November 14, 2008

Once Upon a Christmas Home Map

Tickets can be purchased at Pine Valley Realty in Alpine (375 S. Main Street, Suite 2, Alpine, UT 84004. Phone number (801) 756-3581) or by calling Signs of Hope International at (866) 511-7644 or the night of Once Upon a Christmas at any of the homes. Tickets are $7 per ticket.

If you would like a map emailed directly to you please send an email to info@signsofhopeinternational.

Once Upon a Christmas Home Tour Flyer

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Once Upon a Christmas Home Tour

The holiday season is fast approaching and we are excited to be announcing our Christmas Home tour this year! ‘Once Upon a Christmas…’ home tour will run from December 4 & 5 (Thursday & Friday) from 6:00-9:00pm. The home tour will feature 7 custom homes in the Alpine area elaborately decorated in the  latest holiday fashions. We are looking forward to the two homes that Interiors Unlimited will be staging/decorating on tour this year as well as the other 5 private homes that will be opened to the public during the home tour.

 

Also, new this year, we have opened the tour to vendors including Scentsy, The Quilting Post, Motives Customized Cosmetics, Hatch Patch Creations and   others. Don’t forget to visit their booths in home # 2 & 4.

 

Tickets for ‘Once Upon a Christmas…’ can be purchased at Pine Valley Realty located at the round-a-bout in Alpine (375 S. Main Street, Suite 2, Alpine, UT 84004 (801) 756-3581) or by calling Signs of Hope International at (866) 511-7644. Ticket price is $7 per ticket and will allow you access to all 7 homes on tour.

 

All proceeds from ‘Once Upon a Christmas…’ home tour will benefit the educational needs of Deaf children in Africa. With your help Signs of Hope  International is able to continue its programs and bring hope to those who have lost it.

 

We look forward to seeing you on tour!

 

November 03, 2008

2009 Calendar of Hope

The 2009 Calender of Hope calenders will be on sale starting November 15th!

Calender proceeds will be applied to the Student Sponsorship program and will benefit Signs of Hope Internationals efforts to bring and support more children in the Deaf schools of Ghana.

Each Calender of Hope will cost $12 and can be purchased online through the donation page on our website (signsofhopeinternational.org). Please make sure that your mailing address is correct.

Calenders will also be sold at 'Once Upon a Christmas' home tour in Alpine on December 4-5th.


Calender - sohi  

October 08, 2008

Run for Change Begins!

This weekend Jan Prenoveau will be running a 100 mile route from Hartford, Connecticut to Newport, Rhode Island to help raise awareness and funds for the educational needs of Deaf children in Ghana.

Jan will start the run from the American School for the Deaf in Hartford, CT on Saturday, October 11, at 2:30 a.m.! She will not stop until the 100th mile is complete!

Watch for updates and posts on the Signs of Hope International blog to follow her progress and route!

Thank you for all those who have supported the run and helped over the past year in the planning of it! We would like to thank the media groups who have been running articles and stories, local and State police departments, publishers and printing companies for their printing donations and our office (volunteer) staff!   

A big thank you to those individuals and companies who have sponsored the individual miles of this run. We appreciate your contributions and financial support to help our programs continue; and for giving us the opportunity to change the future of so many deaf children in need.

We are especially appreciative to Jan and her dedication to show us all that one person can make a difference around the world!

September 23, 2008

Run for Change

Run_blog

August 26, 2008

SUMMER 2009 MISSION

We are excited to be announcing the Summer 2009 Mission dates! The mission dates will be May 14 - July 18, 2009. We are excited to be adding the Kibi School for the Deaf to our servicing schools this year. By adding the Kibi school we are able to accept more qualified interns and serve a larger number of Deaf students in Ghana. We appreciate the Headmaster of the Kibi School and the Minister of Education for the invitation to run our programs in this school.

Dates to remember as you apply:

Mission dates: 14 May - 18 July, 2009

Application Deadline: October 3, 2008 (postmarked date)

Acceptance will be announced by October 15, 2008.

Total mission cost is $3,800 and includes the following: round trip airline tickets between Salt Lake City and Ghana, required Ghana entry visa's, housing, in-country breakfast and dinners, in-country transportation, travelers insurance, cultural trips to Cape Coast slave castles, Kakum National Park entry fees and rope bridges and new this year - a weekend trip to MOLE National Park to visit lions, elephants, antelope, monkeys and 90 other animals in their natural habitats on a "foot safari".

Payment schedule is as follows:

November 15, 2008, $500 Due
December 15, 2008, $500 Due
January 15, 2009, $500 Due
February 15, 2009, $500 Due
March 15, 2009, $900 Due
April 15, 2009, $900 Due

Applications can be downloaded on the website under the Volunteer tab and then by clicking on Africa.

Completed applications must be mailed to Signs of Hope International, Attn; Mission Coordinator, 375 S. Main Street, Suite 2, Alpine, UT 84004.

If you have any further questions please contact us through the website or by calling 866-511-7644. 

We look forward to receiving your application!

August 05, 2008

In Return

Written by Charlotte Howard, 2008 Mampong, Ghana Volunteer

When going to Africa, I expected to make a difference in the lives of the children in the deaf schools. However, I did not expect fro them to change my life forever. The moment I walked onto the school grounds, I fell in love with the smiling faces and loving hands. Each day in the school became a day embedded in my heart for the rest of my life. Th work was difficult, yes, but I will never forget the experiences I received in return. Looking back on my experience, the students and their happiness and growth in knowledge are the things I prize the most. On one particular day, I taught a student how to multiply using beans. The homework for the students in the class consisted of difficult multiplication when most students could barely count simple addition. I worked several days with the student on addition and the day finally came when we began the multiplication assignments. We worked for a few hours and I began to fell frustrated. I felt hopeless that the child would actually grasp the concept I continued to try and teach him. At the end of the day, I went home tired and discouraged. I did not blame the boy, he unceasingly tried.

The next day I showed up at the school, in the same classroom. My discouragement carried into the next day and I knew I was in for a long road. However, the same boy came up to me instantly and in his hand were several rocks from the soccer field outside. The boy set the rocks down in front of me and began to doing his multiplication assignment. I watched as the boy slowly separated the rocks into groups and found the answer to the problems. After the boy finished, it was difficult to hold back the tears that began to rise. The success I saw in my experience was not huge, the children most likely still wake up to the same school, eat the same food, and have to face the same problems, however, I learned that it is the small and simple things that really count.

Each day I look back upon my experience and realize that although I tried my best to make a huge difference, my small efforts were priceless and in return my life was changed forever.

Africa_3_010_25

May 22, 2008

Fall Application Extention

The Fall mission application deadline has been extended to June 13. All applications must be postmarked no later then June 13th.

Fall mission dates remain the same: September 18 - November 20, 2008. Applications can be downloaded on the website under the volunteer section. Total mission cost will be $4,200. This will include round trip air travel between Utah and Ghana, country entry visa, housing, in-country transportation, weekend trips, travel insurance, breakfast and dinner meals.

A few dates to keep in mind:

1) July 1, 2008 - First payment of $1500 must be postmarked
2) August 1, 2008 - Second payment of $2000 must be postmarked
3) September 1, 2008 - Third payment of $700 must be postmarked

If you have further questions please fill out the contact form on the website and we will get back to you as quickly as possible.

We look forward to receiving your application!

April 25, 2008

First 50 miles!

Jan recaps her first 50 mile run:
"My son-in-law, Mauricio, and I began around 5:00 AM on Thursday morning from the American School for the Deaf in West Hartford, CT (actual starting point of the 'Run for Change' in October). It really went well! Not knowing what to expect from a first 50 miler, I believe the run went better than I had Anticipated. The first 30 miles were the easiest ( I think it was due to the darker cooler weather)! The sun came up blazing at around 10:00 AM and was relentless. Actually went up to around 80 degrees and stayed that way well into the afternoon. If any of you have been in CT on a humid 80 (or higher) degree day, some say you can drink the air. We finished the first 50 miles about 2:45 PM!! 9 hours, 45 minutes! I am very happy with that time considering the unusual warm weather for this time of the year and my first 50 miles! I think Mauricio was happier to see Jewett City than I was. For me sitting in a car for about 12 hours might be harder than running 50 miles! It was a great day and I am looking forward to October!"

Way to go Jan! We all look forward to the run in October!