LETS MAKE THIS FUNRAISER SUCCESS!!! The Santi School Project is building a primary school in a rural village in Nepal. This is the first edition of our email newsletter. WHAT'S NEW WITH THE SANTI SCHOOL PROJECT The villagers in Ramche, Nepal, have reached an agreement to buy an 8,200 square foot parcel of land for the school. This is an important first step and follows months of sometimes difficult negotiations. An architect is finishing his plans for the design and construction is set to begin in November. Two photos of the future site of the school have been attached to this email. NEARLY HALFWAY TOWARD OUR GOAL To date, we've raised nearly $9,000 of our goal of $20,000. Thank you to all of our contributors! Join us at our upcoming events (see below) and help put us over the top. Our next event is Tuesday, Sept. 25, at Mo Pitkin's House of Satisfaction in New York City. FIRST FUNDRAISER A SUCCESS Our formal fundraising got off to a great start June 10 at Catonsville Presbyterian Church. Chris and Nepali guests Vidhan Rana and Rupendra Pant (from our partner group NSP-NA) addressed more than 30 attendees, who contributed nearly $2,400. Vidhan and Rupendra recognized the caterer, who provided traditional Nepali momos and other appetizers, as the Nepali folk music legend Prem Raja Mahat. In addition to recording more than 50 albums in Nepal and the United States, Mahat now runs the Himalayan House in Baltimore and still performs live. WE'RE IN THE NEWS The Catonsville Times wrote about us this summer before our fundraiser at the church. WHAT YOU CAN DO Spread the word about us and our upcoming events (see below). Introduce us to a foundation or corporate funder. Make a donation! You can donate via PayPal on our web site or mail us a check: 295 Convent Avenue, #66, New York, NY 10031 UPCOMING EVENTS TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 25: BENEFIT CONCERT, NEW YORK CITY Performances by John Foti and Future Folk along with poet Jeremy Schmall and stand-up comic Jon Bulette. A fortune teller eagerly awaits your palms. 7-9pm. Mo Pitkin's House of Satisfaction 34 Avenue A, New York City 10009 SATURDAY NOVEMBER 17: SILENT ART AUCTION, BALTIMORE Works by more than 30 artists of different media. Join us for live music! 7pm to Midnight. The Load of Fun Studios 120 W. North Avenue, Baltimore 21201 For more information about the event, or to donate a piece of art, contact organizer Laura Parkhurst: leparkhurst100@hotmail.com SUNDAY DECEMBER 16: BENEFIT CONCERT, BALTIMORE Performances by Soul Cannon, Names Can Own and Framed Innocent. Doors open 6pm. The 8X10 10 E. Cross Street, Baltimore 21230 For more information about the event, contact organizer Jackie Lesh: leshjm@aol.com CHANGES TO OUR WEB SITE We're updating our web site to include a list of all our donors as well as a meter to show our progress toward our fundraising goal of $20,000. Also, some donors have requested an online option to make recurring monthly donations. We've added that feature via PayPal.