Blog

Standing Up for Goats with a SUP20 Mile Challenge

If you happened to think you saw a GOAT paddleboarding down the River Thames the other day, you may not have been mistaken..!! A member of the Kids for Kids’ Team, Charlotte Allum, decided to take on a Challenge20, dressed as a goat to raise awareness for the Forgotten Children of Darfur. Charlotte and some supportive SUP-loving friends started in Goring on Thames at 7am on Saturday 25th September and arrived into Henley on Thames, 20 miles downstream, at 5.30pm the same day! Charlotte says, “I have loved paddleboarding for the past 2 years but have always loved messing about on (& sometimes in!) the water, rather than taking on serious challenges….until now, of course..! With Kids for Kids celebrating 20 years of supporting Darfur, it seemed only fitting that we attempt 20 miles on a stand up paddleboard (SUP)…dressed as a goat..!” Charlotte goes on to say “There was lots of planning involved to make sure everyone was safe on the day, a spare paddle was packed just in case and we had hoped for overcast conditions to ensure Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago

Dressing up for Darfur to Raise Awareness on RotaWalk’21

Well, what a way to spend a sunny Sunday..! If you happened to be in Holmwood Common, just south of Dorking, on Sunday 12th September, you may well have spotted the odd odd-looking GOAT, CHICKEN and even a FRIED EGG taking on the 4-mile RotaWalk’21, organised by Rotary in Dorking, to raise much-needed funds for Kids for Kids! There was much hilarity indeed, as well as increased awareness of Kids for Kids’ life-changing animal projects and generous donations raised! We set ourselves an ambitious target of £500 – that’s enough to provide TEN goats to two of the poorest families in Darfur. By the end of the walk, we had raised over £600! Just think how the goat’s milk will strengthen and nourish the children of the family. Children who are starving. Tragically in some parts of Darfur there has been no sign of rain recently and the intense heat continues. In other areas there are floods which are washing away the seedlings that people have had to already plant. Darfur is the size of France, so you can understand Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago

What a night! – 20th Anniversary Gala Ball

What a fabulous, star-filled, glamorous evening we all had at the exclusive Claridge’s Hotel in London’s Mayfair to celebrate 20 years of helping children!  We wanted a party – after these terrible months everyone deserves one – and it was the best party we have ever had.   We have booked next year’s Ball already, Saturday 30th July 2022.  Put it in your diary! I was so delighted to be able to celebrate at Claridge’s Hotel – I have wonderful memories from my teens, working opposite and living down the road in Hanover Square.  Yes – the truffles were as good as I remember!   We were looked after so well by everyone. The Ballroom is beautiful but our guests outshone even that! Thank you Martyn Nail, Executive Head Chef, for our wonderful dinner – a true celebration.  To see so many people having a wonderful time is so very special. I was touched to be offered handmade chocolates for everyone of our guests by the wonderful Raphia Chocolates.   Do you know them?  https://raphia.co.uk/  Flavours of Morocco.  They are fabulous! Thinking of Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago

Magical Candlelit Christmas Concert 2022

Join us for our Annual Candlelit Christmas Concert on Thursday 1st December 2022! Once again our Candlelit Concert will be held at St Peter’s Church in Eaton Square, London.  This is the perfect start to the Christmas season – Carols by Candlelight. It has always been a star studded evening with Readers including our wonderful Patrons, Joanna Lumley OBE, Miriam Margolyes OBE, Timothy West CBE, and The Lord Cope of Berkeley PC. This year we are thrilled that Valerie Singleton OBE and Karen Jankel, daughter of Paddington Bear‘s creator, Michael Bond, will be joining us.  We are also delighted that Thames Fanfare Brass will once again be raising the roof.  What would a Christmas Concert be without a Trumpet Fanfare?!  The angelic voices of the Queen’s Gate School Choirs will fill the church with gorgeous songs and there will, of course, be plenty of favourite Christmas Carols too for you to join in! The concert will begin at 7.00pm and will be followed by Mulled Wine & Mince Pies (included in your ticket). Adults £35.00  Children £17.00 (minimum donation). Book Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago

Candlelit Christmas Concert 2021 – LIVE IN LONDON!

We are delighted to announce that our magical, much loved, Candlelit Christmas Concert will once again be live in London at St Peter’s Eaton Square this year on Thursday 2nd December 2021.    The girls at our much loved Queen’s Gate School are already queuing up to rehearse! Please book your tickets as soon as possible as we will be extra specially careful to arrange social distancing as necessary and it will therefore be a first come, first served, basis.   Should Covid prevent us from holding the concert live, we will refund your ticket and restage the event on line, as we did last year. JOANNA LUMLEY WILL BE WITH US!    I am of course inviting all our Patrons – it was such a joy last year to have them all with us but on line.  You will remember us being able to talk to Timothy West from his home with Prunella in Wandsworth, and speaking to Miriam Margolyes in Italy.  This year the plan is to be together in person. Please order your tickets today!   We are keeping prices the Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago

Queen’s Birthday Honour for our children

Queen’s Birthday Honour – remembering the forgotten children of Darfur – OBE for Founder of Kids for Kids   Patricia Parker MBE, the Chief Executive and Founder of the Kids for Kids has been awarded an OBE by Her Majesty The Queen for her dedicated work over the past 20 years helping children in Darfur. “This is a fantastic honour to receive” said Patricia. “I can hardly believe that Darfur is being honoured in this way. It is certainly one I never expected. Darfur is one of the most forgotten regions of the world. When I first went to Darfur 20 years ago with my son Alastair King-Smith, who was working at the British Embassy, I was shocked to find how children were living. Even friends in Khartoum had not realised how bad conditions had become. The level of deprivation was beyond imagining, and sadly it has hardly changed in all this time. Water is the most basic essential for us all, yet children were walking hour upon hour across the desert under the unforgiving sun to reach a simple Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago

Waiting for the rains to come…

During this time of year in Darfur, the air is tense with anticipation. The desert is devoid of all plants, shrubs and other greenery. Families plant what seed they have leftover from the previous year – if any. Many families have to eat the seeds to get through the year. Now they wait for the rains to come – hopefully July. Whilst rain will bring fresh hope for a successful and bountiful harvest there is the threat that too much rain may come and wash away the seeds and even their homes and livestock – flooding is a real threat.  When houses are made of straw they stand little chance of survival when the rain is torrential as happened last year. It is during this time that our water pumps are vital to the people in Darfur, despite the hot dry summer they still have access to fresh clean water from below ground. In the awful event of flooding – our water pumps are more important than ever – despite water being everywhere, floodwaters will be contaminated and unsafe to drink Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago

A future full of hope for Murra and her family!

Murra is a mother to 9 children. In 2017 she was chosen by her village to receive support through the Kids for Kids projects. She received 5 goats as part of the goat loan programme, a donkey to help transport water and till the land and also 2 blankets and mosquito nets to protect her children from cold nights and insect-borne diseases. This is just part of the package that Kids for Kids provides to many families in need.  People are so poor they cannot afford even basic essentials.  Kids for Kids makes sure individual families have proper farm tools, an essential when people eat what they grow.   But it doesn’t stop there.   Kids for Kids helps the whole community long term by providing both health care for the people and veterinary care for the animals.   Water is key, and wherever possible Kids for Kids funds handpumps and other water projects. Four years after Kids for Kids adopted her village, Murra’s goat herd has grown to 23 animals. Her children are growing up healthy and strong because of the Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago

Challenge Yourself & Change Lives with Challenge20!

For our 20th year, why not challenge yourself by taking on a CHALLENGE20 and help change the lives of children!  We’ve already been DANCING FOR 20 HOURS, we now have plans for TEA FOR 20 and, as it gets warmer, we’ll be PADDLE-BOARDING FOR 20 MILES later in the year! Now it’s your turn to join us and choose your own Challenge20 to make a difference to the dire situation in Darfur! At this time of year there is still grass in many areas of Darfur, and normally we would expect people to be able to give their children three, albeit simple, meals before the heat of summer. Summer months are always known as the “hungry” months. Sadly this year, for months now, many families have been surviving on just one scant meal. To make things worse, conflict has again erupted in the region. Fuel continues to be in short supply, and bread queues are long every day, with loaves halved in size and rationed. These children and families need your help now! Take on a Challenge, raise much-needed funds and Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago

Healing the Desert with Trees!

Darfur is in the Sahel region of Africa which is particularly vulnerable to climate change and according to the UN, the temperature in this region is expected to rise by between 3⁰C and 5⁰C. These warmer temperatures lead to a degradation of the land and an increase in desertification resulting in the desert encroaching into agricultural land. Climate change also impacts the length and timings of seasons, therefore, having a negative effect on crop growth, leading to food insecurity in the area. The people here bear the brunt of the whole planet’s carbon emissions. However, a big part of Kids for Kids’ range of sustainable projects that improve the lives of children in Darfur, Sudan, is our climate change project. One of the easiest and simplest ways to prevent desertification and land degradation is to stabilise the soil. Planting trees and plants increases the soil moisture in the area, stabilises the soil.  It has also been scientifically proven that planting trees helps to form a microclimate in the immediate vicinity of the trees by reducing the air temperature. Lowering the Read more

By Charlotte Allum, ago