Tax deductible donations & Paypal problems solved!

To all who continue to visit here in the hope that the site will be updated more regularly I can only apologise.

I can however report a few positive things - our Paypal issues have been resolved thanks to some intelligent and understanding people reviewing our account and deciding we weren't that questionable after all. So if donating via Paypal is your thing, feel free to do so once again. All problems in that area have been resolved.

If you are visiting here from the United States and feel like donating, but are reluctant because you don't get tax deductability, think again and read on...

Hi Jeremy,

My name is Jean and I live in California. You may remember me as we corresponded a few times some time ago. I visit your HOPE Orphanage blog from time to time to see if there are any new postings.

I just saw your recent blog and want to share some information with you. People in the USA can send funds to HOPE Orphanage that are tax-deductible. That's because I've been partnering with One World Children's Fund (OWCF) for the past 3 years to do this, and OWCF has non-profit status. OWCF doesn't take any percentage of contributions that are designated for HOPE Orphanage: 100% goes to the account, except for wire-transfer fees and a small percentage taken by the web service they use, GroundSpring, which is just like PayPal. (And I usually cover these costs myself and therefore I can honestly tell people who contribute that 100% of their donation goes directly to the orphange.)

I won't write too much more here as you can learn a lot on the OWCF web site:

Please see the mission of OWCF at: http://oneworldchildrensfund.org/aboutus.html, and view their "movie."

Please see the HOPE Orphanage page at: http://champion.oneworldchildrensfund.org/JeanOlson/FHO.html

Please see the OWCF donations page at: https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?aid=8637

Note that where it says: "I would like to support" there is a drop-down list that includes HOPE Orphanage.

Perhaps we can put this information in your blog. I noticed that there have been quite a few US visitors to your blog page. It would be great if people in the US would make contributions to HOPE Orphanage through OWCF.

If you want to put this information on your blog, please let me know before you go ahead so we can coordinate on the content.

Please let me know if you have any questions or want more information.

Best regards,
Jean

I have spoken (via email) with the wonderful Jean above and can verify she's the real deal, along with the folks at OWCF. So if you're in the US with a pocketful of change, you can now get tax credit for your kind gestures.

As for this site in general, I do realise I have been beyond awful at keeping you all informed. I'll try to get some more news and updates up online more regularly, I really will.

Thanks for staying committed and reading,
Jeremy

PayPal problems

We are experiencing a few problems with PayPal at present, so please DO NOT donate to the email address listed here until we notify the issues have been resolved.

What are the problems? When the PayPal account was established we listed it under 'business' as there was no 'Orphanage' option. Secondly the orphanage is not registered as a not for profit entity in Australia (as far as I am aware). PayPal asked for these details under threat of freezing the account, which they have now done.

For the sake of transparency, here is my reply to their *dispute*:

To the PayPal Dispute Resolution Staff

Re: PP-558-578-651

This PayPal account (Hope Orphanage Trust) is operated by me on behalf of a friend of mine (Isa Bradridge) who runs an orphanage in East Timor. They have very limited to almost no access to the internet and this account is used to collect donations collected through the website I voluntarily maintain located at http://hopeintimor.blogspot.com

When this account was first established the intention was to form a trust with a number of my friends to hold the funds. Given the paltry donations received through the website and into the PayPal account it was decided establishing a trust fund was not economic. Consequently I collect the funds through PayPal and draw them down into my own account, from which they are sent by telegraphic transfer to an account in East Timor. Examples of these transfers are attached as evidence, and you will see that the amount forwarded over the last few years has only amounted to $740.03 – hardly a fortune.

The orphanage does not have tax exempt status in Australia or any other country as they are based in the mountains in East Timor. They are simply to poor to worry about such niceties, considering any and all donations gathered a bonus. I have recently received clearance from Isa and the rest of the Patrons to list the orphanage account details directly on the website, and while some donations do flow in that way, others prefer to use PayPal.

This is not a scam in any way. I am not paid for any of the work maintaining the website, or anything else associated with the transfer of any funds collected through either PayPal or other means. If possible I am happy for the account name to be changed to simply “Hope Orphanage East Timor” or something similar, removing the word ‘trust’ and thereby limiting the chance of confusion.

Otherwise I am open to any suggestions you might have that will result in my being able to continue to collect money for these kids.

I look forward to hearing back from you as soon as possible.

Kind regards,

Jeremy Ballenger

I'll keep you posted through here as to how we fare, though if any readers have suggestions I'm all ears.

More on the ANZ Bank (and their wonderful staff)

Time for a bit more on the efforts of Shamim Khan and his staff at the ANZ Bank in Dili. Below is a press release about the Winner of the Team ANZ Community Award 2007.

The ANZ East Timor team have been working with an orphanage called Hope in Timor. Their contribution includes fundraising to help provide meals for the children, building a new kitchen for the staff, facilitating potential new donors, as well as spending time on weekends with the children.

The entire team in East Timor has put in a tremendous effort towards supporting the Hope in Timor orphanage. Despite the hardships the orphans face, it is like one great family, and gives much hope for the future. The staff in East Timor are clearly dedicated to helping these children, not only through fundraising and donations, but through regular visits and working bees.

Fundraising efforts from ANZ staff in Timor go towards Hope, helping to provide regular, nutritious and well-balanced meals. A fridge has been donated to the orphanage, ensuring a healthier stable food supply, which is very important given the orphanage is in a remote area. ANZ staff are now building a new kitchen for the orphanage, and have plans to refurbish the dormitories next year. Funds are also actively raised by contacting potential donors.

The orphanage had literally lived on small change until ANZ Timor-Leste staff decided to dedicate their savings – increasing their own burden, but helping over 33 children.

Michael Joyce from ANZ Pacific nominated the team for the Award.

In Michael's words, "When I visited ANZ Timor Leste and the Hope in Timor, I was so impressed with the can-do attitude of the staff and the eagerness and togetherness of the children in the orphanage. I think for the recognition that the ANZ staff are doing would be a tremendous shot in the arm for them and for the people running the orphanage. This will also give a foundation for ANZ Timor staff to work from as there is no consistent financial support and an opportunity to get the kitchen, laundry built and dormitories renovated."

The team in ANZ East Timor will take home $5,000 for the charity of their choice, $250 gift voucher to use as a team, as well as a framed certificate.

This is, of course, fantastic news and as mentioned a shot-in-the-arm for an orphanage with no major benefactor. If you want to help, please feel free to either donate directly using the banking details in the sidebar, or make a PayPal donation to hope [dot] timor [at] gmail [dot] com

All funds will be both greatly appreciated and secondly, put to very good use.

Jeremy Ballenger

Shamim Khan & the ANZ Bank

Recent posts here have made frequent mention of a fellow named Shamim Khan, Manager of the ANZ Bank in Dili. Shamim has put in enormous amounts of effort to help both Isa and the orphanage in general, and it is through these efforts that we can now say much of the trouble facing Isa in previous posts has eased and the general outlook for him has improved.

Shamim has also supplied some reasonably recent photos of the children at the orphanage, something we always welcome on this site. A selection is below:

Kids in the outdoor kitchen preparing a meal

Some of the kids and Shamim taking a swim in a nearby river

The children appreciate the time he puts in at the orphanage, and repaid him with a song during his birthday celebration:


In closing we'd like to pass on a warm thank-you to Shamim for his interest, efforts and compassion in helping Isa and the kids secure a viable future.

Jeremy Ballenger

Bank acocunt details for direct donations

Apologies to all for the very lengthy break between posts here. Over the next few days (or in a single day if we can find the time), we plan to bring you up to date on things at the orphanage.

But first, many people have been asking for the banking details for the orphanage to enable them to make direct donations. Here they are (and they will be appearing permanently in the sidebar from now on):

BANK ACCOUNT DETAILS

Bank: ANZ Bank

Branch: Dili, Timor-Leste

Account Name: Hope Family

Account No.: 1011159410030

SWIFT No.: ANZBTLDI

Sadly, most banks will charge you around $20 for an international transfer and despite the best efforts of many people (including Shamim at the ANZ) this situation cannot be easily resolved at present.

But please don't let this small charge deter you from donating money - it all helps. Please also note that PayPal donations can still be made to hope [dot] timor [at] gmail [dot] com. (Sorry for the disjointed email address but it deters spammers).

Thanks for your continued support.

Jeremy Ballenger

Not so hopeful...

It's been a while between posts here, and as you might expect the reasons are many. One of the main reasons is the a lack of information from Isa due to other (far more pressing) things being on his mind.

As you will know if you are a regular reader, which given the posting frequency must be hard, Isa was evacuated back to Australia last year when violence broke out in May. After spending some quality recuperative time in Australia with family he returned to Dili with the family and has been trying to ensure the future of the orphanage in addition to work on improving education for Timorese kids.

Yesterday I received an email through our Squidoo lens from a concerned party in Timor, Shamim Khan, who is on posting from the ANZ Bank here in Australia. It speaks for itself:

Isa has been very down in the last 4 weeks - Ina (his wife) is leaving
for further studies to Australia.

There is no confirmed financial support and I have volunteered to visit
every weekend to take food etc with what I can afford and collect from
few people including ANZ.

I feel Isa is going through depression and stress - he has bad
bronchitis and he does not feel well enough to walk - he spends most of
his time in his room reading and sleeping.

I have started to give him some comfort that I will manage what I can
and that he should just take it easy.

Issue is 33 kids - and we need to have food for them. I have bought a
chest freezer from ANZ and also last month's groceries. I also received
USD800 from a donor in Brisbane and that helped me buy frozen meat for
next 2 weeks.

I feel for Isa and the kids - they are so brilliant and good.

I will be visiting Isa again in the weekend. I am working for ANZ as
Chief of Staff and have been here for last 6 months. I initially talked
with Isa in March when he needed assistance and from then we have been
friends. I will be in Timor for another 12 months assignment and I would
like to do few projects to make Hope sustainable before I leave.

Thanks
Shamim

As I mentioned above, it speaks for itself. If you are reading this and want to help you can donate through sending money over PayPal to hope_timor [at] yahoo[dot] com [dot] au. Should you wish to donate directly, or would like to do something other than give money, please feel free to email me directly through jeremy [at] thinkmojo [dot] com and we can figure it all out.

Jeremy Ballenger

A hopeful outlook

It's been quite a while between posts here, due to numerous reasons and for which we apologise.

So, to kick off the New Year we'll publish a hopeful comment from Tom Farrell, who knew Isa back in the dark days immediately following the successful vote for Independence...

I knew Isa and Ina well during those grim months leading up to the August 30th ballot in 1999. I first met him in The Hotel Tourismo that February when HOPE East Timor was in its infancy and together with John Martinkus, the three of us went into the hills near Venalele to meet Commander Sabika Besi Kulit, one of the old guard FALINTIL rebels who had been fighting since the beginning of the Indonesian occupation.

The motivation of John and I was journalistic, but Isa was bringing much needed supplies to the villagers. He kept up his cool even when it became clear an excursion meant to last a few hours was going to stretch over several days! On the morning of September 4th when the ballot result was announced in The Makhota Hotel, the streets of Dili were silent as if the residents already knew what to expect. True to form, Isa was driving around, picked me up and as the militia violence began almost at once, I was able to take refuge in his house. The home where I was staying was already empty and a bullet hole could be seen in one window.

I accompanied him that evening to Bishop Belo's compound where hundreds of Timorese, some of whom didn't survive the militia attack less than 24 hours later, were sheltering. Without apparently tiring, he spent hours negotiating food for the displaced. That night, I was kept awake by the gunfire spluttering through the sticky air, once at most a hundred yards from the HOPE office. The next morning I remember two elderly Timorese women crying heartily outside the door. They would probably have been old enough to remember the events of December 1975. The black T-shirted thugs of Aitark, Mahidi, Besi Merah Putih et al were already prowling the street adjacent the main cathedral when we drove to the Tourismo, where I would stay til we were all ordered out.

The recent violence notwithstanding, I do believe that era is behind the Timorese now and I hope Isa will be back there soon.

Viva Timor Leste

Dili peace rally

When mainstream media comments like this

AFTER months of violence, hundreds of youths from rival gangs have gathered on the streets of Dili to embrace each other, shed tears and celebrate a fragile peace.

...loosely lining up with thoughts of honest bloggers on the ground...

Basically, the rally appeared to concentrate on doing laps of the Palacio do Governo. Participants were 99.9% male and aged between 15 and 25 and a fair bit of adrenalin was flowing. It was not a calm sedate love-in, but more of a rock concert feel. It was boisterous but I saw no trouble.

There's a chance the situation in Timor might even be headed in the right direction.

Some games, with a serious side

People often wonder just what it's like to live in a developing country, and whether it really is as hard to get by as the development professionals claim.

Well now, courtesy of efforts by some original thinkers, you to can try your hand. Two games are available for you to try:

Sim*Sweatshop - So you think your life is hard? See how you fare in the virtual sweatshop knocking out shoes, feeding your family and generally getting by... (Link courtesy of Ben's Blog)

Ayiti: The cost of life - Created by the folks at the Global Kids' Digital Media Initiative, the purpose of the game is as follows:

What is it like to live in poverty, struggling every day to stay healthy, keep out of debt, and get educated?

Find out now in this challenging role playing game created by Global Kids and Gamelab, in which you take responsibility for a family of five in rural Haiti.

You can read some of the reviews written about Ayiti here

So have a go - they're harder than they look - and while you try just think about what it would mean if these games weren't simulations.

Think about it like it was your life. Every day.