Results – 2018 Appeal
WE HAVE REACHED OUR GOAL OF $30,000 FOR 2018!!!
Thanks to the kind generosity of so many, Altitude Project has reached our goal for 2018 and will be able to support all projects planned for the year!
Here is a short summary of our projects in 2018:
Support for 3 schools:
Provide primary education for a minimum of 160 students!
Hire and pay teachers; purchase school supplies!
1) Saldang – $5,000 – includes funds for Tenzin Norbu’s school fees in Kathmandu for his higher education
2) Komas – $8,000 – includes funds for new toilet block
3) Karang – $12,000 – we are the primary sponsor for this school now and will be for the foreseeable future.
About the Projects
Saldang School
Saldang school requires less support for regular operating costs in 2018 than in the past two years, as the German group, Freunde Nepal, has been able to gain some ground on their fundraising since we began helping them two years ago.
However, there is a continuing need to repair and replace more roofs and our support has been requested to help with this infrastructure project. Learn more
Saldang School
Saldang school requires less support for regular operating costs in 2018 than in the past two years, as the German group, Freunde Nepal, has been able to gain some ground on their fundraising since we began helping them two years ago.
However, there is a continuing need to repair and replace more roofs and our support has been requested to help with this infrastructure project. Learn more
Komas School
We helped the school at Komas in 2017 and are continuing this year with the same level of support. This school is also supported by a group from Sweden and a woman from Germany, and we are coordinating our efforts with them.
The school desperately needs a new toilet block that will consist of three toilets; girls, boys and staff – currently there is one toilet that works. Altitude Project is providing funding for this much needed project. The work is being done very early in the season. Learn more.
Karang School
We became involved with the school at Karang to a very minor extent in 2017. After visiting this school in October and learning about the complete loss of sponsorship, we were hoping to contribute to this school in a meaningful way in 2018 as the primary sponsor. The infrastructure at this school is in good condition and they have a very good greenhouse.
Tenzin Norbu, Saldang Graduate
We will continue to support Tenzin Norbu as he completes his higher education in Kathmandu. He will be entering class 8 this year and is doing well in his new environs.
Saldang School only goes to class 6. The schools at Karang and Komas go to class 5. In order to continue their education at a Tibetan high school, students must move to Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal and a world away from the Dolpo. Please read more, these are truly amazing kids!
Himalayan Komang Hostel
Nyima Bhuti is a young woman from Komas who manages the hostel in Kathmandu for the students from Komas wishing to continue their higher education. She is the daughter of Tulku lama, who runs the school at Komas. Nyima has been managing the hostel for four years without any compensation because the students needed her help but there was no money. She is housed and fed, of course, but she cares for 26 children, getting them to rise early for their Tibetan lessons and prayer time before their regular school session begins. We are hopeful that we will pay able to pay her a nominal salary for the tremendous work that she does for the children from her village.
Purchase of 125 portable solar lights for villagers
In October of 2017 when we trekked to the Upper Dolpo to visit the schools, we took 15 portable solar lights. The cost of each light is ~ $20 US. They provide ~ 150 lumens and can be hung like a lantern – a very practical design. We wanted to test their durability and usefulness so only took a few.
Well, the results came in and there was a request for 125 more lights, complete with names of individuals and their village location. Many families in the Dolpo rely on fire as their only light source and these lights have proven to be extremely useful; as a general light in the home, to travel to the toilet at night; to help students read and study in the evenings, and to visit neighbours.
Many of the older adults suffer from very poor eyesight due to exposure to long hours of sunlight working in the fields at such high elevation (14,000 feet!). They say these lights have really improved their quality of life.
We are able to purchase these lights at a considerable discount for charitable purposes through LuminAID and offer very special thanks for their help!
LuminAid shipped the lights to Kathmandu. There was some difficulty clearing the shipment through customs in Kathmandu but our good friends at Happy Feet Mountaineering Pvt. Ltd. were able to navigate the requirements in time for them to be transported to the Upper Dolpo and distributed to the people identified by Pema.
It always seems impossible, until it’s done.
– Nelson Mandela.
