An update from Selvin HQ

Merry Christmas from Selvin and Friends!

A warm hello to all of our friends in our final newsletter of 2014.

Short but sweet...

Due to your extraordinarily generous donations over the past four years, we decided that 2014 would be a 'year off' of fundraising.

That does not mean it has been all quiet at Selvin HQ, on the contrary...

Douro Half marathon

Vicki got back into her running shoes and took on the Douro half marathon earlier this year.

She completed the course, not with a personal best time, but given the 31 degree Portuguese heat, and the sun stroke she suffered afterwards, it was, all in all, a relatively successful event!

Twelve for Twelve

After taking a year off of fundraising, we will be back in 2015 with a new challenge, 'Twelve for Twelve,' twelve events over the next twelve months.

Events have not yet been finalised for the entire year, but the first few events include:

1. Hyde Park 10K
2. Brighton Half Marathon
3. 5k Glow Run
4. London Easter 10k
5. Bupa 10k

We must however note that these are subject to change on account of an anticipated arrival in 2015!

In 2015, we will be supporting...

Primary and kindergarten schools in the Quechua-speaking communities of Triunfo and Maldonado, in Sachaca on the outskirts of Arequipa, in Peru.

The project that we work with in Central America, The Phoenix Project, also seeks to provide Secondary school scholarships to the pupils so that their education can be continued.

By providing the teaching and education materials that are needed in these schools, it frees up school funds to allow this money to be put towards a teachers salary, and for meals to improve the nourishment of the pupils.

More on this to follow in the new year.

And finally, a great big huge thanks...

For your continued support in 2014, and for generally making Selvin what it is. Its been an incredible four years, with schools in four Central American countries receiving much needed school and teaching supplies.

This simply would not have happened without you!

Happy New Year amigos de Selvin x

Merry May

While things may have been quiet on the Selvin front of late, that doesn't mean we haven't been busy behind the scenes!

Last weekend, Vicki completed her latest running event, and this one added a new challenge, heat! Yes, as the sun beat down on the Douro Valley in Portugal, heating it to a toasty 31 degrees, she ran 13.1 miles for Selvin.

We are also currently in the process of finalising the country we will be supporting in 2015, and in what form that support will take.  Look out for an update nearer to Christmas!

A special thanks to Vicki's work, who named Selvin as their charity of the year during the last financial year, raising over £500 through cake sales, sweep stakes, and a number of Festive activities at the end of last year.  An amazing effort!

For now, some very wise words to end on...

And thank you for playing such a big part in our change.

Gracias amigos de Selvin

Stu & Vicki

A warm hello to all of our friends in our first newsletter of 2014.

Short but sweet...

With the bulk of our 2013/14 work completed over the summer months of 2013, our first round up of the year is somewhat shorter than usual, but there are still a few developments to report!

Charity of the year

Vicki's workplace continued their support of Selvin as their charity of the year with some festive fundraising.

On 13 December, numerous colleagues donned their christmas jumpers, and one even decided to come fully dressed as Santa, raising over £65 in the process!

In addition to Christmas knitwear, there was a collection in lieu of sending Christmas cards, which raised just shy of £150.

So far, hundreds of pounds have been raised by Vicki's extremely generous and supportive colleagues, and this money will make a huge difference to the schools we are supporting in the coming years.

Run Forest Run

After hanging up her running shoes after the London Triathlon, Vicki is back in running training over the cold winter months in preparation for the Douro half marathon in May.

Other fundraising events will be announced later on in the year.

In 2014, will be supporting...

A local primary school in Honduras. Earlier this month, we delivered 100 pencil, 20 boxes of paint, 30 packs of paper, 20 boxes of crayons, 250 exercise books and 100 numeracy books to the school, sourced locally to support local businesses. We have also been able to supply the teachers with vital teaching materials such as marker pens for white boards. 

This delivery means the school will be stocked with these much needed items for the next 12 months, which marks a great achievement to see in the new year for Selvin!

The futures Selvin

Stu and Vicki are both thrilled that due to the extraordinary support we have received over the past three years, we are able to continue supporting schools in 2015 and 2016, extending our remit to Ecuador and Peru.

And finally, a great big huge thanks...

For your continued support in 2013, your generosity is ever humbling and very much appreciated. You make Selvin the success it is.

Happy New Year amigos de Selvin x

Selvin's summer 2013 newsletter

Dear friends,

The latest news from Selvin HQ

Things may have been a little quiet on the Selvin front of late, but rest assure we have been busy training, completing events and fundraising in order to provide those much needed teaching materials to schools in Central America.

Going the 'extra mile' for Selvin

Over the past few months, a number of fundraising events have been completed to rack up those extra miles, and raise vital funds for Selvin:

Virgin London Marathon 2013

Following months of training over the cold and dark winter months, Vicki took on her biggest challenge of the year, the London Marathon.

Despite her apprehension, and nerves, she completed the course in 5 hours and 22 minutes, beating her personal best by 5 minutes, and was cheered around the course by some amazing friends and family.

She also raised over £900 for Selvin, 90% of our annual fundraising target, thanks to your incredible support!

Its safe to say that her marathon days are over, and she has hung up her long distance running shoes. Although she did say that last time as well...

BUPA 10,000

Following on from the London Marathon, and perhaps posing a far more ‘leg friendly’ prospect, Vicki completed the BUPA 10,000 along London's embankment. A huge number of runners made for a great atmosphere, and with a finish line in the exact same place as the marathon, Vicki thankfully reached it much sooner than the month before!

The Virgin Triathlon

Vicki’s final fundraising event of the year was of the swim, bike and run variety.

Open water swimming remains her least favorite thing, and this year had the added bonus of swimming against the current. If you haven’t tried it, she doesn’t recommend it! That said, there is a real team spirit every step of the way, which definitely helps while you are in the water.

In comparison to the swim, the bike and the run are a breeze, and knowing you have completed the hardest part of the event is definitely a massive help mentally.

Seeing the finish line was beyond welcomed! And with that, Vicki has completed her four main fundraising events for the year, and she couldn’t have done them for a worthier cause!

She now plans to take six months off to rest and recuperate, as quite frankly, her legs need a bit of a break! However I am sure she’ll be coaxed into undertaking new challenges in 2014!

Selvin's first sailing challange

One of Vicki’s colleagues, Anna, kindly chose to support Selvin when undertaking her first sailing challenge, the Fastnet Race, racing 608 nautical miles.

Unbelievably, Anna first set foot on a yacht in May this year, and not only has she now learnt to sail, she completed the race in an amazing 3 days 15 hours and 32 minutes.
Some 397 boats started the race, and in Anna’s class of 73 boats, the team came in at a hugely impressive 20th.

Anna’s courageous effort’s raised over £500 for Selvin. Thank you to Anna and everyone who sponsored her, your donations will make such a big difference to the schools we are supporting.

Charity of the year

Selvin has been chosen as Vicki’s workplaces’ ‘Charity of the Year’ for 2013.

During a recent celebration event, we created a picture board which tells the
story of us.

This gave us the perfect opportunity to create awareness of what we hope to achieve, and we also received over £100 in donations, not bad for a lunchtime!

Thank you to Vicki’s colleagues for being extremely supportive, both in terms of nominating Selvin to be charity of the year, and their kind donations.

If any of our friends have ‘Charity of the Year’ at their work place and would like to put Selvin forward for this scheme, please do not hesitate to contact Stu or Vicki for any support or promotional materials.

Selvin in action

To see how your donations make a huge difference to the schools we support, and the children who attend them, click here!

And finally...

Thank you. We know we say it alot, but thats not to say we mean it less each time we say it. We couldn’t achieve any of this without your unwavering support.


Gracias amigos de Selvin


Vicki and Stu
x

Selvin donations in use!

(Courtesy of Fly the Phoenix http://www.thephoenixprojects.org/)

Picture Perfect

We have popped all of our photos in one tidy place, so if you want to see our journey, here it is!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/92870608@N05/sets/