 Children on the Edge supporter, Ani Evans, did something special to celebrate her ‘big’ birthday and set up a Birthday Fundraiser on Facebook recently. She set a target of £500 - ‘£10 for every year of my life!’ she said. Ani not only met her target, she absolutely smashed it, and has raised £741 so far - an amazing achievement. One that will make a huge difference to our work around the world with vulnerable children. Could you use your birthday to make a difference and fundraise for Children on the Edge? Ani has been a long standing supporter of Children on the Edge, and was involved with us back in 2010 through her work with The Body Shop At Home. She took part in a Playscheme in Moldova where she saw first hand how our donations are used to work with and support some of the worlds most vulnerable children. She said wanted her friends to donate as a way of celebrating her birthday with her, and said that our work “means a lot to her”. Ani said: “The children I met in Moldova had very little and were at risk of being victims of child trafficking. Children on the Edge built a Centre which was where the Playscheme was run. It was an emotional trip and probably the most rewarding thing I have done in my life so far”. Children on the Edge supported and protected children living in poverty and without adequate care in Moldova; using our Child Friendly Space model. Our 'Centre', (a converted house), served over 200 vulnerable children from the local rural community. Activities included: after school lessons and homework clubs, computer lessons and free play sessions, including arts, crafts, games and sports. The most vulnerable also received a daily nutritious meal. In the years since the Centre was established we saw it become the hub of the community. Work with the children at the Centre reduced the crime rate and increased school attendance, helping to halt the cycle of poverty and vulnerability. We assisted our local partners to become an independent Moldovan run organisation, who took over running the centre using independent local funding. Read more about our current projects.  Ani said: "I have been blown away by the support I have had. It’s a long time since I did any fundraising, so I am over the moon that people were on board. The more people who know about Children on the Edge the better."
Our Fundraising Officer, Kerry said: “We want to thank Ani and her friends for their kindness and support, and of course wish Ani a huge Happy Birthday! We’re delighted she chose to remember Children on the Edge as she celebrated a big milestone". The money Ani raised will help marginalised and forgotten children, who are living on the edge of their societies around the world. These are children without parental care, neglected or persecuted by their governments, ignored by international media and missed by large overseas agencies. Children on the Edge work in partnership with local communities. We help create safe, child friendly environments and support children to realise their rights. All our work aims to restore the ingredients of a full childhood by generating hope, life, colour and fun. Would you like to join Ani and support our work? Setting up a birthday fundraiser on Facebook is a fantastic, and simple way to raise money for Children on the Edge and help us support more children. To set up your Birthday Fundraiser:
If you get stuck or want any help or advice, contact our Fundraising Officer, Kerry: fundraising@childrenontheedge.org or call us on 01243 538530  The Body Shop at Home Spring Live! was an epic success; with consultants raising an incredible £65,209 in just a day. More than double the previous record total last September. The Body Shop at Home’s Spring Live! event gathered 2,400 like minded entrepreneurial consultants to celebrate 25 years of the business and 25 years of female empowerment. Along with raffle tickets and t-shirts, our team were armed with over 5000 goody bags, filled with products generously donated by The Body Shop. At an astonishing rate of selling one bag per second, every bag was sold in record time. Together, this all helped to raise an absolutely whopping £65,209 in just one day. This is more than double the previous record fundraising total from September’s Christmas Conference.
The goody bags were packed in record time last week, with the help of a fantastic group of volunteers in Littlehampton who gave two days of their time to put them all together. Our Executive Director, Ben shared good news from our projects in Uganda, with an update about our work in Wandago slum. Last February, Ben showed some clips from a tour we were taken on by children living in Wandago slum. They told us about the well they had to walk to for water, and the fact that many girls had been victims of rape and sexual assault when visiting there alone. Jjust a year later, our Child Protection Team in Wandago is fully established and have spent time working with the community to ensure that no-one travels to the well by themselves. There have been no attacks since. Ben also celebrated Children on the Edge’s new Early Childhood Development (ECD) Centre in Wandago, which opened last week, thanks to the fundraising efforts of The Body Shop At Home. The children are settling in well to their new colourful classrooms and our three new teachers, Leila, Faith and Prossy (pictured below) are delighted to have welcomed the children into the start of term. We hope the new Centre will replicate the success seen at our ECD Centre in Loco. Keep an eye on our Latest Stories for updates.
This was the first time we had the support from 64 new Children on the Edge Ambassadors (pictured above helping to sell goody bags) from The Body Shop, who helped to sell goody bags and raffle tickets and then launched their 2019 fundraising challenge. They will be sharing updates and ideas on how raise money with their regional teams. We’re excited to see what they can raise throughout the year. Our Fundraising Manager, Eloise Armstrong said: ‘We are completely blown away by the generosity, passion and commitment to Children on the Edge shown by The Body Shop At Home consultants. The record fundraising total from Spring Conference is more than we could have ever imagined’. ‘The support we receive from The Body Shop At Home is absolutely vital, not only to carry on Anita’s legacy, but more importantly, to create safe spaces for vulnerable children in Uganda and empower other women across the globe to transform their communities’. As you can see, support from The Body Shop At Home continues to change lives. Thank you to all those who are supporting us to continue this work, especially those who bought a goody bag, t-shirt, raffle tickets, or donated at the weekend and helped us to raise such a phenomenal amount of money. You can support us throughout the year by making a regular donation, organising a fundraising event or by taking on a challenge. If you are a consultant from The Body Shop At Home and you'd like to find out how to get more involved with fundraising, please email tbsah@childrenontheedge.org. For 25 years, The Body Shop At Home have supported Children on the Edge raising over £1.3 million and helping create safe places for vulnerable children around the world. The Body Shop and Children on the Edge have worked together since Dame Anita Roddick founded the charity in 1990. In her mission to prove that business could be a force for good, Dame Anita Roddick created a whole new way of thinking about trade and the beauty industry. Find out more.
 Our fantastic corporate partners Make It Cheaper held a Halloween-themed Bake Off in October to raise money for Children on the Edge. To add to the sugar fuelled excitement they were lucky to have Manon, a quarter finalist in 2018’s Great British Bake Off, along to judge the competition. Manon also baked a five-tier chocolate cake to auction to raise even more cash.
There were some fantastic entries, with the five best-looking cakes shortlisted for tasting in order to determine the winner. The crown of Make It Cheaper’s Best Baker eventually went to Kelly – a cake Manon said she could eat all day! The Bake Off raised £400 for Children on the Edge and significantly added to the waistlines of all the staff as well. Manon was delighted to help support the Bake Off saying: "I didn't think twice when I was asked to join and donate one of my cakes to help Children on the Edge! I didn't do that much, but I hope with this extra money raised, it will make a little difference to some children in need and give them a brighter future!" Make it Cheaper have supported Children on the Edge since 2017 and are always looking for new and exciting ways to get our staff involved with fundraising. Having held bake sales, karaoke nights, raffles and even completed a Tough Mudder, they have raised more than £38,000 in the past 18 months. Dan O’Sullivan from Make it Cheaper helps cheer on and organise their fundraising and shared how “The chance to support a charity that does such vital work with vulnerable children across the world is one that we relish – especially with two members of staff having visited Uganda to witness first-hand the impact of COTE’s projects”. If you could support Children on the Edge at your workplace we would love to hear from you, email our team at fundraising@childrenontheedge.org.  This Christmas give someone a Children on the Edge inspired gift and help bring hope, life, colour and fun to forgotten children around the world.
* Thanks to the generosity of Montezuma’s they have donated Chocolate bars to Children on the Edge, so that all your donation goes to the work of Children on the Edge.
All in a day’s work - The Body Shop At Home smash fundraising totals for Children on the Edge20/9/2018
 At this year’s Christmas conference, The Body Shop at Home consultants beat their biggest fundraising total yet, raising an incredible £31,420 in just one day. Ben, Eloise and our amazing volunteers Harry-Joe, Jane, Kate and her children Beth and Ben all travelled to Telford for the Christmas Conference. As well as raffle tickets and t-shirts, they were armed with over 2,500 goody bags. Products for these were generously donated by The Body Shop, and packed with the help of a brilliant group of volunteers who gave two days of their time to put them all together. Our Executive Director, Ben shared news from Uganda, describing how, like The Body Shop, all Children on the Edge projects work to ensure people can become the best version of themselves. He gave an example from Uganda, telling a recent story about how a Child Protection Team ensured the rescue of an abducted baby. The Body Shop volunteers Melany, Bev, Sam and Jade (pictured above) also spoke about their June visit to Uganda where they saw the Child Protection Teams, Early Education Centre and micro-loans in action. Jade Fish, Head of Trading and Communications said “What I will take away from my trip is the future every community can look forward to with over 8,000 strong of Anita’s Army behind them”. 81 consultants also signed up to give a monthly donation, ensuring the stability of this work going forward. Our Fundraising Manager Eloise said “Regular donations to Children on the Edge provide a steady, reliable income that enables us to plan ahead, budget effectively and undertake more programmes to support vulnerable children around the world. We’re really grateful to have an amazing group of consultants from The Body Shop At Home on that journey with us”. The Body Shop and Children on the Edge have worked together since Anita Roddick founded the charity in 1990. Driven by her passion for sustainable and ethical products, Dame Anita hoped to provide a similar approach to charity work.
Thank you to all those who are supporting us to continue this work. If you are a consultant from The Body Shop at Home and you'd like to find out how to get more involved, just email tbsah@childrenontheedge.org, or if you’d like to sign up as TBSAH monthly donor* click here. *For other COTE supporters wanting to donate monthly, click the button below.
 Despite record-breaking hot weather, our two runners this year managed to complete the London Marathon and raise almost £4,000 for Children on the Edge.
We spoke to one of our champion fundraisers; 5-time marathon runner James Watkins this morning to catch up on the special (and sweltering) London Marathon. He said, “It was just brilliant, the crowds were cheering harder than ever, the atmosphere was incredible”. Having ran in marathon events before, James described this year as particularly spectacular, with the heat only encouraging the supporters who lined the race track. While James had been battling freezing conditions through his snowy winter training, he admitted that Sunday was “not a day for running”. The heat left thousands of runners struggling to finish what was the hottest London Marathon day on record. James said, “I saw people dropping from the heat, I thought today is not the day I’ll get my personal best, I just need to make it to the end”. Keeping hydrated and persevering, James made it to the end where he was met by his wife and thousands of incredible supporters in an amazing time of 4hrs 27mins. Despite James not getting his ‘personal best’ time, he was overjoyed to have been part of a monumental day as part of the Children on the Edge team. Fellow fundraiser Michael Pearce (Mikey), completed the course in an impressive 3hrs 45mins. Despite this being slower than his expected time, he had a great experience. Mikey described how “The crowds were amazing, the best in the world I’m told, and they helped me through the tough miles. My motivation in those miles came from the many generous people who have and continue to sponsor me. I also considered some of the tough lives that the children who Children on the Edge work with have”. Children on the Edge want to say a massive thank you to all our marathon runners over the last few weeks, including those in who ran in Paris, Brighton and London. Together these runners have raised over £8,000 for the work we do with vulnerable and forgotten children across the world. Mikey is hanging up his running trainers, but is recommending that others get involved. He said, “I would encourage everyone to take on a challenge that makes you focus on goal and to use that opportunity to raise money and awareness of charities like Children on the Edge”. You start out on this by clicking the buttons below. 
“Thank you to the brilliant team at Children on the Edge. They're a great charity creating real change for children in some of the worst parts of the world.” Connor Deacon, Brighton 2018  Local Churches of Slindon, St Mary’s and St Richard’s have raised over £740 for Children on the Edge by holding lunches together at alternate churches over the Lent period.
Anne Jones from St Mary’s wanted to create a welcoming event which could bring together the whole community, and raise money for good cause. She decided a simple but delicious “Lent Lunch” would work and reached out to St Richard’s church to join in with the weekly gatherings. The lunches were a huge success, bringing together over 30 people each week to share fresh homemade soup and a bread roll. The conversation and welcoming nature of the events has been a real highlight. Many people ventured out of their homes, despite the recent cold snap, to take part. All food was provided and prepared between the churches and was free of charge, to ensure that anyone could attend. The community of Slindon has also been incredibly generous in their donations to Children on the Edge, raising £740 over the 6 weeks. Members of the Children on the Edge staff team in Chichester were also invited to share in the lunches every week. Rachel Bentley, our International Director was particularly inspired by the event, saying, “It is fantastic that two different Churches have brought the community of Slindon out of their homes, to come together and to enjoy a simple lunch with conversation and inclusion”. £740 will go a long way in our work with the vulnerable children, and we are always so grateful to be included in these kinds of events. If you think you could hold a similar fundraising event for Children on the Edge then please do get in touch by emailing fundraising@childrenontheedge.org or calling our office on 01243 538530.  Despite the recent snowy weather, local scout group 1st Fetcham Scouts have been busy potting up plants for their ‘Bring and Buy’ sale fundraiser.
The Scout Group, who had undertaken the task of fundraising as part of their World Challenge Award, planned the event for the 9th March as part of their ‘Team Work and Team Leader awards’. The event included the sale of delicious home-made cakes, lemonade, raffle tickets and potted plants. The plants had been kindly donated from Squires Garden Centre and decorated by the Scouts themselves. Anita Chamberlain, Scout Leader to the young fundraisers said; ’The Leaders were very proud of the Scouts for taking matters into their own hands when they learned about the people who are supported by Children on the Edge projects. They chose to organise an event to raise money to help children less fortunate than themselves- we think they did fantastically!’ The Scouts raised an amazing £270 for Children on the Edge and really made the fundraiser a success. If you would like to get your local club involved in a fundraising event or take on a challenge then send us an e-mail letting us know, and we'll be happy to help you with all your fundraising needs.  James Watkins is no stranger to supporting Children on the Edge. Last year he took on the 2017 Brighton Marathon to support our work and this year he’s taking on the world-renowned London Marathon. James is well experienced in marathons as this one will be his 5th, but it is still a huge challenge. Having completed the Los Angeles Marathon, the Brighton Marathon and most recently the Leicester Marathon with his son Sam, he’s making it his personal mission to take on the London marathon for the second time and achieve a personal best by completing it in under 4 hours.
As James is a bit of a regular at marathon running we asked him for some tips on what helps when taking on running challenges. His advice was to get a running partner, which he says keeps you honest and accountable for your training. Luckily for James this year, he is training with his son, Sam who is also using his place in the Paris Marathon this year to fundraise for Children on the Edge. The father-son duo are helping each another to stay motivated, even in the most difficult running conditions. The recent snowy weather, though beautiful, has caused some of their training to be moved inside as James glumly admitted that he ran 19 miles on a treadmill last week to avoid the icy roads. A massive achievement to any runner, he still can’t wait to get back outdoors to train in the Spring weather. They’ve also been helping each other to stick with a healthy diet which, though difficult at times, is helping them stay in peak condition. They said that these health benefits are of the best bits of training. For motivation, he finds it helpful to remember that his constant challenges are raising funds for a great cause. He says; “Children on the Edge is a charity which supports children who are literally on the edge, with no other way to escape their situation. They operate by working with local partners on the ground which makes the work sustainable. It’s admirable and I’m very happy to support it.” Their current total is already over £2,000 and they are hoping to get as close to £3,000 as possible. £3,000 can fund the costs of educating 15 Syrian refugee children in one of our tent schools for an entire year in Lebanon. We hope that all James and Sam’s hard work in training and fundraising gets them to that £3,000 target and below their 4-hour time goal. If you would like to support James and Sam in their London/Paris Marathon fundraising journey then you can donate to their JustGiving page. If you would like to find out how you can take on your own challenge then visit our challenges page. |
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