Welcome to Baby Haven

Here are some of the lovely little ones living at the shelter. The shelter is run by one family whose members work hard, 24/7, with very little financial assistance.

The children at the shelter are mostly orphans whose parents have died from the AIDS epidemic. I am working at the university in Windhoek, and I volunteer on weekends with this shelter and love my time there.



I am hoping to raise money to assist in renovations to the shelter itself. In recent months, I was successful in hiring a contractor who is willing to do the work in phases. I have one year left in Africa and this is what I hope to accomplish:

Phase 1 will be the bathrooms and extra plumbing jobs. Phase 2 will be a play area in the backyard. And Phase 3 will be to fix up things needing repair. If there is money left over (let's hope!) then new cribs, mattresses, food etc. will be purchased.

I hope to raise a total of $12,000 Canadian to complete the above renovations. I will oversee all aspects of this job and handle all monies. All donations will go directly to the repairs. Photos of the completed work will be posted on my blog as soon as the project rolls along.

I am aware that this project is something that I have committed to but I cannot do it alone.

If you would like to help with this project please send cheques to:

• Bank of Montreal
  1-823 Coquitlam Town Centre
  #1 1161 The High Street
  Coquitlam, B.C.
  V3B 7W3
  Account is in the names of:
  Jan Beare/Joan Beare (Baby Haven)
  

(Jan is my sister, a law enforcement officer in Vancouver, who is just one of the many angels in Canada helping with the fundraising.)

Please look on the right side of this blog if you want direct deposit banking info.

I can't issue tax receipts for donations, but I guarantee you that every penny you contribute will go directly to the work at the shelter. I have no overhead, a free website, and have done some good bargaining with the contractors.


Why I'm doing this privately, and not setting up a charity, applying to foundations for grants: Too much bureaucracy! It would take forever!

So, these are some of the cute pictures. Read on in this blog, and see the other pictures, to understand why this reno work is so desperately needed.