My good friend and colleague has been doing a lot of work in Botswana to help develop their special education programs.  She's already made an amazing contribution to the quality of education for kids with disabilities there.  She has taken her 12-year-old son, Gabriel, on a few of her visits, and he has now decided that he needs to make a contribution, as well.  

The school where they have spent most of their time has kids with disabilities, but no classroom for the kids.  They're taught in a tiny room that can only hold about three kids at a time, even thought there are about 50 of them.  He's working to raise money to build a classroom to accommodate the kids with disabilities.  He bought a bunch of concrete blocks during their last trip, and he is raising money for the rest of the building materials, as well as teaching materials and books.  This was all his idea, and he worked out the details with a faculty member at the university there.  He has even had architectural plans drawn up.  

He has also connected with an NGO that brings music instruction to schools, and so he's hoping to raise enough to buy them musical instruments.  He's a violinist, so this is a very important part of the project for him.  I'm just so impressed and proud of him!  Did I mention that he is 12 years old?!

He's planning various fundraising events, but he has also just started a Go Fund Me page.  If you are inclined to toss a few bucks his way, here's the link:  https://www.gofundme.com/gabriels-botswana-classroom