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Dear Friends of St. Andrew's,
One of our elementary school girls had swollen gums, her front teeth not coming in due to her baby teeth having broken
off. Children's Education Program arranged for a dentist to take on the extensive work the child's mouth needed. The generous
dentist donated her services and St. Andrew's covered the other surgical costs. Another small miracle. The dentist is an
active member of Egypt's Pediatric Dental Society, which provides help to special needs groups. She brought several of her
colleagues to come inspect all our children's teeth and bring them toothpaste and toothbrushes, while providing them with
basic dental care information. Another small miracle.
We built an additional caravan (portable classroom) in March. It's now in full use, with elementary Olympic Class in
the mornings, New York class in the afternoons, and Adult Program classes in the evenings. Meanwhile, we rented two large
classrooms from the Boulaq German Church. This enables the oldest teens, Teen 5, to have a whole day of school so they can
prepare to take their international GSCE exams. The Teen 5 students have taken well to a full school day and to a classroom
of their own, with shelves for their things. More marvelous miracles.
Meanwhile, AMIDEAST, the American educational organization, has agreed to give our teachers training in Teaching English
as a Second Language. As we move towards becoming a more formal school, we are reforming the curriculum and improving our
teachers' skills. The staff's enthusiasm and cooperation have made Love manifest in the work.
This Spring we have also involved the teaching staff in a strategic planning process. They have produced mission and
vision statements for the Adult Education Program and the Children's Education Program, examined our programs' strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities and threats, written 3-year goals and objectives to lead our work. Next they will decide on the
activities which will achieve our objectives and form committees to implement the new plans.
This summer we will host two groups of university-age volunteers, Marhaba Egypt and a group studying Arabic from Duke
University (North Carolina). In June we will begin intensive English and Arabic language classes for a new group of Somali
unaccompanied minors (who have neither language; half of them will take English, half will take Arabic). We are so grateful
for these new opportunities to serve these displaced young people.
In July, we join other area refugee schools in a united program, "Children of the Nile," to promote tolerance
between cultures of the Nile, especially building understanding of Egyptian and Sudanese groups. Music, drama, arts and sports
activities will build on the theme, along with field trips to learn more about the country in which we live.
Our current needs include: funds for our feeding program, used computers, adult and children's books for our library,
long-term volunteer teachers, and grant writers. Supporters" visits are welcome when you have a chance to come to Egypt.
Thanks for your continued support and prayers,
Kathy Kamphoefner & Paul Pierce, Co-Directors
St. Andrew's Refugee Services (StARS), Cairo
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