Ethiopia Reads Event - Cocktails for Reading!

Bernos.org, in collaboration with Ethiopia Reads and Tsehai Publishers, is proud to host 'Cocktails for Reading' – an event that is in between a cocktail party and networking event among authors, publishers, readers and organizations involved with reading in Ethiopia and the Ethiopian diaspora community.

Our keynote speakers will be Yohannes Gebregeorgis, co-founder of Ethiopia Reads and recent CNN Hero, and Elias Wondimu, founder of Tsehai Publishers and Ambassador for Peace.



The Event will be held on:

October 11, 2008 beginning at 5:30 PM

Touchstone Gallery

406 7th Street NW – 2nd Floor

Washington, DC 20004


For more information, please contact Tsilat Petros with Ethiopia Reads at tsilat@ethiopiareads.org.

Hope for Children Event at the Embassy of Ethiopia

Additional information regarding the event that
will be held at the Embassy of Ethiopia this Friday.

First, the event is FREE.

Sidamo Coffee and Tea will be there, and they will be doing a coffee
ceremony. (www.sidamocoffeeandtea.com)

There will be Ethiopian food as well as Ferengi/Continental/American
food.

The event is kid-friendly, there will be a table for children to
color or play during the evening.

There will be a silent auction and there are A LOT of Ethiopian items
in the auction -- great, fun things including some wonderful art work
from an emerging Ethiopian artist.

If you are looking for ways to help and become involved in the
Ethiopian/Ethiopian-American community a number of other non-profits
will have representatives in attendance.


Please Join Us For

"A Night in Ethiopia"

To Support Hope for Children's

Youth Learning Center

Friday, September 26, 7 PM

The Ethiopian Embassy, 3506 International Drive, NW, Washington, DC

Hosted by Carol Rhees, Bonnie Harkness, Freda and Gary Temple,

Ruthann Bates, Catie Dupont


Please bring your friends and family!

RSVP carhees@... / 301.229.9591

For more information, go to www.hopeforchildrenus.org

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

We hope that you can join us on September 26 for a fun-filled and
informative evening. If you are unable to attend but wish to make a
tax-deductible contribution, checks should be made payable to Hope
for Children US and should be mailed to 5801 Searl Terrace, Bethesda,
MD 20816. You can also donate on-line at our website,
www.hopeforchildrenus.org.

Parking: Parking in the evening is available in any of the reserved
Embassy spots along International Drive. There is also a parking
garage on Van Ness where you turn onto International Drive.

We hope to see you on the 26th!

Have you gotten your tickets to the Mesgana Dancer Tour yet?

September 20 @ GW Lisner Auditorium, Washington, DC
September 27 @ South Orange Performing Arts Center, South Orange, NJ

For more information visit www.coeef.org

Here is a sample of Smile at A Girl! Yippee!

Smile at A Girl - Ethiopia

Locals for Literacy: Celebrate girls while supporting educational programs for children in Ethiopia


August 11, 2008 –

Childhood friends who discovered a mutual love of international travel during a high-school trip to the USSR, Maine natives Dr. Laura Anderson and Catie Askegreen Dupont have teamed up to publish Dr. Anderson’s children’s book Smile at a Girl, Ethiopia which celebrates the joy of girlhood through verse and images. Smile at a Girl, Ethiopia offers a poetic reminder of how important it is to encourage girls to live, move, dream, and accept themselves with boldness and joy. All proceeds from sales of the book will go to support programs run by Ethiopia Reads and will put books into the hands of young boys and girls who’ve never before had access to libraries or written stories.

Smile at a Girl, Ethiopia showcases girls as they engage in a wide variety of enriching activities, from laughing with friends to playing drums, from dancing and traveling to dreaming and reading. The text reminds readers of the power of a positive word or gesture: “Whisper encouragement to a girl/’Just do the best you can do.’/Burst with pride and hug her/When she dares to try something new.” The text was inspired by an active childhood in coastal Maine and by Laura’s travels across 38 countries, during which she observed the challenges and opportunities that await girls in every corner of the globe.

“I have been lucky to see young girls at play and at work in cultures all over the world,” says Anderson, a clinical psychologist who works in the public school system on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. “There is nothing like the laughter of girls giggling freely in play.” Small town Maine introduced both Laura and Catie to the joy of story telling and showed them that books build imaginations and enhance opportunities.

Later in life, after traversing Southern, Central, Eastern and Northern Africa, Dr. Anderson developed a special appreciation for Ethiopia when visiting her childhood friend Catie Dupont who lived there with her family while working for the US Embassy. An active volunteer in Washington, DC, Dupont currently leads efforts to support the publication of Smile at a Girl Ethiopia.

So far, the project has received financial support from the Hanalei Hawaiian Civic Canoe Club, the Kapaa Rotary Club, and individual donors. Dupont aspires to raise $10,000 for the project.

Dr. Anderson’s text will be complemented by vivid photographs taken by Matthew Andrea, a DC-based volunteer who fell in love with Ethiopia after visiting in 2007. The book will be sold in the United States as a fundraiser for Ethiopia Reads and also distributed throughout the organization’s growing network of free libraries for children in Ethiopia. In keeping with Ethiopia Reads’ commitment to providing culturally relevant materials for children, Smile at a Girl Ethiopia will feature text in the Ethiopian language of Amharic.

About Ethiopia Reads
Based in Denver, CO and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Ethiopia Reads is a grassroots, volunteer-led non-profit organization that works to create a reading culture in Ethiopia. Ethiopia Reads plants libraries for children, publishes books in English as well as local languages and trains teachers and library workers to cultivate a love of reading in children. Co-founder Yohannes Gebregeorgis was recently named a “Hero” by CNN News. Board President Jane Kurtz is an internationally published children’s author and speaker.
Please visit www.ethiopiareads.org for more information.

Progress with Jihur School Project

Friends of Ethiopia Reads - this is a Non-profit that we are hopeful we will partner with. Locally headquartered in the Greater DC Metro Area.

Dear Friends,

This if to inform you that Grade Nine Classrooms and the Administration building of our Jihur School Project will be completed this summer. The Government has promised to furnish the classrooms and has already assigned five teachers.

The project has achieved a 25%completionon rate with Grade ten classrooms, laboratory facilities, library building and a football court remaining. You will agree with us that this is a major milestone.

On behalf of the Executive Committee and the 2000 boys and girls of the Jihur Elementary School we express our gratitude to you for making this possible. So far the project has attracted US60,000 donations but a lot more is expected from us. Our target is to raise an additional US60,000 in the next academic year. We have opened a PayPal account for donations. We have started accepting small monthly donations of $25. 50, 100 or 200 to ensure a continuous cash flow. All donations are tax deductible.

We count on your continued support and please let us know your monthly pledge for planning purposes.Remember this is a project very well managed with no overhead cost.

Members of the support group here in the US, the Executive Committee in Addis and the district committee in Ethiopia are all volunteers. The contractor is supervised by a supervising engineer provided by the Government.

You can get additional information on the project management structure from the project website.Visit our website www.jihurschool.com for on line donations through our PayPal account.

Sincerely,
Getinet W Giorgis
For the Diaspora Support Group

"A Night in Ethiopia" with Hope for Children

Please Join Us For

"A Night in Ethiopia"

To Support Hope for Children's

Youth Learning Center



Friday, September 26, 7 PM

The Ethiopian Embassy, 3506 International Drive, NW, Washington, DC



Hosted by Carol Rhees, Bonnie Harkness, Freda and Gary Temple,

Ruthann Bates, Catie Dupont



Please bring your friends and family!



RSVP carhees@aol.com / 301.229.9591

For more information, go to www.hopeforchildrenus.org





* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *



We hope that you can join us on September 26 for a fun-filled and informative evening. If you are unable to attend but wish to make a tax-deductible contribution, checks should be made payable to Hope for Children US and should be mailed to 5801 Searl Terrace, Bethesda, MD 20816. You can also donate on-line at our website, www.hopeforchildrenus.org.





Parking: Parking in the evening is available in any of the reserved Embassy spots along International Drive. There is also a parking garage on Van Ness where you turn onto International Drive.



We hope to see you on the 26th!

Mesgana Dancers are Coming to D.C.

2008 COEEF Mesgana Dance Tour Schedule:


September 7, Ethiopian New Yearʼs Festival @ Lake Merritt Park, Oakland, CA
September 13 @ Rose Wagner Theatre, Salt Lake City, UT
September 20 @ GW Lisner Auditorium, Washington, DC
September 27 @ South Orange Performing Arts Center, South Orange, NJ

For more information visit www.coeef.org

How You Can Help Ethiopia Reads

How You Can Help!
Ethiopia Reads relies on the support of people from around the world who share our dream of connecting children with books. From school groups in the Netherlands to churches in North Dakota, generous supporters from every walk of life keep our programs running.

Your help is extremely important to the children we serve. And whether you love books, Ethiopia, kids or just want to do something good, there are lots of ways to help.

Make a Donation
Ethiopia Reads welcomes your tax-deductible donation in any amount. All donations are used to support and expand our programs in Ethiopia. Your dollar stretches far in Ethiopia (where the average annual income is estimated to be $125).

Consider:

$1 Funds the publication of one book
$4 Buys an Amharic-English Dictionary for Children
$40 Provides an Ethiopian librarian with a training manual
$83 Keeps Shola Children’s Library open for one day
$220 Purchases 200 Amharic-language story books
$500 Provides an Ethiopian library worker with a scholarship for library skills training
$1,000 Funds food, care and shelter for the Donkey Mobile Library
$2,000 Provides a year's salary for a library manager
$2,500 Buys high-quality furniture and other materials for a library
$5,000 Sponsors the annual Ethiopian Children's Book Week Celebration
$9,000 Ships a container of 40,000 books to libraries in Ethiopia
The Golden Kuraz Club: $10,000 + Above. Your major gift can help with everything from funding multiple book shipments to planting a rural library program. Please call us to discuss the many ways in which you can make a significant difference.

Friends of Ethiopia Reads - Update

Dear Friends of Ethiopia Reads – Greater Washington DC:

I apologize for the tardiness of my e-mail update. I have meant to e-mail and let everyone know about our recent events and successes! (From the March 1st Whirlwind Weekend!)

Let me start by expressing thanks to:

Matt Andrea & Kenfe and Mimi at Sidamo Coffee Shop in Washington D.C. for hosting Ethiopia Reads and Jane Kurtz. Always a pleasure!

Bete Yilma for coordinating Jane’s appearance at Church and at the Highland Café in Silver Spring! Huge Success!

Veronika Jenke for coordinating the event at Busboys and Poets in Shirlington. Great Venue!

Thank you Jim Larsen for being instrumental in spreading the word.

Always HUGE thanks to Dereje Desta & Zethiopia for spreading our news!

I know that there were many more helping hands for the weekend and I thank everyone who helped with selling books, greeting, carrying boxes, donating, and all of the other ways you touched Ethiopia Reads with your generosity of spirit.

All of the venues were so accommodating – we had a great time, meeting new people and seeing old friends. Each event was financially successful with amazing support put toward our new “Basket of Books” program. We received $2500 in support through book sales and donations.

Additionally, that same weekend Ethiopia Reads received $700 of donations toward a publishing project! The DC friends of Ethiopia Reads will continue to raise money for this particular project.

Another success that stemmed from that weekend was the placement of two donation boxes. One is at Sidamo Café and the other at Highland. I haven’t had feedback from Highland, but the box at Sidamo has been wildly successful with Kenfe and Mimi bringing in $30-$50 worth of donations a week and selling out of Ethiopia Reads books regularly. It is GREAT.

I have hope for the DC chapter of Ethiopia Reads to get to the point where we have 10 donation boxes placed by the end of the summer. Let me know if you have ideas for venues.

Ethiopia Reads is NOT packing books at the World Bank Book Project this Spring, but we will now be packing books in the winter – so please stay tuned for more information regarding the Book Project.

We are continuing to collect books to ship to Addis and for people to carry over with them. (Thank you Mekdie, for your contribution of books and school supplies at the Highland Café event in Silver Spring!) If you or someone you know is traveling to Ethiopia – I am happy to supply you with books to take! This is obviously the most economical way for us (DC) to get books to Ethiopia – FREE!

I have started a blog for the Friends of Ethiopia Reads – DC Chapter – the blog address is:

http://ethiopiareads.blogspot.com/

I am hopeful that we can use this space to stay in touch more efficiently.

Now that Spring Break has passed for all of us we will have a meeting to discuss plans & goals for the next few months. We will meet on Monday, April 21 at 6:45 p.m. at the Noodles & Company at Pentagon Row – we have met there before and it is easy (Metro Accessible) and there is space! Please let me know if you can make the meeting – the more the merrier.

Again, thank you to everyone in the area - your commitment to help the children of Ethiopia is inspiring to me. I appreciate all that you do.



Best,

Catie Dupont

catie@ethiopiareads.org

Ethiopia Reads launches "Basket of Books" Program

Basket of Books Program

As a grass-roots organization we have been overwhelmed with the numbers of people who have reached out to us asking “How can I help?”

The Basket of Books program is an initiative launched by Ethiopia Reads that allows those of us who aren’t able to plant an entire library or publish a book share the joy of reading and make a lasting impact.

You can touch the lives of children who rarely or never get to hold books.

What is the Basket of Books Program?
A simple two-step program! 1) You donate $200 to sponsor a Basket of Books. Each book will have a nameplate placed on the inside cover recognizing the basket’s sponsor: your organization, family, or perhaps a reader or supporter of the world’s children that you want to honor with a gift. 2) Ethiopia Reads will place the basket with a worthy organization that serves children in Ethiopia. (If you like, we will work with you on placing a basket with an organization you might already have a relationship with.)

Each basket of books will contain an assortment of books like those shown in the pictures above – to include Early Readers, picture books, middle grade novels and local language books.

For more information regarding the Basket of Books program, please contact Catie Dupont.
Catie@EthiopiaReads.org
For more information about Ethiopia Reads – please visit http://www.ethiopiareads.org/.

Ongoing Campaign for Ethiopia Reads - Take One Book! Will You?

Take One Book Literacy Campaign for Ethiopia

One book can change a life. That is what Ethiopia Reads founder Yohannes Gebregiorgis discovered at 19 years of age when he held his first book. Now you have the opportunity to change a life through Ethiopia Reads’ “TAKE ONE BOOK” campaign. In recognition of the Millenium celebration in Ethiopia this year we are committed to donating at least 2,000 books to children in Ethiopia.

Ethiopia Reads, founded in 2003, works to improve literacy and create a culture of reading in Ethiopia. We do this by planting libraries and publishing books in local languages as well as offering continuing education programs to help educators in Ethiopia nurture a love of reading.

Since Ethiopia Reads opened Ethiopia’s first free children’s library in 2003, thousands of children have experienced the joy of reading. The library received 60,000 visits to the library in 2006. Ethiopia Reads sees first hand the difference that one library, ONE BOOK, and one story can make in the life of a child.

If you or someone you know is traveling to Ethiopia, Ethiopia Reads challenges you to TAKE ONE BOOK with you, because we believe that education is hope and books can change lives. Books can be dropped off at the Shola Children’s Library in Addis Ababa. Shola is located in Beklo-Bet, behind the Dashen Bank off of Debre Zeit road.

If you are not traveling, but want to make a difference in Ethiopia, we are collecting books in Washington, DC and Kansas to send over with other travellers.

For more information on the TAKE ONE BOOK campaign, please contact Catie Dupont at catie@ethiopiareads.org or Katie Douglas at katie@ethiopiareads.org.

WILL YOU TAKE ONE BOOK?


Suggested book list:

1. Any type of non-fiction books are appreciated.

2. Suggested fiction titles:

• Baby Baboon
• Crafty Chameleon
• Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears, by Verna Aardema
• Bringing the Rain to Kaputi Plain
• Anansi Does the Impossible
• Kaldi and the Dancing Goats, the story of Ethiopian Coffee
• Anansi and the Talking Melon
• Anansi the Spider
• Babu’s Song
• Fatuma’s New Cloth
• My Rows and Piles of Coins
• Once Upon a Time
• What’s Cooking Jamela
• The Day Gogo Went to Vote
• Silly Mammo
• Aida
• Kings and Queens of West Africa
• Sundiata: The Lion King
• Seven Spools of Thread
• Journey to Jo’Burg
• Saba: Under the Hyena’s Foot
• Storytellers’ Beads
• Moonlight Bride
• The Dark Child: The Autobiography of an African Child
• The Other Side of Truth
• Out of Bounds: Seven Stories of Conflict and Hope
• Weep not Child
• Song of Lawino, Song of Ocol
• Purple Hibiscus
• So Long a Letter
• Nervous Conditions
• No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency
• The Magic Gourd
• Bintou’s Braids
• My Great Grandmother’s Gourd
• Tutankhamen’s Gift
• No Turning Back
• Hatshepsut: His Majesty Herself
• Year of No Rain
• Many Stones
• The Ugly Goddess
• Beduin’s Gazelle
• Mother to Mother
• Midaq Alley
• Dreams of Trespass

*go to www.janekurtz.com for more children’s books related to life in Africa

Jane Kurtz to Speak at Highland Origin Cafe in Silver Spring, Maryland!

Meet children’s author Jane Kurtz!
Support Ethiopia Reads!

Come hear Jane tell her story of growing up in Ethiopia, how it influenced her writing and the development of the NGO Ethiopia Reads. Jane’s books -- Only A Pigeon, the Lion’s Tail (Amharic/English version) and Saba will be available for purchase. Dual language Amharic/English books -- The Beekeeper of Lalibela, Fafi’s Sheep and Silly Mammo will also be available.

Sunday, March 2, 2008 ~~ 1:30 – 4:00 pm
Highland Origin Cafe
8200 Fenton Street
Silver Spring, Maryland
For additional information, please contact Catie@EthiopiaReads.org

The kitchen at Highland Origin Café will be open for your convenience.

Jane Kurtz to speak on behalf of Ethiopia Reads at Sidamo Cafe in Washington, DC

Meet children’s author Jane Kurtz
and support Ethiopia Reads

Come hear Jane tell her story of growing up in Ethiopia, how it influenced her writing and the development of the NGO Ethiopia Reads. Jane’s books -- Only A Pigeon, the Lion’s Tail (Amharic/English version) and Saba will be available for purchase. Dual language Amharic/English books -- The Beekeeper of Lalibela, Fafi’s Sheep and Silly Mammo will also be available.

Saturday, March 1, 2008 ~~ 6:00 – 8:00 pm
Sidamo Coffee and Tea
417 H Street NE
Washington, DC 20002

The kitchen at Sidamo will be open for your convenience.

Jane Kurtz to Speak at Busboys and Poets in Arlington, Virginia

Meet children’s author Jane Kurtz!
Support Ethiopia Reads!

Come hear Jane tell her story of growing up in Ethiopia, how it influenced her writing and the development of the NGO Ethiopia Reads.


Monday, March 3, 2008 ~~ 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
~~ Busboys and Poets ~~ 4251 South Campbell Ave ~~ Arlington

Come hear Jane tell her story of growing up in Ethiopia, how it influenced her writing and how Ethiopia Reads has developed and she will share the
dreams for Ethiopia Reads’ future.
There will be a slide show presentation.
Light refreshments will be served.
Busboys and Poets have a supply of Jane’s books available for your convenience.

For additional information, please contact Catie@EthiopiaReads.org

Come meet Jane Kurtz and learn more about Ethiopia Reads!

Come meet Author Jane Kurtz!
Come learn about Ethiopia Reads!

Saturday, March 1, 2008 ~~ 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
~~ Sidamo Coffee and Tea ~~ 417 H Street NE ~~Washington, DC 20002~~

Come hear Jane tell her story of growing up in Ethiopia, how it influenced her writing and the development of the NGO Ethiopia Reads.
There will be a slide show presentation.
Jane’s books Only A Pigeon, the Lion’s Tail (Amharic/English version) and Saba will be available for purchase.
Dual language Amharic/English books ~ The Beekeeper of Lalibela, Fafi’s Sheep and Silly Mammo will be available.
The kitchen at Sidamo will be open for your convenience.

Sunday, March 2, 2008 ~~ 1:30 – 4:00 p.m.
~~Highland Origin Café ~~ 8200 Fenton Street ~~Silver Spring, Maryland ~~
There will be a slide show and informative session regarding Jane Kurtz and Ethiopia Reads. Additionally, Tsilat Petros will be joining us and sharing her enthusiasm and dreams for Ethiopia and the Ethiopia Reads project. Come hear her story!
The kitchen at Highland Origin Café will be open for your convenience.

Sunday afternoon tune in as Jane Kurtz is interviewed on AM 1390 Zethiopia Radio from 5:00-6:00 p.m.
Jane will be sharing with Dereje Desta the latest news from Ethiopia Reads and will introduce the audience and Ethiopia Reads’ supporters to Tsilat Petros – who will be traveling to Ethiopia to work for Ethiopia Reads!

Monday, March 3, 2008 ~~ 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
~~ Busboys and Poets ~~ 4251 South Campbell Ave ~~ Arlington, VA 22206 ~~

Come hear Jane tell her story of growing up in Ethiopia, how it influenced her writing and how Ethiopia Reads has developed and she will share the
hope and dreams for Ethiopia Reads’ future.
There will be a slide show presentation.
Light refreshments will be served.
Busboys and Poets have a supply of Jane’s books available for your convenience.

For further information, please contact Catie Dupont.
Catie@EthiopiaReads.org or call 571-243-1411.
An RSVP to any of these events is not necessary, but would be appreciated.
For specific information regarding Ethiopia Reads, please visit www.ethiopiareads.org.

About Ethiopia Reads

Ethiopia Reads is a grassroots non profit/non government organization geared toward bringing literacy and literacy related resources to Ethiopia.

Ethiopia Reads Mission Statement: to develop a reading culture in Ethiopia by connecting children with books.


Ethiopia Reads was founded to improve literacy and create a culture of reading in Ethiopia, in order to bring hope, vision and educational skills to this generation of Ethiopian children. We do this by:

-providing quality reading materials, as far as possible in local languages, in accessible locations with encouraging and supportive adult supervision
-publishing attractive books in local languages
-promoting literacy and the importance of reading
-creating libraries and reading centers where they didn’t previously exist

Ethiopia Reads believes that education is the key to improving the lives of the next generation of Ethiopians, a country filled with children, and that books are the key to fostering a genuine love of learning. Yet books are a scant resource in Ethiopia, which has been named one of the three poorest countries in the world, with a life expectancy of 41 years. While new schools are being built at a rapid rate, teaching is by rote in overcrowded classrooms. In the poor neighborhood where Ethiopia Reads established the first children’s library in the country, for example, there are 180 children per class who attend half-day sessions. Yet enthusiasm and demand for learning is very high: When Ethiopians are asked what they need most, they often say “education.” Ethiopia Reads is the only organization in Ethiopia whose only focus is on putting books into the hands of children and encouraging literacy.

Ethiopia Reads AT A GLANCE

Ethiopian Children's Book Week, which takes place in April of each year, includes the Ethiopia Reads-created Golden Kuraz Award, which encourages Ethiopian writers to produce books for children.

Shola Children’s Library, the first free children’s library in the capital city of Addis Ababa, is filled with young readers every day of the week, and now records 60,000 visits per year.

Working with government schools as well as other non-profit organizations, Ethiopia Reads will plant twenty libraries and reading centers in elementary schools around Ethiopia in the next twelve months.

ETHIOPIA: A NEED TO READ

Do you remember the first book you loved as a child? Remember the magical experience of getting to know and love the characters — even missing them when the book was finished? For children, books can be so many things: comfort, learning tools, windows to other worlds both far-away and familiar. Books teach us that we have the right to dream.

Since Ethiopia Reads opened Ethiopia’s first free children’s library in 2003, thousands of children have experienced the joy of reading for the first time. This seemingly simple act has had a profound impact on their young lives. In Ethiopia, books represent hope. Ethiopia is a beautiful country, with breathtaking scenery and a vast richness of culture and spirit. But it faces tough challenges. Reading will equip today’s children with the skills to become tomorrow’s problem solvers.

Ethiopia has a strong tradition in oral story telling, an ancient history and written language, components that inspire a literate book-loving culture. Yet there are many obstacles to education. Consider:

58% of Ethiopians age 15 and above cannot read.

Classes in government schools around typically have approximately 180 students at a time.

At present, 99% of schools in Ethiopia have no libraries!

Ethiopia Reads sees the difference that just one library, one book, one story can make in the life of a child. We see it in the faces of the thousands of children who visit Shola Children’s Library every month. Last year, we logged 60,000 visits. Is there any question Ethiopia’s kids love books?

Ethiopia is a country with a strong tradition in oral story telling and an ancient history and written language, components that inspire a literate book loving culture. However, the literacy rate in Ethiopia is extremely low and the number of Amharic books available, especially for children, is devastatingly small. Ethiopia Reads believes that no child should need to do without the resources and joy that books bring.

Ethiopia Reads is working in both the United States and Addis Ababa to accumulate the necessary resources to realize this dream. Ethiopia Reads is an on going project that can always use support and volunteers!

Ethiopia Reads is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization established for the purpose of promoting children's book publishing, reading, literacy and the development of education in Ethiopia.

The funds for Ethiopia Reads come from private donations, from grants and fund raising activities. Your contributions are tax-deductible as allowed by law.