Congratulations to the winner of the #CashForGood contest: Hope For Limpopo!
Hope for Limpopo Dance Performance with the children and the teachers at the Vhutshilo Mountain School in Venda, South Africa.
About the Contest
We asked NGOs to share their stories for a chance to win $10,000 USD, and we were truthfully humbled to learn about the great work that the participating organizations are doing all over the globe. In order to participate, NGOs needed to complete a series of steps that would help them showcase their cause and impact online:
- Register their .ngo domain name through a participating registrar
- Pass the validation process
- Complete their OnGood profile page(s)
All organization profile pages entered into the contest were assessed based on completeness and quality. Upon review, the judges found that Hope For Limpopo’s profile page offered great insight into what they do day in and day out to make a difference in a community of people’s lives — through both context and multimedia.
About Hope For Limpopo
The organization was founded in April 2005 by two Peace Corps Volunteers who witnessed first hand how HIV/AIDS was affecting the people of Limpopo, a province in South Africa. Upon returning to the States, they coordinated with a friend to assist existing projects and programs that focused on delivering medical and educational support to those living in the region and affected by poverty, abuse and/or HIV/AIDS.. More specifically, they have heightened the level of awareness around such health issues and with the help of peer groups — are providing education about the disease, information on medication management, and decreasing stigma.
They have a number of projects on the go right now, including supporting a school for AIDS orphans, Vhutshilo Mountain School, The Tshilidzini Special School for blind, deaf and physically handicapped children, and the Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Program which provides support to abuse survivors.
Most of Hope For Limpopo’s support comes from fundraising, grants and individual donors. One benefactor hosts an annual event in which they usually raise between $6-8K, and Hope for Limpopo offers a variety of mentor programs in which volunteers will sell items to raise money for the cause. For example, in the past a group of college students have worked with children in elementary schools and decorated Tom’s Shoes to sell for a higher margin, another supporter held a tag sale and donated 100% of the proceeds. They have a number of individuals who sponsor children’s education. These fundraisers also offer hands on teaching and continue to instill and build awareness around HIV/AIDS, prevention and management.
We asked Hope For Limpopo’s Evangelist, Jo Ann Churchill, what the organization would use the $10,000 from the #CashForGood Contest for, and she said:
“$3,000 will be used to build a new classroom and skills training room including materials, transportation and labor ; $4,000 will provide ongoing skills training for the school children, caregivers and community; and the final $3,000 will enable Hope For Limpopo to sponsor up to 5 more children in its programs.”
The #CashForGood contest was certainly a fun activity for us, Public Interest Registry; but we are so happy to see that the prize from this contest will be used to help empower another generation of people. Thank you to all of the NGOs that participated, please be on the look out for the next #CashForGood Contest later this year!
For more information about .ngo, please visit here.