Bountiful Trees and Chess Accessories
Make It Rain For Change $10 Challenge Part 1: How Grassroots Leaders in Five African Countries Turn RainMaker Fund Distributions Into Lasting Impact in Their Communities
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The first reports are coming in from our ChangeMakers on how they have transformed their $10 RainMaker Fund donation into positive change in their community.
This Fall, thanks to paid subscribers and donations from other supporters, the RainMaker Fund reached $350. In November 2024, I distributed the $350 evenly to the 35 different community-based organizations in Malawi, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, and Uganda I highlighted this summer.
The challenge? What impact can you make in your community with just $10? I quickly learned that $10 goes much further than I imagined.
RainMakers & ChangeMakers is a GiveBackStack. A GiveBackStack is a Substack publication that donates all OR a portion of paid subscriptions to a community or charitable cause. A GiveBackStack also clearly states the cause, frequency, and kind of donation and provides some form of written accountability on a regular basis to its subscribers. RainMakers & ChangeMakers gives 100% of all subscriptions (I pay Stripe & Substack fees) to African ChangeMakers every time we reach $350. Find other GiveBackStacks here!
Caring for the Caretaker - Kwetu Regenerative Hub, Kenya
Since highlighting them this summer, ChangeMaker duo
Van Reenen and Dee J Essy of Kwetu Regenerative Hub have made incredible progress in building a homestead, syntropic agroforestry demonstration site, and dragonfruit farm in Kitui County, Kenya (one of the driest parts of Kenya).Roland recently gave this report on how they used their $10 RainMaker Fund donation:
We bought 3 different varieties of trees: the famous Kenyan apple variety, Pixies orange tree, and a Grevillea robusta timber tree which we donated to our caretaker of our homestead, Masua (means sunshine).
Dee J chimed in:
I’ve never seen him this happy... slowly but surely we'll turn his farm into an edible forest!
Read more about Roland and Dee J here:
Tree Planting for School Children - Kakamega, Kenya
Jenipher Nyangah of Days for Girls Kakamega and Moses Makachia of Shisaba Water Resource Initiative combined their $10 to purchase 8 trees to plant at Kamashia Comprehensive School in Kenya, a Grade 1-9 school serving 780 children.
Shade, fruit, and other beneficial trees planted at the school include: Elgon teak, Aprunas Africanas,, Zanthoxylum Gillette, Neem (mwarubaini), Wabugia Ugandensis (Uganda green heart), Mahogany (Omunyama), Mvule (African Tik), Akrocaper, and Lookward (mzambarau).
Below: Jenipher and Moses plant one of their donated trees. Apologies for the challenging audio in the below video. It was recess time!
Learn more about Jenipher, a permaculture trainer as well as a reusable pads and other home goods social entrepreneur, and her husband Moses, a permaculture practitioner, water resource expert, and pastor, here:
Eucalyptus Trees for Shade and Income - K5Village, Kenya
The first ChangeMaker I highlighted this summer was
of K5Village Project in Kenya. His farm serves as a village farming demonstration site for children and community members. He also uses profits from his general store to provide supplies and school fees for needy children in the village.Omito reports that he transformed his $10 into 50 eucalyptus saplings to plant along the fence of his farm, providing timber, building materials, and shade.
Read more about Omito Abraham here:
Chess Clock for Agape Hope for Kibera Chess Club
McDawn (Don Wasonga), co-founder and Director of Entertainment at Agape Hope for Kibera school in Kibera Slums, Kenya, used his $10 donation to purchase a chess clock for the 30-member Agape Hope chess club.
Earlier this year, Don shared this about chess:
Don explained that chess is a game for the rich in Kenya. When Kibera kids go to chess competitions and play with the rich kids, brings up negative emotions becaue they can see the stark difference between the haves and have nots. But, that the exposure to other people and different environments is positive.
According to the website www.chessdelights.com, “The importance of a chess clock is that – it will build urgency for chess players and for beginners I believe this will help you become a stronger chess player and very strategic in playing chess games once you get used to playing with a chess clock.”
You can read more about McDawn and Agape Hope for Kibera here:
Chess Table/Bench for Thuchila Youth Empowerment Program, Malawi
Jonas Chabroka Fedweck of Thuchila Youth Empowerment Program in Malawi turned his $10 RainMaker Fund donation into a table and bench for chess. Recently, he received funds from an international supporter to purchase a chess set (I learned that a chess set in Malawi currently costs USD$30). Without a table, youth had to sit on the floor to play. Now they have a chess table to sustain long sessions in comfort!
Chess is a wonderful game for the youth recreation and I was worried when they were playing on the floor. At first the youths were playing on the floor which broke their backs but now are happy to play it on the beautiful chess bench/table. - Jonas Fedweck
You can read more about Jonas here:
Thank you for reading. I’ll be back soon with Part 2 of “Make It Rain For Change” stories!
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Until next time, be well! Make it rain, create some change!
I adore this post. What a difference even a small contribution makes!