The Kroo Bay Initiative (KBI) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to ensure high-quality, primary-level education in Kroo Bay, Sierra Leone. KBI's immediate focus is to assist the existing school in Kroo Bay, currently the Fuwa Primary School, so it can meet its basic operational needs and expand its educational programs.

Funds raised from the event will support scholarships for students seeking their primary and secondary education in Kroo Bay, a slum inhabited by economic migrants and persons displaced by war in Freetown, Sierra LeonE

LOCAL NONPROFIT LAUNCHES FIRST ANNUAL EDUCATION RUN

Students, Kroo Bay Initiative Determined to Support Slum Despite Credit Crisis

DENTON – On Saturday, November 14, North Texans will help bring the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to fruition – by running for them.

“We’re hoping North Texas will show up for a good cause – the right cause,” says Lindsey Bengfort, KBI’s president and co-founder, and a student at UNT. “People will be able to put their feet and, hopefully, their wallets to use in making the best education possible for one of the poorest communities in Africa.”

Participants in the event will pay $15 to run or walk at South Lakes Park of Denton. Registration is at 9:00 a.m. and the run will begin promptly at 10:00 a.m. Individuals are free to walk anytime from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Volunteers will provide water free of charge to participants, and participants will receive a free t-shirt for registering.

Alhaji Saccoh, a board member who is from Sierra Leone, said, “I think this is particularly important right now with the global economy. Investing in education is investing in the future of the world. We need educated people to become innovative leaders and skilled workers so that they can become active participants in the economy. Education is a way to ensure better jobs and better lives for the people of Sierra Leone.”

Adds Ryan Schuette, KBI’s co-founder and finance chair: “We’re just trying to keep America’s promise from past international commitments to Africa. The G-20 met in London and hardly discussed support for developing countries suffering from a crisis they didn’t create. KBI wants to fill the gap between commitment and follow-through in Kroo Bay.”

The International Monetary Fund recently reported that the credit crisis would slash overall economic growth in Africa by half, to 3 percent annually, a devastating contraction that it warned will likely throw millions of people back into extreme poverty.

This comes on the heels of media reports indicating that numerous nonprofits, foundations and other charities are closing because of the credit crisis.

“You know, this is why we’re running,” says Bengfort. “If we don’t stand up for the most vulnerable in this crisis, who will?”

Started in 2008, KBI is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization committed to shoring up the education system in Kroo Bay. To learn more about the organization or the Education 4 Everyone run, visit http://www.kbinitiative.org.

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