Kirsten Parkinson, Greenwich, CT traveled to Washington, D.C. where she was awarded the Joan Wismer CHAMPS Award at MLI’s annual “Clearing the Path” Gala at the Four-Seasons Hotel in Georgetown.
Kirsten, working with her school the Greenwich Country Day School, worked to sponsor a dog she named “Nutmeg” who is now serving in Lebanon. After achieving this incredible goal Kirsten decided to run another Campaign to support CHAMPS International to sponsor a young landmine survivor in Lebanon.
Kirsten will kick-off this Campaign in Greenwich at the YMCA sponsored “Dive-A-Thon” on January 23rd! The CHAMPS Team will be there to support these efforts and root Kirsten on!!
CHAMPS Director Kimberly McCasland and MLI President Perry Baltimore traveled to Seattle, WA to attend the annual PeaceTrees Vietnam Luncheon on November 10th. The event was wonderful, the food delicious and the speakers inspiring!!
Later that afternoon the CHAMPS Team met with PeaceTrees Executive Director, Blair Burroughs, and officially agreed to launch a new CHAMPS International – Vietnam program! Kimberly will travel to Vietnam the first week of January 2010 and will conduct the first CHAMPS International – Vietnam video-calls!!
While in Seattle the CHAMPS Team presented to The Evergreen School, in Shoreline, WA, who has enthusiastically joined CHAMPS and will partner with a school in Vietnam to help young landmine survivors there!!!
Thirty-one students from The Evergreen School who are scheduled to travel to Vietnam in April 2010 will now be able to meet with PeaceTrees Vietnam’s CHAMPS Manager and also meet the young landmine survivor they will have sponsored. What a trip they’re going to have!!
CHAMPS student leader Shelby Patrick, CHAMPS Maryland-Glenelg Country Day School campaign, traveled to the Balkans as part of an MLI donor delegation. Over an 8 day period Shelby met the American Ambassador to Bosnia, the President of Bosnia, young landmine survivors, and traveled to Konjic to the Mine Detection Dog Center (MDDC) where 13 of the 17 CHAMPS dogs have been trained.
Shelby, accompanied by her mother Susan Patrick, visited Bosnia and Slovenia learning more about mine action, helping landmine survivors, and saw the fruit of her labors on this important trip. Comments from Shelby about her trip will be coming soon.
It’s almost time for the CHAMPS/MLI Annual Donor Trip to Bosnia and Slovenia on September 12, 2009. Each year a student leader from the previous school year’s campaigns is selected to accompany the team on their trip. This year’s student leader is Shelby Patrick from The Glenelg Country Day School in Ellicott City, Maryland.
Shelby brought CHAMPS to her school and worked very hard to support CHAMPS International-Afghanistan earlier this spring helping young landmine survivors in Afghanistan.
Here is a list of the exciting things Shelby will be doing on her trip:
Meet and be congratulated by the President of Bosnia and Herzegovina for her work with CHAMPS and CHAMPS International
Meet the American Ambassador to Bosnia.
See Mine Detection Dogs (MDD’s) working in a minefield in Bosnia and meet villagers whose village was cleared by MDD’s and demining teams last year.
Visit the Mine Detection Dog Center (MDDC) in Konjic, Bosnia. 80% of the CHAMPS dogs have been trained at this facility that was funded by the US Department of State and trained by Global Training Academy of Somerset, Texas.
Visit Pro-Vita, a Bosnian NGO (Non-Government Organization) that has many MLI and CHAMPS dogs who are working to clear Bosnia of landmines.
Meet young landmine survivors helped by CHAMPS International – Bosnia.
Visit a Landmine Victim’s Ward at a rehabilitation hospital in Slovenia
and MUCH MUCH MORE!!!
Thank you Shelby and The Glenelg Country Day School for all of your hard work!
