Kathleen Gibbs - Presentation For Joy2TheWorld School
Posted by Bill Parker
on Aug 07, 2015
Kathleen Gibbs, President of Joy2theWorld, Inc. spoke before the North Shore Rotary Club's weekly meeting on Thursday, August 6th, 2015. Kathleen is the founder of Joy2theWorld, a non-profit 501c3 charitable organization, located in Ghana, West Africa. The organization's primary focus is to provide for social welfare projects that fight illiteracy and poverty with education. The JoytotheWorld International Christian Academy (NGO) was opened in September 2013 providing the community with education for their 3-7 year old children.
Other accomplishments and initiatives include a micro loan program, scholarships, free breast cancer examinations, a fresh water well, the distribution of over 90,000 school books and novels and sanitation projects to the inhabitants of Medie, Ghana in West Africa.
Joy2theWorld has a 8-year long history in Ghana. A brief synopsis of their history, the variety of services they have provided, the impact they have had in Medie and the surrounding villages in Ghana. While they are the “feet on the ground”, they are just part of a team of people who have supported them through the years; some as interns and some who supported them financially.
• Joy2theWorld began as a micro loan program in 2007-2008. Joy2theWorld (J2W) provided more than 1,000 micro loans to over 350 women, providing coaching in business to women clients.
• In addition to the loan program, J2W provided over 275 scholarships for the children of clients. Because most women worked or started businesses simply to afford an education for their children, the scholarships were designed to acknowledge our clients (those repaying their loans on time) and relieve them of their major concern.
• Free breast cancer examinations were provided to over 300 women in the community and free eye exams for men and women in the community.
• A fresh-water well was drilled to provide fresh drinking water to over 600 families. Buckets with spigots, the closest for most of our women to a running faucet in their homes, were distributed for sanitation (hand washing) in rural homes.
• Over the past 3 years, J2W – in partnership with Rotary Club in Houston and the local Rotary Accra-West – organized and distributed over 90,000 school books and novels to local schools and libraries. While Rotary provided half the financial support, J2W provided the second half of the financial support plus 100% of the project management, organization and distribution of these books to schools all through Ghana.
• In partnership with Rotary Clubs in the U.S. and the local Rotary, J2W organized and managed the Sanitation Project in Medie. This included removing toxic waste from a large lot located in the center of Medie. In addition, it included the renovation and the use of a public W.C. Because this lot created a dangerous environment for local children, it was critical that this toxic environment be transformed into a clean lot for children to play or simply walk through safely. Today it is clean and safe.
• Joy2theWorld opened Joy2theWorld International Christian Academy in September, 2013 providing the community education for their 3-7 year old children. Enrollment started with 3 students and one year later (September, 2014) enrollment is 90, with a waiting list!
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• Three potential teachers were sent to Caregiver’s Institute to learn Early Childhood Development. These teachers then became wonderful, loving teachers in the school. In addition to paying these ECD advanced training tuition, J2W is supporting the teacher’s further development as two employees are now attending local universities on weekends to improve their skills. J2@ is developing a culture of life-long education. Additional professional development has been provided as well. Today (2014-2015 school year), J2W employs 8 teachers, 4 helpers and 4 administrative staff.
Joy2theWorld has built a history of mutual respect in the communities served. They continue to impact the community each day with 90 bright, shining faces!