves. Finding the equilibrium between helping his family and advancing his education has been difficult, but Vincent has been able to get by with the help of some scholarships and his own desire to do well. Victor even worked over the holidays to raise enough money for his tuition the following semester. However, Victor's motivation to keep learning and pursuing his ambitions is undying regardless of the status of his tuition funds. Victor is just a normal 16-year-old who loves football, but he is extraordinary and an inspiration to me with his resilience to continue his education in the face of adversity.

With this drive to succeed, Victor writes how he wants to become a lawyer someday, as he articulates in a letter update to his Givology supporters.



To read more about Victor, visit his Givology profile!

Focus on Giving with David Cicero Bevacqua of Neighborhood Bike Works





David is the program director and interim executive director of Neighborhood Bike Works.

The mission of Neighborhood Bike Works is to increase opportunities for urban youth in underserved neighborhoods in greater Philadelphia by offering educational, recreational, and career-building opportunities through bicycling; it also promotes cycling as a healthy, affordable, environment-friendly form of transportation.

David began teaching at NBW in the summer of 2007. He has six years youth work experience, including teaching in the Upward Bound program at Pennsylvania State University and leading youth bicycle repair classes at a community center in Tanzania. David completed the Youth Leadership Development training at United Way’s Center for Youth Development in 2007.

Help the Teachers
For the most part, the focus has been on students: how to fund students’ education, how to inspire students to learn, and how to provide uniforms and tools for students. But this week, I want to put the spot light on teachers. Of course, they should be thanked for their self-less work and ability to inspire kids to set goals beyond their wildest imagination, but teachers need a little help too!


Many schools in Uganda are unable to provide a sufficient education and curriculum for its students due to limited teaching supplies and large student populations. Teachers do not have something as simple as a pencil or a ruler. The lack of funding and infrastructure lead to less than adequate educational results. With less than 25% of students failing that exam needed to proceed onto secondary school, 46% passing in the lower division and only 2% achieving Division 1 ranking. With just a few essential school supplies, teachers can engage students more in the learning process with classroom activities and a more inspirational learning environment.


The Arlington Academy of Hope
The Arlington Academy of Hope has chosen to help alleviate this issue. Partnering with Givology with a new project called Help the Teachers, the Arlington Academy of Hope strives to donate school supplies to 10 underserved schools in rural Uganda. Each school will receive 50 pens, a 12 pack of permanent markers, 40 pieces of poster board, 1 large pack of ruled paper, one bottle of wall glue, a personal lesson planning book and a ruler. In addition to new school supplies, the Arlington Academy of Hope will be hosting Teacher Training Workshops to provide teachers with assistance on how to teach children. It isn’t just about the materials, but how they are teaching as well. With more prepared and well-equipped teachers, the Arlington Academy of Hope strives to impact over 8000 students.

To Donate: Click Here!
To Learn More:Click Here!