Charity → BUY-A-NET
We all know the importance of literacy—it’s the foundation of all that we do at Oxford Learning. Strong literacy skills help students to build a good vocabulary, increase reading comprehension, and give students a leg up in life. But for many children, literacy is a luxury. In fact, millions of families live in such extreme conditions of poverty that they are unable to afford even the basic comforts of life such a simple bed nets to prevent potentially lethal insect bites.
In Uganda, malaria—a highly treatable and preventable illness—kills thousands of children a day. Malaria has become the forgotten disease in the developing world, allowing it to become the most significant global health threat of our time. While malaria once afflicted many North Americans, today malaria is virtually unheard of in Canada and the United States. In Africa and in over 100 countries, however, malaria remains a major health threat that leaves more than 40 percent of the world’s population at risk.
BUY-A-NET is a volunteer organization that provides anti-malarial bedding nets to families in Uganda. Malaria is the number one killer in Africa. 30,000 children die from malaria each day. Yet, malaria is a highly treatable and preventable disease. Extreme poverty and lack of education and resources mean that parents are unable to protect their children from succumbing to illnesses.
BUY-A-NET was founded in 2004 in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. It is a small, grassroots organization that focuses on community involvement. That is why Oxford Learning Head Office has chosen to undertake a company-wide fundraiser to support BUY-A-NET.
How We Are Helping
Throughout the month of April, and ending on Friday, April 25th World Malaria Day, all Oxford Learning centers will participate in Oxford Learning’s first ever corporate fundraiser by hosting a Read-A-Thon!
A read-a-thon is both fun and challenging and it supports Oxford Learning’s mission by tying into a student’s planner. By having students identify a reading goal—the number of books they will try to read during the read-a-thon—and providing a tracking sheet, we are encouraging students to develop their reading comprehension and expand their reading comfort zones.
Press Release
May 14, 2008 — London, ON — Oxford Learning students are helping children in Uganda tell malaria-infected mosquitoes to buzz off by raising funds for Buy A Net, a charitable organization that supplies bed netting and medicines to families in Africa…
All participating Oxford Learning students will set a personal reading goal and strive to read a pre-determined number of books during throughout the month of April. “Read-A-Thon students feel empowered by their reading goals”, said Emma Cecchin of Oxford Learning Byron “They know that by simply reading books at home, their actions help students in a less fortunate country have a better quality of life.”
Read the full Buy-A-Net Press Release.
Get Involved!
If you would like to donate to BUY-A-NET, visit your local Oxford Learning center or donate online at www.buyanet.ca.
