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Monday, August 20, 2012

Burkina Bike Tour 2012

Hey guys, I've been planning this bike tour for the past few months. Read the letter below and visit the bike tour website to find out more info =]

Dear Family and Friends,


From August 29 until September 25, 2012, I will be joining Peace Corps volunteers from around Burkina Faso to participate in The Burkina Bike Tour,  the third annual country-wide bike tour to raise funds for volunteers’ Gender and Development projects.

Gender and Development (GAD) supports a large portion of volunteers in Burkina.  GAD projects include: girls and boys camps that promote self-esteem and learning; funding women’s or mixed gender organizations with income generating activities; and even Men As Partners, a week-long conference that educates Burkinabe men on how they can be advocates for equality.   These are of critical importance in Burkina Faso and represent a significant component of each volunteer’s work. 

Burkina Bike Tour is a month long tour made up of volunteers, staff and Burkinabe peoples from all over the country.  This year we’re biking over 1,400 kilometers (more than the distance between Seattle and San Francisco) and visiting 25 volunteer sites.  Not just a bike tour, volunteers at each site promote Peace Corps Burkina and perform some type of workshop or demonstration at each stop we make promoting: health, HIV/AIDS awareness, food security and gender related issues.

I have a personal stake in this fundraiser, as I aspire to continue working on Gender and Development projects in my Bukinabe home town of Nobili in upcoming months. Please help me reach my fundraising goal of $200 (and our greater goal of $6,000) by visiting the Bike Tour blog and making a donation:
http://pcburkina.org/GAD/bike-tour
Be certain to specify “GAD Bike Tour” in the comments section to make sure that your dollars go towards sponsoring the Bike Tour and funding Gender and Development.

In Burkina Faso, the average person makes less than $1.00 a day, so even the smallest contribution can make a huge difference.

Once you’ve donated, make sure to keep up with our progress and activities by visiting our website and blog at the address listed above! There you can find out more about projects funded in the past, maps of this year’s route, and a blog where volunteers will be sharing their experiences, pictures and good times.


Thanks for your support.

Warm regards,

S. Jalysa Boose-Sheppard
Peace Corps Volunteer, Burkina Faso