A Silver Lining in the Clouds

After weeks of planning and days of hoping for blue skies and warm sun, Saturday, May 8 was a day of clouds and rain for the Boston area.  This, however, did not stop Kaya supporters, Inger-Marie Pu, Regina Wiryaman, Hilary Laing and their children, Anne-Milda Pu, Anthony Wiryaman, Serena Laing, and Penelope Vandermeer, from forging ahead with their plans to raise funds for the organization through a yard sale.  Donations in excellent quality of every kind came in throughout the weeks before the big day--sports equipment, children's toys, clothes, furniture, books, puzzles, the list goes on.  After hauling, organizing, and pricing so many donations, advertising through community boards, flyers, posters, and Craigslist, they were ready for the day. 

While the sale officially started at 8AM, by 7:30AM, customers were already waiting to scour through all of the great new finds.  An informational table decked with Kaya brochures, books, a donation box, delicious baked goods were set up to let customers know where all of the profits from the sale were going--to the support of the children in Bolivia.  One woman who bought a great deal of clothing mentioned that a new family had just moved to her neighborhood from Cameroon.  She was grateful to be able to help out this new family with such useful and high quality items from the sale.  By 1PM, the crew was ready for a break and when they returned a couple hours later, there were still more customers!  As clean-up started, sales were still being made!  In total, by the end of the day, $685 was raised to support the ministry in Bolivia.

The success of this yard sale on such a gloomy day definitely warmed the hearts of everyone who had put in such hard work to help Kaya and bring awareness to the important work in Bolivia.  Inger-Marie, Regina, and Hilary, along with their children, have plans to make this a bi-annual event, with the next yard sale in the fall.  Furthermore, the event has built enthusiasm and there is a growing interest in becoming a full-fledged Kaya Club!  For more information on how to start a Kaya Club, please download more information here.