After a semester of preparation and effort, the Shalom Garden Orphanage Relief Project will culminate with the holding of a World AIDS Day Dance and Auction Dec. 1. 

The silent auction and semi-formal/formal dance is the fruition of a project consisting of a University of Wyoming class and the charity of a community.

 The dance and auction is open to the public.  Cost is $3 for singles and $5 for couples. The event begins with the Silent Auction at 6:30 p.m., followed by the group’s presentation at 7 p.m. and the semi-formal/formal dance, which will continue until 11 p.m. Any remaining T-shirts will be sold at the event.

The SGO Project has been the core component of Dr. Tracey Patton’s Cross-Cultural Communication Class in the Department of Communication and Journalism.

The Shalom Garden Orphanage in Nakuru, Kenya was started by Margaret Kanyiri when children were left on her doorstep.

The AIDS epidemic in Kenya has left 1.3 million children orphaned, and due to stigmas and lack of resources these children struggle to survive. Kanyiri has taken in 20 children who need schooling, nine at the primary level and 11 at the pre-primary.

“This is our second year of partnership with the Shalom Garden Orphanage,” Patton said. “It is our goal to raise $10,000 to help the children of this Kenyan orphanage essentially receive an education.”

Last year’s class raised $8,800, which provided necessities such as bedding and food. The reason education funds have become the goal of this year’s class is because the Kenyan education system is based upon placement.

“Our first goal was to build a pre-primary school, but we realized after speaking with the director, Margaret Kanyiri, and knowing the situation regarding education and the expensive details required to build a school, we needed to switch to raising money for education,” Patton said.

“In Kenya, if a child does not attend a good pre-primary school, they cannot attend a good primary school and cannot go to a good secondary school and so on.”  

The $10,000 will help pay for tuition, school supplies, books and transportation through forest and roadways scarred by the recent politically motivated violence.

The class was divided into four sections that studied various aspects of Kenya’s history and education systems, as well as AIDS and possible fundraising ideas. These sections then morphed into their current directions: public relations, advertising, grant and budget and community liaison.

These groups focus the skills the students have learned in communicating, as well as providing experience for future non-profit organizations. Each group was assigned specific tasks to help achieve the goal of education, and at times the attempt seemed daunting.

“It’s a pretty intensive project,” Krystle Dorris of the PR group said. “We have all been working extremely hard for this wonderful cause but it’s definitely worth it.”

Jahna Locke, of the grant and budget group, agrees.

“When I started Dr. Patton’s class, I had no idea we would take on this project. It has involved a lot of work from everyone who contributes, but it’s just amazing how it all comes together.”

The project has made presentations for grants and the McNair Scholars Program, among others. A large part of the project is community involvement. Donations from the community are one of the larger sources of funds for the orphanage, and the support from the community has been very generous.

The community has donated through money, advertising and more. The T-shirts that have been on sale in the union and Classroom Building were designed by the community liaison group but were produced by Brown ‘N Gold.

The dance is being held in the donated ballrooms of the Hilton Garden Inn and UW Conference Center. Auctioned items have been largely provided by community donations, and include tickets and meals to various events and restaurants in Laramie. The Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity is providing the music systems and DJs for the event.

“What I’ve really gotten out of this project is how it has become community to community for education. The people of our community have really given the orphanage a chance to reach out and give these kids a future,” Locke said. 

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