The FOTIS 100 Resolutions for Education campaign launched on 21 January 2021 was extremely successful. By taking part singly or in creative and enjoyable teams, donors have made a vitally important contribution to our fundraising goal to support 140 vulnerable students to stay in education for the next few years. Thanks to all who accepted the challenge FOTIS raised over CHF 45,0000: what a challenge, what an achievement, a great thank you on behalf of the students.
JA enlisted the willing ladies in her hike group to walk 100km together on one day – 10 ladies, 10km though the chilly Geneva countryside. Even at 2m distance, the warmth of being together again after so long soon chased those subzero temperatures away and they raised over 1000chf too!
My (Cynthia) book group made a resolution to read 100 books – quite the task – but the perfect challenge to involve isolated friends and family overseas who were delighted to feel connected through the friendly Whatsapp chats and discussions as team members posted comments of each book they read to reach the goal – a real lifeline to some elderly folk who have found lockdown so bleak and lonely…’
All our 143 students received a personal postcard in time for the new year, the challenge of a couple of committee members. It was quite an effort to reach some of the very remote locations where our students live, but thanks to our partners they were all properly delivered, in three continents. The answers we received from the students are at the same time heartwarming and funny and some photos and artwork too.
Eleanor, in the UK, committed to doing an online yoga class every day with her mum here in Geneva. It brought them a special moment together each day despite being far apart and missing each other terribly ‘…we had lots of laughs together even though we were trying to take the class seriously; I loved it and it felt so good to be helping others too.’
Teams Fearns and Meldrum were super-active superstars! 100 push ups, 100 crunches, 100 skips and 100 trampoline jumps every day for a month, all to the sounds of C’s 100 riffs on her guitar. ‘…my dad walked 100 miles with the dog, mum hula hooped 100 times while my sister-in- law did a 100km bike ride in one day…’ – fitness and fun despite the gyms being closed.
“Winter Photographers” did not reach 100 winter pictures on Instagram, only one person tagged a photo (in the High Sierras in California) but the likes to the posts were more than 100 at the end, could we say then that we reach 100? It was great to go out and try to get inspired in the cold, with lockdown though it felt a lot like the birds on the rock at Yvoire… but there are always very determined people even in January! Looking forward to trying again.