Dear Friends and Donors,
As 2003 comes to a close, we at the China Aids Orphan Fund wish to express our
sincere gratitude for your support. I have been overwhelmed by the generous
donations, well wishes and heartwarming encouragement that have poured in since
our inception in March. We are proud to share with you some of this year's accomplishments
and future plans, but first I want to share some important news:
AS OF TODAY OUR WEBSITE OFFERS AN ONLINE CONTRIBUTION LINK THROUGH "NETWORK
FOR GOOD." PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AND LET YOUR FRIENDS KNOW THAT GIVING TO
THE CHINA AIDS ORPHAN FUND WILL NOW BE EASIER THAN EVER.
Since March, we have raised more than $40,000 and with additional $10,000 in
pledges. This sum may not be overly impressive, but the small amount is largely
due to our modest fund raising activities. Most of the support came from the
committee members, family, friends, and caring individuals in the Twin Cities
area. We also received wonderful contributions from people in Chicago, California,
Canada, the UK and other distant places from people who found our website or
received our emails and announcements from friends. Our first objective was
to build a reliable alliance with our partners to ensure the money will be delivered
to the victims and orphans in Henan province, and not into the pockets of corrupt
officials. In July, after six weeks of rigorous due diligence and with the help
of our friends at Give2Asia in California, we delivered the first grant of to
the Chi Heng Foundation in Hong Kong, to provide education support for the orphans
in some of the poorest villages in Henan. With this first grant to Chi Heng,
we are more confident in our ability to deliver aid to Henan, and more emboldened
to start major fund raising activities in the near future.
Aside from raising money, we have made strides on a number of fronts to build
our organizational structure. Our steering committee is now composed of twelve
volunteers. We have (1) launched a web site-www.chinaaidsorphanfund.org,
(2) incorporated as a Minnesota nonprofit and applied for 501(c)(3) tax exempt
status, (3) created and displayed a documentary exhibit showing the dreams and
hopes of the orphans in Henan, (4) hosted three fund raising events with the
cooperation of more than a dozen other organizations in the Twin Cities area,
and (5) received press coverage from approximately a dozen newspaper and
magazines.
These milestones provide us the momentum to go forward. We are planning to begin
a fund raising campaign with additional volunteers in major U.S. cities, such
as New York, Chicago, and Washington, DC. We are arranging for a national tour
of the documentary exhibit. In addition, we are building alliances and trust
with other local and national organizations to further the cause of relieving
suffering of the children and families in Henan Province. These successes also
brought challenges as we expand. Some of the major obstacles include how to
(1) minimize expenses while proceeding with more ambitious fund raising projects,
(2) provide a platform and opportunities for caring individuals and organizations
in other cities and countries that have contacted us for participation, (3)
communicate and share information with our supporters and donors. These challenges
and future projects will require continual effort from the CAOF members and
ongoing support from you. I am confident that collectively we will able to make
a dramatic impact on the life of these victims, especially the orphans, in the
province of Henan.
Sincerely,
Steven Q. Wang, MD
Founder and President
China AIDS Orphan Fund