Action Volunteer Alliance

AVA will be hosting a Norwex fundraiser from August 10, 2009 to August 31, 2009. Norwex is a line of chemical free cleaning products. Their mission is to improve human life by radically reducing the use of chemicals.

I personally started using Norwex recently and have been astonished at how much easier and faster it has made cleaning for me. On top of that it's saving me money because I no longer have to buy cleaning products. The enviro cloth simply wipes away the soap scum in the bathroom and easily wipes away grease in the kitchen in one simple step. No more scrubbing. To clean my windows now I just dampen my window cleaning cloth and give them a quick wipe. No streaks and no chemicals. I'll never go back to using expensive chemicals to clean again!

To learn more about Norwex visit http://www.cleaningqueen.net/index.asp You can order online or by contacting Sherri. Please place your order between August 10th and August 31st. When you place your order please put a note in the comment box saying AVA fundraiser to make sure your order is credited to us.

Sherri has generously agreed to donate 20% of all sales before tax to AVA. The money raised from this fundraiser will be going towards making sure any children in the orphanages we work with get to see a doctor if they are showing signs of sickness.

Orders can be shipped anywhere in Canada or the US.

If you have any questions about Norwex please contact:

Action Volunteer Alliance will be taking part in the HSPP Global Health Conference on February 25th at the University of Toronto. Guest speakers include, Mr. Clement Jumbe (Saul Rae Fellow and Scholar-at-Risk), Dr. Anna Banerji (Dept. of Pediatrics, St. Michael's Hospital), Dr. Denis Daneman (Pediatrician-in-Chief, Sick Kids) and Dr. Elizabeth Lee Ford-Jones (Infectious Disease Specialist, Sick Kids).

For more information please visit http://sites.google.com/site/hsppconference/Home

Unfortunately, this event has been cancelled. However, we will keep you informed as to when and where the next Global Development Village will be.

Action Volunteer Alliance is proud to announce we will be taking part in Oshawa's 2009 Global Development Village on August 6th to 12th. Global Development Villages have been organized around the world since 1991. This August there will be over 4000 youth. These events are to help create awareness for youth through hands on workshops about the Millennium Development Goals.

AVA will have a workshop set up called Global Monopoly. Participants in the workshop will be split into 4 groups. Each group will be chosen to represent Canada, the United States, Nepal or Sierra Leone. They will then be given the chance to purchase food, water, shelter, education, health care and some miscellaneous items with the appropriate amount of money that each of these countries actually has to work with. Each country will be affected by some realities such as financial aid, war and disease.

This workshop is being presented to help educate and create awareness about the realities and hardships of providing for the citizens in developing countries. It will also show how much financial aid is going into these countries, the impact it makes and what we can do to help.

Last year there was a great turn out and we had a wonderful time! We hope to see you there.

For more information on the Global Development Village and on the Millennium Development Goals please visit http://www.youthoftheworld.ca/ We hope to see you there!

AVA is proud to announce a partnership with the Center for Cultural Studies and Volunteering - Nepal.

We invite you to participate in our Fundraising 2008 Everest Base Camp, “Walk for a Cause”, this coming April 23^rd to May 09, 2008. The funds raised from this amazing trek will support CCSV-Nepal to Build an Orphanage that will house 15 children in Kathmandu Nepal.

The CCSV-Nepal 2008 Everest Base Camp “Walk for a Cause” is an incredible opportunity for people from all walks of life and other participating organizations to unite not only in climbing Mt. Everest, the tallest mountain peak in the world, but also in working together with CCSV-Nepal to raise funds that are necessary for our work in alleviating child poverty in Nepal.

The donation proceeds of this trip will enable CCSV-Nepal to build an orphanage that will house 15 Homeless orphan children in Nepal. This trek provides you with a rare chance to explore the rugged beauty of Nepal, while contributing to sustainable development within local communities. Our “Walk for a Cause”, will give you a combined hiking and humanitarian experience of a lifetime.

Trekking Destination:  Everest Base Camp                    
Group Size: 15 to 30 max
Minimum altitude: Kathmandu 4,383 feet.
Maximum altitude: E B C 17,575 feet.
Date: April 23^rd to May 09, 2008
Grade Info: 3 ***
Transportation: Bus, Car, & domestic flight.
Total Days: 17 Days (Kathmandu - Kathmandu)
Walking Hour: Approximately 5 - 7hours each day

Difficulties: Medium

Trek Cost:  US$ 2,500.00 includes donation

The cost covers the following:

• 4 nights hotel accommodation in a hotel in Kathmandu (2 nights before and 2 nights after the trek)
• 3 meals while on the trek (breakfast, lunch and dinner)
• Accommodation in teahouses (lodges) during the trek
• Domestic flights from and to Kathmandu-Lukla
• Trekking permit and National Park Fees
• All surface transportation to and from airports
• A trek guide
• Necessary porters
• Transportation 
• Entrance fee during Sight seeing in Kathmandu
• Walk for a Cause T-Shirt & Certificate
• Rescue help if needed – Does not include emergency evacuation to your home 
• Donation ( Orphanage Building Project)

* General Requirements

• Must be 18 years of age
• Must be in good health
• Must be physically fit

Trek Application is available through online  http://ccsvnepal.org.np/trekking_app.php

To apply on this event 2008 Mt. Everest base camp trek,” Walk for a cause” you must agree to our terms and condition. Once you decide to submit your application, we just ask a US$ 250.00 advance payment deposit to secure your place in this life-changing trek.

* Please note that the deposit is non-refundable and if you decide not to participate, your deposit will go directly to CCSV-Nepal Project funds. Thank you!

Our fundraiser this past Saturday November 3 was a huge success! I am still waiting on the final amount of money made but we do know for sure it is much more than we had origionally hoped for. So, for being our first fundraiser we are extremely happy with the turn out. We also feel we learned a lot and our next one will be even better. Thanks so much to everyone who came to support us and for everyone who donated even though they couldn't make it to the event.

I would like to extend a big thank you to Ryan Neufeldt for supplying us with live music for the evening. Everyone loved it! You were a huge part of making our night so successful. It wouldn't have been the same without you.

I would also like to thank Mary Tisdall for cooking for us. The food was delicious and tasted very authentic.

Big thanks to Jason Kieffer, Linda Kieffer, Mark Troyer, Lorna Troyer, Brenda Troyer, Michele Garst, Mary Tisdall, Lisa Stockie, Krista Schrieter, Devan Mescall, Suzie Shier and Canaccord. You all played a big part in making the evening successful wether it was by donating something to the silent auction, donating your time or helping us sell tickets.