12 volunteers came together in 2004 forming Focus Africa.
The goal was to reach out to and help HIV affected women and children in Africa. We partnered with Beacon of Hope (BOH), a registered Christian charity in Nairobi, Kenya in 2005. BOH is a resource centre that caters to the needs of impoverished families affected by HIV/AIDS. Focus Africa helps BOH by raising funds and participating in various projects.
View our last 2 Virtual Fundraisers on our YouTube channel.
Tailoring: We share tailoring ideas, take patterns to them and help with quality control. We also bring their completed products and sell them here in Winnipeg at craft events then send all the monies back to BOH.
Dignity Kits: Because of these dignity kits, young women can attend school without menstrual-related absences.
Solar Lights: BOH informed us that families in extreme poverty do not have lights. This creates a particular challenge to students who are sent home with homework but are unable to complete it. One of our Focus Africa members told us about LuminAID, a company that designs lightweight inflatable solar lanterns. We contacted them and now they make these solar lights available to us at $20 CAN each. We then send them to BOH.
Technical School: In 2012/2013 we raised money to complete a single level building for short courses. But the need for more spaces continued to increase. In 2018 we raised funds to “Raise the Roof” as was the title of our fundraising. The additional level doubled the capacity. Courses such as Food and Beverage, Catering and Accommodation, Property Management, Welding and Fabrication and so many more are offered here.
Focus Africa has been blessed to be a part of so many projects with Beacon of Hope(BOH) and we continue to work with them.
As Myrna Ronald has so frequently said, “we could never have done this by ourselves. We are so thankful to the Lord and to our supporters and volunteers.”
Some of our funds helped to finish building the preschool
Dedication of the Technical School in 2013