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Dear friends,
Thank you for your continued prayers and financial support. It has been a while since we reached out to you with our newsletters. Here are a few updates:
- EAVO’s Fundraising and Reports Night
- Sac Bee Profiled Executive Director
- This year’s graduates
- A Bridge to Lana Reese Preschool
- Additional Classroom in Roben Jirecha
- Church Planting Updates
1. EAVO’s Fundraising and Reports Night:
Our organization, East African Village Outreach, had a great night of fundraising on April 20, 2024 with a little over 110 supporters who enjoyed delicious Ethiopian food. Adele Ohs, Secretary of EAVO, opened the dinner with prayers.
Board Chairman, Dr. Olana Aberra, welcomed our guests and briefed them on some our latest achievements. That was followed by Seifu Ibssa, our executive director who updated the guests with activities since the beginning some 19 years ago. Our guest speaker, Dr. Gulelat Kebede, a former UN staff spoke on the importance of education, sighting several high profile Ethiopian leaders who had a humble beginning. 
Treasurer of EAVO, Mr. Harold (Skip) Ohs, updated the participants with financial reports. You, our supporters, gave over $20,000 that night, which will be used to advance education in Acheber and Roben Jirecha. Thank you!
2. Sacramento Bee Profiled Exec Director:
In an article titled How this Elk Grove man organizes outreach to Ethiopian villages, the Sacramento Bee profiled our executive director in its June newspaper. The article began: “Seifu Ibssa started an organization called East African Village Outreach, raising money to build schools, clinics and more in the Ethiopian village where he was born. He talks in June 2024 about its "accidental" origins”.
Read more at this link:
https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article289235579.html
3. This Year’s Graduates:
We do not have any graduates to report this year. The number of students who are joining colleges and universities across the country is about 3% of those who take the national exam due to a policy shift by the Ministry of Education, headed by a returnee professor who taught Economics at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. The number of students we support in colleges has steadily been going down in the last few years with only 12 remaining for the next 3 years.
4. A Bridge to Lana Reese Preschool:
We have a need. More than 90% of the 120 students at Lana Reese Preschool students come from Adere village, crossing a makeshift bridge which recently collapsed. The mayor asked the villagers to contribute for a better bridge, but came short of the required funds to complete the deck.
Temporary crossing
The cost is estimated $9,600. We have secured $2,000, but the remaining $7,600 is needed. Please donate as much as you can so that kids can get to the school. We very much appreciate your help!
5. Additional Classroom in Roben Jirecha:
Many thanks to Paraklete Foundation who paid 50% of the cost to add one more classroom in Roben Jirecha, our Board has just approved to send the required fund of $15,600 to our partners. The additional classroom will serve many children of the Roben Jirecha community while fulfilling the government’s requirements for Preschools.
6. Church Planting Updates:
EAVO’s goal is to reach communities wholistically by addressing their physical and spiritual needs. To that end, we have so far planted 7 churches in various communities through our partner churches. Our objective is to plant 5 more in the next 5 years. There are 3 such plantings on the way. Pray for the committed missionary, Tamiru Birru, who travels around several communities to plant churches.
Prayer Request
Our Executive Director, Seifu Ibssa, will be traveling to Ethiopia and possibly to Kenya in September. Please pray for safety.
Thank you!
Mail your Tax-Deductible Gifts to:
East African Village Outreach (EAVO)
9688 Ashstone Way
Elk Grove, CA 95624
Or donate online at www.eavo.org