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If
you would like to subscribe to the quarterly newsletter please email Lucy
Pite Rainbow Farm Christmas
cards - this year's cards show a happy picture of Paula with some of the children
in front of the Orange House,and the cards are being printed in loving memory
of her. Packs of 10 cards cost £5.00 + 50p P&P. All profits from the
Christmas cards help make a difference to children’s lives on Rainbow Farm.
To order your Christmas cards please send cheque payable to "The Rainbow
Farm Trust" to Deborah Sims: c/o Phastar, Unit 5 Barons Gate, 33-35
Rothschild Road , London W4 5HT. Contact info: 07957 725717 deborah.x.sims@
gsk.com Charity Ball raised
over £1500 - Many thanks to Catherine Smith and Lou Carter, who worked
hard to arrange a Charity Ball in aid of two charities on 11th October, one of
these charities was The Rainbow Farm Trust. Well done Catherine and Lou! - Andy
Furnival completed the London Marathon in 3 hours 51 minutes - Many congratulations
to Andy, one of Rainbow Farm's founders and leaders, for this wonderful success
in not allowing himself to be beaten by his calf injury, freezing cold London
rain (a considerable change from Brazilian climes!) or the Masai warriors! Many
thanks to all who supported Andy - both financially and in cheering him on (anyone
spot the rainbow-coloured hair?) To see how much Andy has raised, or to add your
contribution, see Andy's
Just Giving site. And if you'd like to run a marathon for Rainbow Farm (or
know someone who would) do get in touch with Friends
of Rainbow Farm.
Orange
House News - The Orange House family is flourishing, thanks to the amazing
love, care and commitment of the Orange House team, who dedicate themselves to
caring for the children, who at times push their boundaries and through this discover
just how much they are loved. The children are also progressing well at school,
and nine out of the ten children passed their end of school exams with the help
of Marcia, a local teacher who comes to Rainbow Farm each morning to help them
with their homework before afternoon school. And in their leisure time, the children
are making the most of life on the farm, including the older ones learning about
aspects of caring for the farm animals eg. milking cows!
Sponsored
sleep - one of Rainbow Farm's younger supporters, Hannah Rice, slept on the
trampoline in the garden one night in October to raise £45 to buy presents
for the children in the Orange House - well done Hannah (maybe your experience
of Brazilian nights during the colder months prepared you for it!)
Rainbow
Farm Winetasting and Dance Evening - On Friday 26th
October over 200 people enjoyed a great night at Fulham Town Hall where Friends
of Rainbow Farm hosted a South American winetasting followed by music and dancing.
Guests appreciated the friendly atmosphere, fun wine quiz, and amazing raffle
prizes including a champagne day spa, a huge bottle of vintage whisky and a wonderful
collection of Brazilian hair products. Orange
House News - It was with great joy and celebration that the first children
to live permanently in the Orange House were welcomed onto the farm in July. The
Orange House, which has been wonderfully used in the meantime to house volunteers
and visiting children and missionaries, is now realizing the full potential of
what it was built for. It is buzzing with the life the children bring, and Erica,
Paula and the team are being kept extremely busy caring for the children and helping
them settle into their new home, new schools and the farm community and life.
For some of them this is a radical change from city life to enjoying the countryside
including swimming in the river, playing football, horseriding, painting and fishing. - Auction
of Promises -
On Saturday 8th September, Ron and Sandra Payne organised this stunning event
at Bushey Baptist Church which included an auction with over 50 lots, and afterwards
guests ate together and were entertained by a band. The evening raised £4500
for Rainbow Farm - huge thanks to Ron and Sandra Payne, who then headed out to
Rainbow Farm and Brazil shortly afterwards.
- Andy
and Lisa Foulds - Visas finally came through for Andy and Lisa, who then went
out to Rainbow Farm at the beginning of October. Lisa is helping coordinate the
Overseas Volunteers alongside Tina Rice, our UK-based Volunteer Coordinator, and
offering administrative support, and Andy is in charge of Health & Safety
and Sports & Recreation.
- Royal
Windsor Sprint Triathlon - Congratulations and many thanks to Suzanne Davies,
who raised around £700 for Rainbow Farm by taking part in this challenging
sponsored event involving 750m open water swim in the Thames, 29km bike ride and
finally a 5.5km run - which all kicked off at 6am on 17th June! Well done Suzanne!
- That-Ball
in aid of Rainbow Farm at Park Lane Hotel, London -
We were delighted to be involved with this popular event attended by over 500
young Christian professionals who enjoyed a fun evening with a four-course meal
and live band, a dance class and the chance to meet those who lived near them,
as the ballroom was transformed into a physical map of London shortly before the
dancing began. Over £3,000 was towards the building of the next children's
home on Rainbow Farm - as guests bought raffle tickets each with yellow lego bricks
attached - which led to some very creative constructions around the room and introduced
a wonderful competitive spirit to the evening! All in all, a great night!
- Orange
House opened:
- On July
1st, it was with great excitement the Orange House was officially inaugurated,
in the presence of 200 friends and local dignitaries. The relationships of the
project with these key people are very important to the progress of Rainbow Farm,
as we seek the necessary permissions to receive and care for children.
- We
were very grateful for the recent practical support from the local council, who
sent a team to flatten the roads within the farm and along the 3km of track leading
to the farm. As anyone who has been there will know, this has made a huge difference
- most importantly to the vehicles which travel the roads daily!
- After
the hard work of the farm community, local builders and volunteers preparing for
the opening of the Orange House, it was a wonderful day of celebration. Every
visitor was touched by the beauty of the house and the dedication that has gone
into preparing for the children.
- Erica
will be the principal carer of these 10 children, with a support group around
her. Already we have met some potential children, who have been legally freed
for adoption and are need of a permanent home which Rainbow Farm can offer, whether
these children will remain living on the farm until adulthood or, in time, be
placed into a new adoptive family.
- Ballroom
Dancing for Rainbow Farm
- Gerry and Christine Dingley recently taught 22 members of Bushey Baptist Church
to ballroom dance in aid of Rainbow Farm. From waltzing to rock & roll, the
'Strictly Non-Dancing Club' had plenty of fun and provided an opportunity for
the students to make donations to The Rainbow Farm Trust, and £200 was raised.
Many thanks to all involved, especially Christine, who broke her arm on the first
day, but she dutifully carried on, plaster and all! The students are looking forward
to keeping up their new-found skills as a hobby, while Chris and Gerry are shooting
off to Cuba for a well earned rest, saying "we are well past our sell-by
date!" On their return, Gerry has been asked to give a talk about Rainbow
Farm during the Sunday church service.
- Silverstone
Grand Prix Ball - The Rainbow Farm Trust was privileged to be invited by one
of the beneficiary charities of the ball, The Action for Brazil's Children's Trust
(www.abctrust.org.uk)
to be involved in this exciting event which took place on a beautiful summer's
evening in the grounds of Stowe School, just a short hop from the Grand Prix circuit.
The evening was filled with the buzz of the Grand Prix Weekend, and Brazilian
excitement rose as as the charity auction opened with parading carnival-style
dancers, heralding the first auction lot which was the ultimate Brazilian experience
of a luxurious holiday to Rio de Janeiro, Iguassu Falls and Parana. The Brazilian
theme was continued a few lots later with the opportunity for guests to bid to
have their portrait painted by top Brazilian artist, Romero Britto, who was in
attendance on the night.
- Rainbow
Farm website - Many thanks to Jonathan who put his energy and skills into
building the website - however as he is currently abroad, we are looking for someone
skilled in website management and search engine optimisation. If you can help
contribute to running and updating the website going forward that would be great!
- The
Action for Brazil's Children Trust grant - this has been given to help care
for the children who will come to live in the Orange House. Many thanks to the
ABC Trust (www.abctrust.org.uk)
for their significant support
- Charlotte
Lion ran the marathon for Rainbow Farm - Congratulations to Charlotte who
ran the marathon in 4 hours 6 minutes! Others have also recently come forward
who would like to run marathons for Rainbow Farm. Charlotte obtained her marathon
place through her running club, and we would be interested in hearing from anyone
who has similar contacts for future marathons - we have applied for charity places
however this takes time and we have been granted one for Rainbow Farm in 2008!
- Jewellery
Party and Bring and Buy Sale - Tina Rice raised £80 by hosting a jewellery
party and bring and buy sale at her home in Cambridgeshire, where Jacquie Reggiani
sold her range of jewellery from which she donated 15% of the proceeds to Rainbow
Farm
- Tough
Guy Challenge
- Alex Pratt, a colleague of Andy Rice's, risked life and limb to complete the
Tough Guy competition in the Spring on behalf of Rainbow Farm. Diving through
tunnels of icy water, running through fields of stinging nettles and crossing
bridges of fire was a real test of commitment and stupidity!
- Fundraising
craft event in Connecticut - In December a fundraising event was held in Weston,
Connecticut for Rainbow Farm. Despite snow and freezing temperatures £320
was raised through the sale of gift and craft items made by local residents. Many
of the crafts were designed and made by High School students.
During the evening
visitors saw a slide show and video about Rainbow Farm and all were inspired by
the project. We hope to hold similar events in the future. - The
Autumn Winetasting Evening held at St Alban's church in Hammersmith, raised
an amazing £4,700 and saw 150 guests enjoy a selection of wines supplied
by the Corney & Barrow West London Wine Shop. All the money raised will go
towards furnishing the new childrens home due to open in 2006
- KPMG
donated a computer to Rainbow Farm
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