Couldn't Do it Without You!
VEC has a lot of people to thank for the success of the work we have done in the past and will do in the future. We are continually amazed at how our friends' work in these communities does not end in Nepal, and we are blessed that they continue to work to better the lives of these people when they are back in their home countries. The success of VEC is the result of new people getting involved after learning about the issues faced by the people of Helambu. Thank all of you for your dedication to helping VEC continue to grow and succeed. VEC would like to highlight the work of the following people.
Dr. Mike Steven
Dr. Mike Steven (pictured to the left of director Ben Fogel), of Banchory, Scotland, first met Dorjee Sherpa during their work on a BBC production in Helambu. He has since been a tireless fundraiser for VEC, while balancing his family and his practice. In the summer of 2008, he established Helambuproject.org, a website to highlight the issues of the region and the work performed by VEC to confront them. It is largely through him and his efforts that the organization was able to fully finance the construction of the Gangkharka boarding school, which will be a place of learning for nearly 100 local children starting in March 2009. His motivation and drive to contribute has had an incalculable impact on the success of our work, and the people of Helambu are blessed to have such a steadfast advocate for them working halfway around the world.
Jeremy Wildeman
Jeremy Wildeman has years of experience in international development, humanitarian relief, and education. His achievements include include designing programs to empower disadvantaged children through skills-building, inter-cultural dialog, and psychological relief. His most notable accomplishment was the establishment of a large humanitarian mission in the war-torn Middle East city of Nablus. He is the executive director of the Canadian NGO "Humanitarian Opportunities for Peace and Education". He joined the VEC initiative in August 2008 providing advice and structutal support for its development.
Pearl Wight
Pearl is a nurse by profession working at Arran War Memorial Hospital in Scotland. Her love of mountains has taken her around the world, to Everest Base Camp and Kilimanjaro. After meeting Dorjee while trekking in 2006, she decided to combine her passion for Nepal, as well as that for medicine by striving to bring quality healthcare to Sindhupalchok. In October 2008, she and a fellow nurse, Sally Bambridge, traveled to Nepal with funds they had raised in Scotland, stocked up on medical supplies and headed into the Himalayas to conduct a health camp in three villages, where they treated hundreds of men, women, and children. Her efforts are paving the way for the establishment of VEC-provided healthcare in the region, and she continues to be an invaluable source of support for our efforts.
Matthew Dodds
Mr. Dodds, a businessman from Ayrshire who has visited Nepal twice since 2007. Moved by the hardships faced by Nepali Sherpas and other populations in the region, he has worked with Helambu Project to support projects that will improve quality of life in Sindhupalchok. He has been a key fundraiser in financing the Gangkharka boarding school, and has worked to raise awareness of the conditions he witnessed. He first learned about the efforts of Helambu Project and VEC after reading about the work of Dr. Mike in a Scottish newspaper article.
Richard Struthers
Richard Struthers has worked in Nepal for the last sixteen years, and has been a long-time sponsor of VEC's work. He has been a mentor to Dorjee, and was there for the initial successes of VEC, collaborating with Dorjee on several projects. He runs a trekking company that operates in Nepal, and has played a critical role in the development of our programs, without which, VEC may not be in existence today.