Get Involved

If you like our work and share the excitement for the great people in Burundi we are helping out, then we would love you to get more involved. There are a number of ways you could do that:

Pray for GLO, and all its activities.

To get on our mailing list for updates every two months, subscribe at info@greatlakesoutreach.org

Give to the work of GLO, be it a one-off or a monthly contribution.

Every bit of money goes a long way out there, and can make a huge difference. One of the most heart-wrenching and deeply-impacting moments in Simon’s life was when an African brother asked him for $4 for medicine for his sick baby boy. Without that $4, the boy would die. So many diseases out here are easily treated, but fatal if you cannot access medicine. Indeed, on another occasion a pastor's 18-year-old brother died in his arms because he couldn't afford the medicine across the counter in the pharmacy. So this incident with the baby boy struck Simon deeply. It was $4 for a life! It took him a long time to get over that when back in the UK – he had so much stuff, so much he wasted. The rawness of the experience made him sell his CD collection. Don't worry, we am not asking you to do that! But when you have an experience like that, it has to lead to action. So please do consider any amount, we will be very grateful, and look at our support in the UK(+ rest of world) and support in the USA pages to see how to go about it, depending on which country you are in.

Network on GLO’s behalf.
We all have different networks, be it through the family, office, school or university. If you can get others to become interested, then our cyberspace network will continue to grow. Send us their email addresses if they want to pray for the work, or get involved in any other way. Also, there are grants and scholarships and funds for projects available all over the place if we look for them. When people are searching for a good cause to support for their annual fundraising cause, for example, you could suggest GLO.

Do a sponsored event for GLO.
People have already done a variety of things to raise sponsorship. How about a marathon? Several people are doing the London Marathon this year. Think of anything crazy, and go for it! Three amazing men Geoff, Steve and Yves, have just completed John O'Groats to Lands End, and raised over £30,000.00. Take a look at their efforts by clicking on a photo in right column. It doesn't need to be this big, every donation helps. 

Mobile phones for GLO.
There is simply masses of potential with this idea. Already we have been able to collect huge numbers of phones to recycle and make significant profits for work in Burundi. Please, get involved with this one, it is so easy: when Simon was leaving the UK a while back, he needed a new mobile (cell) phone, and two of his sisters had three spare ones between them because they have subsequently upgraded to newer and better and more sophisticated models. What an opportunity! If you got excited about this idea and advertised through the church bulletin or rounded up your home-group, relatives, or colleagues in the office, or mates at school or university, you could whip up 1,000s between you, multiply that by $50, and we are talking a huge sum of money. Dream big with us! Send them to: 21 Raymond Road, Maidenhead, Berks SL6 6DF.

Wedding dresses for GLO.
It sounds strange, but we have been able to get together over fifty wedding dresses, and are now the best dress rental service in Burundi! (Well that's our aim!) We have had a great response as virtually nobody out there can afford their own dress, but all will hire one, so the need is always there, and is a real money-spinner, with the generated funds recycled into our projects. Don’t forget veils and gloves too, if you have them. Hopefully you only plan to use your wedding dress once(!), so what better use for it once you have had such joy out of it than to let numbers of others enjoy it in due course? Also they have a penchant for plastic flowers as decoration on wedding cars, so we’d love any of those!

NB: Only small sizes, and only totally white dresses (not ivory ones) please. Burundian women are much thinner than western women in general, hence our need only for small sizes, and their black skin looks best with pristine white, so none of the ivory dresses we have received have been as solicited as the white ones.

Become a regional representative for GLO.
This would involve simply offering your time to promote our work and be involved in all of the above. If you have time to spare, we would love to have a stronger and more formalised link with you. Contact us at info@greatlakesoutreach.org

Thank you very much for your part in our work.