WHO
WE ARE
Party For A Cause is a student organization that creates and promotes
social events in order to raise money for the developing world. Our group
is founded on the basis that many university students would like to give
to charity, but simply don't have the money, or the time. We bridge that
gap by putting together parties for as low a price as possible, charging
entrance fees, and allowing students to donate and party simultaneously.
Our organization is unique because it lets students profit from giving
in a way that is very uncommon, by allowing them to literally get something
in exchange for their donation.
We are currently in the process of organizing several parties for the
2006-2007 year. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you would like
to be informed about these events or if you might like to help us organize
them.
We at Party For a Cause had a difficult time choosing just one charity for the 2006/2007 year and have chosen two very worthy recipients: The Cambodia Landmine Museum and Relief Fund and Fundacion El Samaritano. We decided to move away from the more well-known non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to focus on smaller and more grassroots development agencies. PFAC members have done work with both of these NGOs in the past. As a result, we are able to maintain close contact with people working on the front lines of both charities and are confident that our donations will make a significant impact in the field. The PFAC executive has also decided to assist Fundacion El Samaritano with the building of homes during the summer of 2007 (no PFAC money will be used towards these travel expenses).
The CAMBODIA LANDMINE MUSEUM AND RELIEF FUND is an NGO in Cambodia which works on de-mining the over six million landmines that are still left in the country after years of war. Every day landmines are detonated by civilians many of whom are children out at play or subsistence farmers simply trying to survive. Aki Ra, Director and Curator of the Museum is a former Khmer Rouge conscripted child soldier forced into fighting after the Khmer Rouge army executed his parents. For more than twenty years, Aki Ra only knew war, fighting for the Khmer Rouge, Vietnamese, and then the Cambodian army. After leaving the army, he worked for the United Nations, demining the region which led him to starting his own organization to raise money for different initiatives to repair his war torn country.
The money generated from Party For A Cause this year will have an immediate impact in helping the Cambodian people and we hope to also have a long-term impact in raising consciousness at U of T of the plight of landmines in Cambodia and Aki Ra's mission. More about this organization at www.cambodialandminemuseum.org
FUNDACION EL SAMIRITANO is a charity located in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic which restores and reaffirms human dignity by providing shelter to the many Haitian refugees and Dominicans who live on the underbelly of society, forced to carve out their existence in the cardboard, palm roof, and rusted zinc partitions that they call home.
The program is run by an extremely energetic 77 year old man named Elio, who has built some 600 homes. Elio and the others who run the organization are volunteers and do not use any donated money towards administrative costs.
Though this charity, a donation of $3000 US is enough to build a new concrete home for a needy family. The cost includes all material and labor, as well as two bedrooms, wooden slat windows, ventilation, block room divider, toilet, electric lights, and water.
Our 2005-2006 proceeds recipient was Doctors Without Borders. You can
visit their website at http://www.msf.ca/
