This is a guest post by Carmen Babb.
Most of us would like to make a difference and many of us can honestly say we get to in some way. But….it seems like I hear a lot of people say, “I’d love to get involved with community projects, but I just never hear about anything until it’s too late.” Well, here’s an incredible opportunity to really make a difference!
Oasis Community Church (http://www.facebook.com/l/5afde;www.oasiswestsalem.com) and Chapman Hill Elementary School have partnered up to do the first ever Oregon Cargo of Dreams Project! This is a huge project with a short timeline and we will be the first Oregonians, in fact the first group from the entire West Coast, to take on the challenge!
So, what is Cargo of Dreams?
Cargo of Dreams is an organization that coordinates the conversion of regular shipping containers into schoolhouses (edutainers) or medical facilities (meditainers) for impoverished villages in South Africa and around the world. You can learn more about Cargo of Dreams and what they’re all about at http://www.facebook.com/l/5afde;www.cargoofdreams.org.
How can you help?
There is an empty shipping container, purchased by Oasis Community Church, placed behind West Salem High School in Salem, Oregon. This container will be framed, plumbed, dry walled, tiled, and stocked. It will include three sections: a kitchen area, bathroom area, and school room area.
We have the container, and we have a long list of supplies needed. What we need now is community involvement! You can get involved however you’re most comfortable.
We have needed materials broken out into “packages” so you can commit to buying or fundraising to purchase a package, or you may have a connection with someone willing to donate materials… Estimated package costs average a few hundred dollars…some more, some less.
Maybe you’re not up to taking on the commitment of a package? You can donate time, money, or you can commit to doing your own little fundraiser to raise money for the project!
The point of this project is to help a community in South Africa and be a huge blessing to them. How we accomplish this….is up to you! We want people to get creative! We want this to be a community project!
On our own, the project is daunting and expensive. With your help, we will be a community united helping a community in need.
If you are interested in participating in the Salem, Oregon Cargo of Dreams project in any way, please contact either Dave or Carmen Babb for more details and to talk about how you’d like to help!
Dave Babb – davebabb2@gmail.com or 503-551-6866
Carmen Babb – carmenbabb@gmail.com or 503-551-9690
I ask, in all seriousness, why send containers fitted as homes to S. Africa when we have an abundance of homeless people in Salem who need shelter? How about figuring out how we could turn a couple stacks of those into single-occupancy homes for the people who sleep on the streets here in Oregon’s capital?
Recent buyer, they aren’t outfitted as homes, but quite frankly that is an excellent idea. The only problem is finding someone to spearhead the project for homeless people in America.