January 2011 Education eNewsletter

Dear Heifer Friend,

Each January, many of us make resolutions to change ourselves that year. For people living in poverty, change is often an elusive dream. Families, their neighbors and entire communities struggle for daily survival with little hope for a better life.

But for more than 1.6 million men and women this year, change was possible thanks to you and the work of Heifer's model. And with Heifer communities, change is contagious. One family receives animals and training which they pass along to another family. Before you know it, everywhere you look is marked with change.

In northern Thailand, the change in one man's life and his village is testimony to Heifer's transformational power. Gifts from Heifer provided the means to move from devastation to thriving. Theerawat Pitakpraisri is one of millions who've moved from dire poverty to self-reliance.

Change can be an overlooked and overused word. But when the picture of change is a mother being able to feed her children and send them to school for the first time, change carries depth and meaning.

Heifer as an organization experienced change of its own in 2010. We celebrated with Jo Luck as she received the prestigious World Food Prize and welcomed a new CEO Pierre Ferrari to lead us into the next decade. We mourned with families in Haiti as their world changed from the devastating earthquake and began consulting on long-term plans to bring positive change back to their lives. We connected with new communities, rejoiced over progress in others and celebrated each and every story of self-reliance and hope.

In addition, we've been working on exciting opportunities to engage supporters through Education, from joining a study tour to visiting one of our learning centers. Experiencing Heifer's work through our programs often leads to change from the inside out, and inspires great work, like our feature story from Booker elementary.

Life can look very different from one year to the next, and we're overwhelmed by the stories of change that you made possible with your support of Heifer's work.

Here's to an exciting new year,


Ashley Michael
Heifer International