Our involvement in the village of Ampitambe, Madagascar started some years back when we first visited with our partners, Ibrahim and Cathy Ravoahangy. We found the village impoverished and the people struggling to survive, but they had a small one-room school filled with bright, eager students. After learning that the villagers knew how to make raffia baskets, we asked them to make what they could, promising to bring them back to the USA for sale. Upon our return six months later, 60 beautiful baskets were waiting for us! We sold almost all of them for $40-$60 per basket and sent 100% of the proceeds back to Ampitambe. Each artisan took a small wage for their baskets but together they agreed to use the bulk of the profits to construct new classrooms and hire more teachers for their children.
Today the school has several classrooms and teachers, but many of the families still struggle to pay a small school fee and feed their children every day . We brought back a few hand-made baskets from our travels last fall; we’ll sell them and send the funds back to Ampitambe. But Ibrahim writes that there is a need for ongoing support for several of the most desperate children. This is why we have agreed to sponsor 13 school children on a monthly basis – children who are either orphans or their parents are unable to work, living in deep poverty.
We will have individual pictures of these Chifundo children when the Ravoahangys return from an April trip to Ampitambe. In the meantime, please pray for them, for the school and the teachers there. If you would like to specifically contribute to the Ampitambe Chifundo Kids, you can donate online and specify Chifundo – Ampitambe. Or make a check out to Ancient Path, write Chifundo – Ampitambe on the memo line and mail it to us at:
Ancient Path
P.O. Box 48045
Olmsted Falls, Ohio 44138
