Ethiopia:

Our second project in Ethiopia is a great success, and just yesterday, our three teams in Chencha province made their biggest performance yet. From the very first day we began our activities in Ethiopia, in 2023, our local partner organization, Bright Star, has been instrumental in facilitating children's participation—even during times when we lacked financial resources to support them.

One of the most inspiring aspects of this collaboration has been witnessing how they managed to create their own handmade clubs and stilts and learn to use them with only minimal online guidance. We are dedicated to sustaining these activities and, with your support, aim to expand our efforts to help children in Ethiopia. Organizations like Dignity for Children have already contributed financially and supported our mission. You can join them by helping us secure financial support, organizing prop collections, or volunteering as an artist.

Afghanistan:

Last week, we held our first government school performance with the attendance of representatives from the authorities and the Ministry of Education. Promoting and normalizing art and entertainment for children, especially the girls in Afghanistan, is a significant challenge that requires time, creativity, and resilience. Due to further restrictions from the authorities, the average age of girls participating in our activities has decreased, and they now have much less public presence.

We are committed to maintaining the participation of girls in our programs by dedicating a larger portion of our focus and resources to them. Currently, we have 34 teams across 17 provinces, with 8 of the team leaders being female. In addition, many of our male team leaders also organize activities specifically for girls.

Our 34 teams each have at least two weekly sessions for their children and many performances. They are all involved in regional and national events such as our regional juggling championship which was held last month and community–do-good work. The community–do-good work is an integrated part of our activities and varies from team to team, ranging from cleaning public spaces to helping in emergencies. For example, one of our Ghor social circus teams, with the support of a generous donor, facilitated and organized Social Circus workshops and shows, along with the distribution of emergency packages for 158 families affected by the recent flood in Ghor province.

Despite the many challenges, our efforts in Afghanistan are steadily gaining strength and expanding. The systems we have developed and the experiences we have accumulated in Afghanistan are becoming invaluable resources for our work in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, and other countries in the future. Our Bangladeshi and Ethiopian mobilizers and trainers are now joining our weekly Afghan network online meeting, learning from their experiences, drawing inspiration, and forming meaningful friendships.

Seth Bloom:

We have lost our dear dear friend Seth. Besides being an inspirational friend, Seth Bloom was MMCC’s artistic director and the mastermind and instructor of many of our educational performances. He visited MMCC in Afghanistan numerous times from the early years, spending months building the capacity of our colleagues, trainers, and children. His artistic and technical contributions as our first-ever Social Circus instructor and developer of Educational Shows, along with his big smile, strength, passion, dedication, and friendship, are beyond words. We miss him deeply. RIP.