OHBD RSG Book Distribution and Library Training in Gondar By Caroline Walker, Executive Director of Together We Learn (an OHBD collaborating organization) Access to reading materials is very important to the lives of the young people we work with. Across the country, many children do not have books at home. Those that do have access …
OHBD RSG Book Distribution and Library Training in Gondar Read More »
How do we do it—pull meaning from symbols on paper, or from bits of light and dark in flickering electric impulses? This miracle is called reading. I learned to read in Maji, in deep southern Ethiopia. My mother taught me in my own childhood language of English. As I filled workbooks at our dining room …
My educational journey started in Gambella, Ethiopia where I was born. Growing up, I never had nongovernmental printed Anuak books. The school provided textbooks which we always returned at the end of each year. Since the schools couldn’t afford to print new copies each year, we were always given the same recycled books. It’s only …
Preserving a Rare Ethiopian Language for the Anuak People of Gambella Read More »
In 2016, I started the process of taking Open Hearts Big Dreams from the fundraising event we started in 2011 to a full-fledged not-for-profit. I was inspired by our amazing daughter and the opportunities we saw to contribute after funding and expanding a library in her birth-town of Bahir Dar (pictured here). That year was …
Open Hearts Big Dreams – Five Years into the Organizational Journey Read More »
In a study published last year in the Journal of Happiness Studies, researchers looked at data from nearly 70,000 subjects and concluded that volunteers were happier. People who start out at a lower level of well-being seem to get even more benefit from volunteering. But I don’t need a study to tell me that volunteer …
Why Do I Volunteer for OHBD? From our Creative Lead, Author Jane Kurtz Read More »
In September of 2015, I had the pleasure of connecting with Ellenore. Our work with our then corporate jobs initially brought us together but our shared passion for creating opportunities for women and children in Ethiopia (and beyond) kept us working in partnership over the last 6 years. I was honored to be offered a …
I’ve always followed my passion rather than running after money. So when it comes to work that matters, non-profit jobs offer the opportunity to be a part of something that will profoundly impact society. That is why I joined Open Heart Big Dreams. Ethiopian children want to read a good story, but with the lack …
I want to thank Open Hearts Big Dreams for giving me this chance. I am Phoben Alemayehu and I’m 13 years old and in grade 7. I got the chance to read a book entitled, The Lost Son, written by Finote Wongel and illustrated by Alemayehu Regassa, who is my father. I learned a lot …
RSG Readers Reflect: Phoben Alemayehu on lessons from RSG title, “The Lost Son” Read More »
Sharing interests. Enriching skills. Building friendships. Discovering connections. If someone had told me there was an organization that would provide all of these enriching experiences—as well as help families around the world understand the pandemic—I wouldn’t have believed them. “What an over-promise!” I would have said. “How can one organization do all that?” Truth is, …
I am still in denial that my dear friend has left this existence. I log on to Facebook expecting a funny, insightful, thought-provoking, or uplifting post. His range was impressive – from sports to music, politics to cooking, or tv shows to technology. It seems impossible that there will be no more of these treats …
Building on Mike Carr’s Legacy – A Role Model for Inclusion and Equity Read More »
