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Silver Linings in a Challenging Year 
For a year spent mostly in lockdown, we sure were busy!

That's not to say anything was easy in 2020. This year posed challenges none of us anticipated. But we continue to face them together, with creativity and compassion. We continue to overcome them because we support one another, even from a distance.

Perhaps the irony of the pandemic is that it has only strengthened the GSGC network of Mentors and supporters, prompting us to dig even deeper, share more joys and sorrows, and lend an extra hand.

Now, as we head into 2021, let us — enlightened by greater awareness and energized by one another — reaffirm our commitment to make the world a kinder, more equitable place.

But first, here’s some of what we — donors, Mentors and volunteers — accomplished together this year.
2020 Highlights 
Join us in a look back at what made 2020 special.
Answering the Pandemic
We met head-on the unprecedented challenge of the coronavirus pandemic:

  • Donors ensured we could provide extra help to those hardest-hit. 
  • Mentors adapted their programming to meet local needs and keep young people healthy and focused on school work. 
  • Girls and boys in GSGC-sponsored clubs completed school assignments and those designed by Mentors. 
  • Young people learned life skills, such as baking bread, sewing and gardening. 
  • Mentors shared their skills and knowledge with their wider communities.  
  • Young people learned new job skills to help support their families. 
Mentors Rock!
Mentors were a bulwark for one another and their young people.

  • They organized their annual summit and first digital Meet-Up. 
  • They’re designing a Toolkit full of resources to help others better serve youth.  
  • They found scholarships for students.  
  • They kept in touch on WhatsApp, supporting one another when they were down, sharing new ideas when they were up. 
  • They created pandemic-related works of art and literature. 
  • One went on the radio to talk about staying healthy during the pandemic. 
  • Another organized a tree-planting at a school. 
  • Yet another taught young people to grow a garden and bake bread. 
  • One Mentor earned a certificate in computer literacy. She must climb to the top of local water tower to stay connected to the Mentor Network, but she does!
Responding to Demand
We’re serving a growing number of young people. We have new clubs in:

  • Dete, Zimbabwe 
  • Lower Zambezi, Zambia  
  • Nosy Ankao, Madagascar 
  • Khayaletsha Township, Cape Town, South Africa  
Higher Learning Celebrations
One GSGC-sponsored club alumna graduated from university with a teaching certificate. Two others were accepted to nursing school. Another is on her way to studying Business Administration, Accounting and Marketing. These, and others, despite the fact that girls often don’t finish even high school.
Small Business Start-Ups
  • One girls’ club alumna is making and selling doormats.
  • Another alumna has set up a hair salon.
  • Yet another is learning to make wigs.
  • After learning to bake, a boys’ club member is selling bread in his neighborhood.
Creativity Nurtured
Six young people won educational packages for their top entries in this year’s Creative Expressions arts competition. The packages pay school fees and buy uniforms and supplies. Thank you judges and sponsors!
May you all enjoy the blessings of the season. May you hold one another close. May we all work to make 2021 a great deal brighter.
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