Ethiopia: The Boy Without Arms · Global Voices
Ndesanjo Macha

The Boy Without Arms is a fundraising drive to help the Ethiopian boy, Aschelew. Here is Aschelew's story: Several years ago Aschelew was depressed over his parents’ AIDS, and his family chained him up to keep him from killing himself. The chains cut off the blood to his arms and he ended up losing both of them. Now his parents have died and Aschelew and his brother are alone. And the town is eager to see how to help them, and other orphans, sustainably.
The campaign to raise money for Aschelew aims at turning this sad story “with a handup and not a handout”:
We're going to turn a painful situation around, with a hand up not a handout. To do it, we need the help of friends… $10 at a time.
Here is the plan:
Here's what we're gong to do, and it's the SOLUTION to lifetime dependency: We're going to help Aschelew and his brother launch a sustainable source of income.
Your gift will make it possible.
We sat down with them and the town leaders and worked out a plan. Aschelew's brother is able to drive a donkey-cart and bring in some income that way. And Aschelew is naturally organized and can run a small store (with some hired younger help), and complete their income needs that way.
So we're going to build Aschelew and his brother that store! (plus, it'll be a house/store where they can live, instead of on the streets).
A team of volunteers will go to Ethiopia February 15  to work with the townspeople to build the  store and houses for 3-4 more AIDS-affected families.
The Boy Without Arms campaign is also on YouTube.
The site has a list of the giving team:
Here's a running list of everyone contributing to help Aschelew get his store and other AIDS-affected families get homes thru this 48hr campaign (PLEASE let me know if I've missed your gift!).
And thanks to www.TheConvergingNetwork.com (Mitchell Ashley) for technical help on this site!
If you are interested in helping out or learning more about The Boy Without Arms campaign you can visit their site.