We Still Need Donations!

Hey all! So real quick, we still need donations for the project that we're working on :) If anyone has an extra $5-$10 or knows anyone else who would be interested please please please forward this on! Our letter explaining our project and how to donate is below!

Thanks in advance!


Dear Friends,

We are writing to invite you to participate in an exciting opportunity! During this Winter quarter, eighteen students from the University of Washington will be studying abroad in Cape Town, South Africa with the Comparative History of Ideas (CHID) program. While staying in Cape Town we will be participating in a variety of community engagement projects. One of the projects that a few of us will be working on promotes understanding between students from Roosevelt High School in Seattle, Washington and students from Isilimela and Belleville High Schools in Cape Town. This project will consist of a number of creative elements including photography, writing and other arts-based activities.

This project will be groundbreaking in its capabilities to create bridges between American teenagers, as well as teenagers from two distinctly different cultures in South Africa. Despite the fall of apartheid, the majority of students in South Africa still live in very segregated conditions and rarely communicate with one another across race and class divides. In February 2008, sixteen Roosevelt High School students will visit Cape Town for two weeks, spending time in Langa Township and in Belleville. It’s a unique opportunity to learn about one another, dialogue about difficult issues, and build new friendships.

We plan to help facilitate this exchange by giving students a unique opportunity to understand each other through self-expression and artistic communication. We will do this through a series of guided photography and writing workshops. We have been working this quarter with a program at UW called “Literacy Through Photography,” where we learned how to develop and lead this kind of youth exchange. Given an irreplaceable opportunity to work in groups consisting of one student from each high school, students will use their photos to create dialogue. Photographs, artwork, writing, and performance open up a space for youth from vastly different backgrounds to communicate with one another. Important aspects of this project will include movement and performance workshops with a professional teaching artist, an overnight retreat and open mic where students will present their written pieces and finally a public celebration in Langa, where the students will be given an opportunity to share their photos and artwork to members of the community. Additionally, we are hoping to bring some of the photos back to Seattle to display in the spring.

Here is where you come in: we have the heart, but we are still seeking resources for the final funding of this project. Our goal is $4000. We have raised some money already, and though we realize this is late notice (we leave at the end of December!), we are still hoping that you may be able to help. The donated funds will be used toward cameras, 100 rolls of film, art supplies and developing costs. Any additional funds beyond our practical needs will be used toward helping Roosevelt fund the work of the teaching artist. Again, we apologize for the late notice. For many of us working on this project, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. We hope that you will consider supporting our efforts. Happy Holidays.

Donations can be made via check or online:

Checks:
Checks for any amount can be made out to The University of Washington Foundation and should reference Cape Town Photography

Please mail them to:
Amy Peloff
Comparative History of Ideas Program
Box 354300
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195-4300

Online:
To make a donation with a credit or debit card, please visit the CHID website at http://depts.washington.edu/chid/giftsandgiving.php, choose the Jim Clowes Local/Global International Fund and reference Cape Town Photography in the comment section.

Any help you can offer us will be greatly appreciated. Please let us know if you have any ideas to help us or can point us in any new directions. We could even bring back a sample of our work for you and/or your organization if you are interested. If you have any questions about this project, please contact one of the members of our group listed below. If you have any questions about making a donation, please contact Amy Peloff at 206-543-7991 or apeloff@u.washington.edu.

Thank you,

Tessa Adams
Suzy Hu
Kate Jesse
Mallory Loflin
Joy MacTavish
Alena Marshak
Mehret Weldu

Instructor:Georgia Roberts