Fugees Raising Money for a New Bus
Decatur Metro | February 7, 2013
Hailey writes in this note to DM…
Y’all have been so supportive of Fugees Family in the past, we’re hoping we can get you involved in our Valentine’s Day project too! A post of any kind about the project would be hugely helpful.
As you know, we’ve work with refugee students in Clarkston, GA for the past seven years. Each year we add more and more students to our programs, and in turn, each year transportation becomes more and more of an issue. During the summer, we equip kids with bikes and ride into Decatur. During the school year, students use bikes and walk as much as possible. But at night, after soccer practice and tutoring, it just isn’t safe for us to send them walking home. So, for the past few years, we have been shuttling them home in our 14 passenger bus. This year we have 136 Fugees and it takes a staff member almost two hours to run the shuttle to get all the students home.
For Valentine’s Day, we’re asking supporters to show the Fugees some love by donating $100 toward helping us get a new bus! Each of the 500 generous donors that make this project possible will have their name printed on the back of the bus as a thank you, as well as to remind the Fugees of all the people who support them in achieving their dreams.Below is the email that Luma sent to our supporters, please feel free to use any or all of the information.
This Valentines Day, show the Fugees some Love.
Today we are embarking on a Valentine’s Day campaign. Our goal: $50,000 by February 14th. Our plan: a new bus in time for the first day of soccer season, which is February 14th. Be one of the 500 people who I know will chip in $100 to make this happen, and you can have your name (or the name of your Valentine) painted onto our bus for all to see. Guaranteed to last longer than a box of chocolates.
I’ll give you a little history in case you still need convincing:
In the early days of the Fugees Family, the kids would pile in to my VW beetle when they needed to get somewhere that was too far to walk, or home from tutoring and practice after dark, when it wasn’t safe for them to be out in their neighborhoods. Friends pitched in, often we made more than one trip, and most of the time we were cramped, but we made it work.
By 2007, our program had grown to a size where this was no longer feasible. A generous donor wrote a check to cover the cost of a 14-passenger mini-bus. This was a life-changing vehicle for those of us who had been shuttling kids in our cars, and it has served The Fugeeswell since then.
As you know, we have not stopped growing. So now we are doing our best with the 14-passenger bus to get the 58 Fugees Academy kids home every night, to games on the weekends, and to the occasional tournament and field trip. We also provide transportation for the 60 local elementary school kids who participate in our after school program AND for the 18 older high school students who are committed to continuing with Fugees tutoring and soccer. That’s 109 kids depending on one 14-passenger bus. At best, our staff spends up to two hours at the end of a long work day shuttling kids home. We have built our program from the ground up by making do with whatever limited resources we have, but the time has come to admit that we need another bus.
Donors who can write $50,000 checks are few and far between. But people who can spend $100 on a Valentine’s Day gift for the Fugees… I believe that there are at least 500 of you out there. So today I am asking you to be one of the 500 people that can make this possible. I just made my donation. Will you make yours now so that we can hit our $50,000 goal by February 14th? Each donor will have their name on the back of the bus as a THANK YOU for your support and also to show the kids how many people believe in all that they are accomplishing.
Join me in making this the most memorable Valentines Day yet for theFugees.
Coach Luma
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Here’s how to donate:
http://www.fugeesfamily.org/donate_now.html
Here’s the link to donate:
https://secure.piryx.com/donate/ffQxGC3I/Fugees-Family/bus
Just made a donation, showed the kids a video from their website… amazing work. Lots of families in our community do incredible things to support this organization.
Looks like they already have $17,500 toward the effort.
I have worked as an ESOL teacher at Indian Creek El but have retired. The needs of the the refugee children are phenomenal, but the Fugees are working with children in Grades 6 – 12 so that they will have a chance in this country. The public schools are failing the chldren unless they are lucky enough to get an excellent teacher. The Fugees have bought a piece af land and are planning to build their own school. A donation to this group is one that you will know will go 100% to the students. FYI there are 800 students at Indian Creek who qualify for the ESOL program.Most will not be lucky enough to go to the Fugee School.