“I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.” Psalms 121: verses 1 and 2.
I wish for all “Friends of Copey” the best year ever in 2018 for you and all your family. We are saying goodbye to a year that has provided many unforgettable memories related to the Copey Learning Center and we are ready and eager to head into 2018 with even greater expectations.
Both the “Financial and Non-Financial Scorecards” have received very positive responses. We checked off a number of actions taken in 2017 and I thank those of you who have commented on the scorecards expressing support and your continuous encouragement. Overwhelmingly, the message in the scorecards provides a wide variety of evidence of our value to the Copey Learning Center.
Official Fundraising Campaigns Kick-Off Next Week
Next week, the work resumes in earnest with the official kick-off for our two annual
fundraising efforts. The plan is to keep the goal for the Anne G. Broady Scholarship Fund set at $1,500 to support another 15 students. This will get us close to 100 students having received support since 2014. Also, we plan to increase the goal for the Executive Director’s position to $2,500.00 from $2,000.00 last year. A more detailed explanation for the salary increase will be provided next week.
Several donations have already arrived and with more donations promised. This provides an excellent start on our campaign and we are eager to get moving. The scholarship donations have a shorter deadline. The Learning Center staff needs some time to identify recipients prior to school starting in early February.
The Year 2017
In my opinion, 2017 was an excellent year for us. Our fundraising efforts went much quicker and smoother. We experienced improvements in the “Pathway Project” including adding a reception and developing videos. https://youtu.be/4VV6ZlYCPyE
There was an extraordinary increase of 23% in site visits on the Blog. Also, we enjoyed sharing Jane’s time as a volunteer in a unique way unlike we have done before. Of course, attending the 2017 Learning Center graduation was the “icing on the cake”.
In short, we excelled both financially and non-financially. These improvements were a result of looking at 2016 and determining how to be better in 2017. Now, 2017 has provided a wealth of ideas for improvements in 2018.
We did experience two heartbreaking events during the year. First, we grieved with the 
Copey community when their iconic church burned to the ground. And, more recently we experienced the sting of rejection when our partnership application for the new Learning Center was turned down. In both cases, let not our hearts be troubled because we see better days ahead!
A Note of Sorrow!
Our prayers go out to the families of those who died in the airplane crash in Costa Rica yesterday. All were Americans except for the two flight crew members. This is a horrible beginning to a new year and we can only pray for the peace and comfort that can only come from one source…as spoken in Psalms 121.
I have flown on Nature Air airplanes in Costa Rica a few times and the experience seems a little more dicey than flying around the US commercially in small planes. It is certainly a tragedy and I ask all “Friends” to join me in extending our condolences.