Guest post by Keith Gayhart – A few years ago, I learned that a dear friend of mine, Karon Wright, was leading a nonprofit organization supporting women in Uganda. As I learned more about The Greater Contribution, I was impressed with what it was doing for women living in extremely challenging circumstances with few opportunities for improving their lives. Clearly, this organization was not simply providing immediate assistance to women and their families; it was making a lasting difference that would reverberate across generations. 

It’s been a humbling lesson for me. I am a long-distance runner, and I have had the excellent fortune to compete in tough racing events worldwide…Greenland, Antarctica, Namibia, the Canary Islands, Siberia, the Canadian Sub Arctic, Mongolia and the Atacama Desert. People often express amazement over my athletic accomplishments, but it is obvious to me that what my friend Karon and TGC are doing is far more amazing…and done in a spirit of love and goodwill. 

I am incredibly proud to represent The Greater Contribution in this year’s “Racing the Planet’s 20-Year Ultramarathon” in Jordan November 5-11. It lifts my heart to know that as I carry my backpack across 155 miles of desert sand, I’ll be contributing, in my small way, to helping hard-working women give their families a better future.

If you would like to help power me forward in my quest to empower women in Uganda, you can join me by donating here: The Greater Contribution | DonationPay

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Thousand Oaks, CA – When prices rise, the impact is worldwide, especially to women in rural Uganda who support their families with only a few dollars a day.

The Greater Contribution is making a move to change that with their “Move 2 Empower” fundraiser July 11-22 where funds raised online will provide immediate relief to the most impoverished Ugandan women beyond our borders, not with a hand out, but with a hand up, by believing in them.

For the past two decades the non-profit has provided more than 22,000 micro loans (with a 95% repayment rate) to women in remote villages of Uganda, along with literacy and business skills training, mentoring and peer counseling, so they can start their own businesses and lift their families out of poverty. Now their ability to provide basic necessities to their families is threatened from the recent Covid resurgences, soaring prices, and economic downturn resulting in a lack of consumer demand.

Anyone can join The Greater Contribution’s “Move 2 Empower” the women of Uganda by moving compassion into action with a donation, while urging friends, family and associates to do the same at www.greatercontribution.org. Supporters can also move within their communities by hosting fun fundraising activities where friends sponsor them for walking a committed distance or dancing for a designated amount of time.

“Proceeds will focus on immediate food insecurity relief,” says TGC President Karon Wright who founded the non-profit in 2006. “We will be providing seeds so our borrowers can grow vegetables within weeks and produce additional drought tolerant crops for the long term, so mothers don’t have to choose between only one meal a day, or removing children from school. Loan extensions will also offer much needed support.”

Realities for village women in Uganda served by TGC program:

*Casava flour, a staple of Ugandan diets, has risen 11% from last year.

*Basic food and non-alcoholic drinks increased 11% this year.

*The cost for soap increased from 2,000 Ugandan shillings to 6,000, and cooking oil has risen from 2,500 to 10,500.

*Recent fuel hikes have had a devastating impact on food prep, the supply chain, and getting goods to market.

“Movement and action create positive change in the world,” says Wright. “Together we can ‘Move 2 Empower’ the women of Uganda to persevere through yet another roadblock on their road to breaking the cycle of poverty forever.”

The Greater Contribution empowers impoverished women and girls in Uganda with compassion and respect. We provide financial support through micro loans, education, and development programs to reduce poverty, disease, hunger, illiteracy, and gender inequality. This assistance supports them in becoming equal partners in their families and respected members of their communities, opening doors to a more equitable and prosperous future.

Click here to donate.

Contact: Lisa Carey Public Relations
Phone: 818.889.1085
Emai: lisa@lisacareypr.com

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Matching Gift Challenge!

We are truly blessed to be able to begin this year’s event with an extremely generous matching gift challenge. TGC longtime donors and supporters Andra Ellingston and Fred Simmons are pledging to match every contribution received during our fundraiser up to $30,000. This means that your donation is effectively doubled: double the impact, double the number of women served, double the number of poverty stricken families saved.

Persistence With Assistance

Our theme for this year’s annual Black Tie No-Show Dinner is “Persistence with Assistance”. Our borrowers in Uganda have tough times encoded into their DNA. These women know only living on the edge…the edge of poverty, the edge of starvation and the edge of life itself. Yes, even in the toughest of times they persevere and yes, persist. They never give up on their children, their family or themselves. And it’s with the assistance provide by you through The Greater Contribution that they are able to move away from the razor’s edge into a life of promise and possibilities.

How it Works

For those unfamiliar with our Black Tie No Show Dinner, the concept is simple. Why go to the expense and labor of putting on a big shindig in a fancy ballroom, encompassing months of planning with you spending lots of money on a gown or tux and a babysitter… when you could just stay at home in your jammies, and instead donate the money you save to the most worthwhile charity we know of, The Greater Contribution.

Please donate today and double the impact and the empowerment!

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