July - August 2025

#1 Became a fixture at the Aquidneck Community Table Farmers’ Market at the Newport County YMCA
#2 Funded July and August housing for Masibulele: a fourth-year law school student
#3 Uplifted Sica, our on-the-ground videographer, with a thank-you stipend for her efforts
#4 Helped outfit 30 Dunbrody Farm School and Moreson Primary School children with full school uniforms and shoes
#5 Finished the installation of new FIFA-style soccer goals at St. Ignatius Primary School, all thanks to Gettysburg College Women’s Soccer (GCWS)
#6 Further uplifted the soccer program at St. Ignatius Primary School with transportable goals and a slew of soccer equipment, also thanks to GCWS
#7 Continued our support of the toddler’s physical therapy necessitated by a Traumatic Brain Injury caused by an infection
#8 Hired FAMSA to first of a series of Social Work workshops with Vusumzi Primary School parents and learners
#9 Collaborated with The Scooter Palace in Tiverton to auction off a stunning dark blue Vespa Primavera 50 for our best-ever 2025 auction
#10 Funded 12 more backpacks for Dunbrody Farm School children
#11 Hired local contractor Bongani Hesi to install security measures for the upcoming St. Ignatius Primary School Computer Laboratory
#12 Launched gala ticket sales with a record-breaking (for us) first-day early bird special!

May - June 2025

Link to May-June Newsletter

#1 Funded May and June housing for Masibulele: a fourth-year law school student
#2 Hired Synsport to install permanent goals and transportable goals at St. Ignatius Primary School
#3 Supported local contractor Bongani Hesi and his team for their school kitchen renovation efforts
#4 Made the final payment on the Moses Mabida Outdoor Assembly & Learning Centre
#5 Hired Carved Unlimited to design and create signage for the Moses Mabida Outdoor Assembly & Learning Centre
#6 Hired KO Architecture to design the next big building project at Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School (MMSSS)
#7 Received first renderings for the MMSSS classrooms, office spaces, and outdoor performing arts venue
#8 Continued to fund a toddler’s physical therapy necessitated by a Traumatic Brain Injury caused by an infection
#9 Funded a leg brace for the afore-mentioned toddler to provide stability and enhance his ability to walk
#10 Provided basic supplies for a young woman injured in a tragic train accident in February 2024
#11 Funded dozens of book bags for Dunbrody Farm School learners
#12 Helped outfit 30 children with full school uniforms and shoes

March - April 2025

Link to March-April Newsletter

#1 Finished the Universal Promise Outdoor Assembly project at Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School (construction gallery below)
#2 Transformed dirty water to clean water through filtration and purification mechanisms at Sandisulwazi High School
#3 Renovated the school kitchen at St. Ignatius Primary School
#4 Continued to design and create a community empowerment initiative called SPROUT: Sunflower Programme Rising Onward and Upward Together
#5 Funded law school housing and a vital textbook for a student in his final year
#6 Funded new security doors at Sandisulwazi High School
#7 Funded new serving tables for the kitchen staff at St. Ignatius Primary School
#8 Received 20 more laptops from KPMG’s Community Outreach Team
#9 Funded spectacles for a high school student in dire need
#10 Outfitted 27 Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School students in new school uniforms and shoes
#11 Funded a hot water heater for the school kitchen at St. Ignatius Primary School
#12 Raised over $35,000 during 401 Gives, thanks to our amazing team and donors

THE UNIVERSAL PROMISE
OUTDOOR ASSEMBLY & LEARNING CENTRE
[completed April 2025]

January - February 2025

Link to January Feel-good Story
Link to January-February Newsletter

#1 Delivered six laptops to students who passed the matric and are currently enrolled in university
#2 Thanks to MDF Crafting Wellness, handed over 125 medical instruments to six clinics and several school nurses
#3 Renovated a Vusumzi Primary School classroom, dramatically transforming it from an eyesore to a state-of-the-art learning space
#4 Installed 34 whiteboards at Moses Mabida HS, thereby eliminating the 50-year-old blackboards and their associated health hazards
#5 Held several Vusumzi Primary School parent meetings to have them identify the major stressors hampering their ability to parent and to create solutions
#6 Distributed pre-owned Apple technology (iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks) to selfless (and unsuspecting) South African volunteers & game-changers
#7 Funded advanced math studies for a highly effective volunteer math teacher at Moses Mabida HS
#8 Upgraded a water system at Sandisulwazi HS to include filtering and purifying technology and to ensure clean water consumption
#9 Made Sandisulwazi HS students happy by funding security gates for all offices and classrooms at their school
#10 Delivered nearly 200 Bryn Mawr College sports warm-ups, practice jerseys, and game-day uniforms for local teams
#11 Visited with the families affected by the tragic train accident in February 2024 to offer support: an ongoing effort
#12 Engaged a local optometrist to visit Sandisulwazi HS to examine the eyes of students in dire need and to fund their spectacles

NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2024

Link to November Newsletter
Link to December Newsletter

#1 Held this year’s annual fundraiser at Stoneacre Garden with a new computer laboratory as the main focus
#2 At the gala, celebrated all our generous business sponsors, with the bodhi spa and Mission leading the way
#3 At the gala and in the days that followed, raised money for 62 more school uniforms and shoes
#4 At the gala, raised funds to purchase textbooks for seven classes that do not have them
#5 At the gala, raised funds to get eight students proper eye exams and new “spectacles”
#6 At the gala, raised funds to purchase new teachers’ desks for two classrooms and 50 desks and chairs for Vusumzi Primary School
#7 At the gala, raised funds to complete the order of 40 more solar lanterns
#8 Began fundraising process for 34 whiteboards (two each for all 17 classrooms) for Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School
#9 Received a remarkable donation from the Portsmouth/Tiverton Rotary Club to outfit six students in full uniforms
#10 Received a donation of 10 Patricia Polacco books from Carol Wilcox in honor of her son Kevin Medeiros and the children we serve in South Africa
#11 Honored outgoing Board Chair Risa Weinrit by creating a fund in her name her life’s work and long-term service to Universal Promise
#12 Received another generous donation from All Sales Are Vinyl in support of the next school-wide clean water system

SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2024

Link to September Newsletter
Link to October Newsletter

#1 Thanks to the generosity of Gail & Ted Yates, launched the Medical Empathy Fund to aid families who struggle with access to quality healthcare and even hospital visitation
#2 Earned the generous support of five gala business sponsors: the bodhi spa, Mission, Gil’s Appliances, Simmons Associates, LTD, and The Robin’s Egg
#3 Partnered with Yeti for our first YUP: a Yeti + UP tumbler with the UP logo! We have a few left. Click here to get yours while supply lasts.
#4 Intervened on behalf of a Grade 12 student without a guardian: through DonorSee, we purchased school supplies, essentials, and clothes for his graduation celebration
#5 Began construction on the Outdoor Assembly & Learning Centre at Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School
#6 Purchased 11 more school uniforms & shoes for students in need
#7 Received another generous installment of over $1,000 from All Sales Are Vinyl: our partners who raise funds for school clean water systems
#8 Intervened on behalf of our dear friend and general contractor Bongani after he suffered injuries and the destruction of his work vehicle in a serious accident
#9 Continued construction on Granny’s home, after she and her two granddaughters (who attend a partner-school) were on the verge of eviction
#10 Hired Sofa, a local entrepreneur, to build Granny’s home; our support allowed him to offset his son’s university debt
#11 With the help of UP volunteer Chrissy, participated in the Newport Broadway Street Fair and raised over $1,200 to fuel our mission
#12 Geared UP for our November gala and added the talents of Mist Studio to our gala line-UP in a Tshwala Bam USA vs. South Africa face-off!

JULY - AUGUST 2024

Link to July-August Newsletter

#1 Worked with Kempie from KO Architecture on the last few details for the Moses Mabida HS Outdoor Assembly & Learning Centre
#2 Finalized this design of the Moses Mabida HS Outdoor Assembly & Learning Centre
#3 Completed the expanded clean water system at Moses Mabida HS, thanks to Green Overall, an eco-friendly installer
#4 Funded 16 new school uniforms and shoes for students affected by the tragic Samkelwe HS train accident in February
#5 Funded 20 more school uniforms for students at Sandisulwazi HS
#6 Started a relationship with a local cooking school, which provides yet another post-high school choice
#7 Funded a Lenovo laptop for a university student
#8 Decided on our 2025 volunteer trip Top 10 Wish List fundraising focus: a multipurpose court and renovated soccer field
#9 Ordered and received awesome YETI fundraising mugs with the Universal Promise logo
#10 Started the fundraising for a home for two Universal Promise students who, alongside their guardian-granny, risk home eviction
#11 Earned yet another highest-level platinum ranking on Candid, formerly GuideStar
#12 Received an incredible donation of 125 medical instruments from MDF Crafting Wellness, a remarkable philanthropic healthcare organization

MAY - JUNE 2024

Link to May-June Newsletter

#1 Funded 34 more school uniforms for Addo Primary School students
#2 Appointed South African Berenice Arends to our Board of Directors (bio here)
#3 Received a $5,000 donation from the Food Network’s Best Bite In Town thanks to Mission: the Newport Winner!
#4 Received more laptops from KPMG and raised funds for laptop sleeves to protect them
#5 Appointed South African Aphiwe Ntloko to our Board of Directors (bio here)
#6 Provided an eye examination and eye glasses for Ibinathi, a student who has struggled with her eyes since birth
#7 Sent a 60% deposit for a massive extension of a clean water system at Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School
#8 Gratefully received a groundswell of support from Purnell School Class of ‘89 alumnae for our School Uniform Drive
#9 Participated in a Sara Campbell Sip & Shop and school uniform drive and raised nearly $1,000
#10 Received a game-changing $15,000 grant from the generous and compassionate duo pictured here: all in support of a clean water project

MARCH - APRIL 2024

Link to March-April Newsletter

#1 #401Gives was an epic success! We raised $23,175, with matching gifts still waiting to post! Thank you to everyone on our fundraising team and all who donated!
#2 Received three forms of 2024 recognition on GlobalGiving: an esteemed giving platform
#3 All Sales Are Vinyl are back at it: making flowers from recycled LPs and selling them at craft fairs to fund clean water systems in South African schools.
#4 Ordered 50 more school uniforms for students-in-need
#5 Bought Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School Grade 12 Advanced Math students their own textbooks - making content mastery infinitely easier
#6 Finished the renovation of 11 St. Ignatius Primary School classrooms and welcomed the little happy dance of Principal Nomalizo Johnson
#7 Provided ongoing support for Grade 12 students, including a matric jacket for Ntombozuko: a long-term Universal Promise student
#8 Paid for food and vaccinations for all nine pigs at the burgeoning piggery, which will fund school breakfast at St. Ignatius Primary School
#9 Funded contact lenses for a young man who suffers from a serious degenerative eye condition ⁠called Keratoconus
#10 Purchased and stretched a stunning original painting that will be UP for auction at our November gala

JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2024

Link to January-February Newsletter

#1 Started the classroom renovations at St. Ignatius Primary School
#2 Captured a photo of one finished classroom (upgraded desks to come)
#3 Funded a university student’s lodging registration so he could remain at school
#4 Awarded Rudien (and her mother) her prizes for winning the 2023 Universal Promise t-shirt design contest
#5 Delivered to Zikhona (and others) an Education Sponsorship laptop
#6 Added another installment to the Gaudet - St. Ignatius School penpal program
#7 Conducted a dream-catcher workshop at Langbos Creche and Care Centre
#8 Then conducted another dream-catcher workshop at Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School
#9 Awarded, Othandwayo, an English scholar, with an iPad for her best analysis of Bob Dylan’s Blowin’ in the Wind lyrics
#10 Met with a few of the 75 Addo Primary School students for whom we have purchased new school uniforms and shoes
#11 Were in attendance at the award ceremony for the Top 5 Scholars at Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School in 2023
#12 Led a super-fun tie-dye t-shirt class at St. Ignatius Primary School
#13 Started doing some shopping for our Buy-It-Now table at this year’s November 16th fundraiser
#14 Led a fabulous, private volunteerism experience with the Burnley family, long-time supporters of Universal Promise
#15 Were honored to have attended the traditional work of a beloved Universal Promise family
#16 Delivered scores of playground games to St. Ignatius and Addo Primary Schools
#17 Met with Grade 12 Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School students to get their feedback about university preparation
#18 Delivered 20 more solar lanterns to Moses Mabida Senior Secondary School learners-in-need