God, AIDS, Africa & HOPE

Reflections / Gedanken

10/16/2013 • 1:27 pm Comments Off on HOPE Gala in Dresden and much more

HOPE Gala in Dresden and much more

Time again to pack and leave Cape Town for the annual event of the HOPE Gala in Dresden. And this year, it is indeed a special year, where the people of this lovely city pulled together for the Gala after having the devastating floods in spring and battling themselves to get back with their own life. It is with appreciation to note, that despite all the odds the Gala will be once again a festival of good thoughts, helpful hands and lots of fun and joy.
If you have not yet purchased your ticket – the website http://www.hopegala.de will bring you closer to join the event and meet with like-minded people. See you there – Viola Klein has surely with her team and the support of Saxonia Systems (who initiated the Gala), the HOPE Kapstadt Stiftung ( our German trust and the organizers) and all other sponsors (check the logos on the gala website) drawn a full house with the program and not to forget the after-show party. Thank you so much! How much work is going in such an event…

Before the HOPE Gala Dresden I will meet with students from my hometown of Bitburg and engage with them in a lively discussion about HIV and AIDS and what brings South Africa and Bitburg together. It is amazing how much support has come and is still coming from my hometown and I could not be more grateful about it. Another blessing for those, living with the virus here in South Africa.

Berlin and Munich are the other big cities to meet and greet sponsors, supporters and to attend the Festliche AIDS Gala of the German AIDS Foundation. They are such a strong partner for HOPE Cape Town and we wouldn’t be where we are without them. Another big thank you all working for this foundation.

New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania are the last stations of this trip – a renewed effort to get fundraising in the USA going. It is a tough one, but never give up is here the motto and with some goodwill we will be able to plant some small seeds of compassion on the other side of the ocean. Press your thumbs and if you know somebody in that area to approach – please let me know. I am delighted to meet new people.

 

Filed under: General, HOPE Cape Town Association, HOPE Cape Town Association & Trust, HOPE Cape Town Trust, HOPE Gala Dresden, Networking, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

08/22/2013 • 9:15 am Comments Off on HOPE Cape Town is developing…

HOPE Cape Town is developing…

Tomorrow is the Annual General Meeting of the HOPE Cape Town Association, the working arm of HOPE Cape Town which consists of two arms: aforesaid HOPE Cape Town Association which is combining all the project work on the ground and HOPE Cape Town Trust, which is leading in fundraising and marketing of the work done. Together with the German AIDS Foundation, the HOPE Cape Town Trust has a common “child”, called HOPE Kapstadt Stiftung, a dependent trust governed by German law.  To complete the picture the HOPE Cape Town family has also very close relatives:  the Kuratorium Deutschland, which relates to the HOPE Cape Town Trust and is looking together with Viola Klein to support the HOPE Gala Dresden (26.10.2013). The Freundeskreis HOPE Cape Town Trust Olching e.V. is another German and Bavarian support group of the HOPE Cape Town Trust. Not to forget HOPE & Future e.V. in Münster (Germany), which is an essential part of our supporting family. And we HOPE to give birth in the near future also to an US American entity relating to HOPE Cape Town.  And locally our brainchild is also the Ball of HOPE together with the Southern-African – German Chamber of Commerce and Industry, next year taking place on the 11th of May 2014.

There is the idea of spreading the word about the “friends of HOPE Cape Town” and if you think, you can get some people together forming a small group supporting the goals of HOPE Cape Town, then feel free to contact me for further information. HOPE Cape Town depends like any other public benefit organization on the support of many – so HOPE Cape Town understands itself as much more than a local organization – we are a network of people trying to better the lives of South African’s living with HIV and TB and everything related to it.
Sometimes I am asked why TB and why we not concentrate on HIV? The answer is very simple: TB is the twin-sister of HIV in South Africa and to combat only HIV would not making sense. They are interlinked, and so are the other social problems attached to it. Studies have shown that poverty, unemployment and unfavorable conditions lead to early death even if treatment is available. So there is so much more to HIV and AIDS. And there is so much more to do – whatever we can do as HOPE Cape Town depends on resources, manpower and funds. We have grown to 31 employees and our portfolios range from the vegetable garden in Blikkisdorp to academic research @ the University of Stellenbosch. It will depend on the ongoing and additional support of people like you, the reader of this blog, whether we can enhance our work and do more to give people hope and future.  We are willing to go the extra – mile; come and join us in one of the many ways possible:

* Donation: All our donation options are summarized on our website under donation

* Tell friends about HOPE Cape Town and ask them to have a look at our website

* Maybe you consider to donate to capital (Zustiftung in German language) and make you money work for a good cause for eternity…
* Find a circle of friends to become ambassadors of HOPE – we can assist you in this…

* Visit us on Facebook, Twitter, Cause, share the links and stories and follow us

For all donations and donations to capital applies in Germany and South Africa: We are able to issue a tax-deductible receipt for the respective county.

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Filed under: HIV and AIDS, HIV Prevention, HIV Treatment, HOPE Cape Town Association, HOPE Cape Town Association & Trust, HOPE Cape Town Trust, HOPE Gala Dresden, Medical and Research, Networking, Politics and Society, Reflection, Religion and Ethics, SA-German Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Society and living environment, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

08/10/2013 • 8:44 am Comments Off on Email service used by Snowden shuts itself down, warns against using US-based companies

Email service used by Snowden shuts itself down, warns against using US-based companies

President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the 1964 Civ...

President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the 1964 Civil Rights Act as Martin Luther King, Jr., and others, look on. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This is not about HIV and AIDS. This is about freedom of expression, entitlement to privacy and the right use of power given by the people. It’s about social media, we all use to promote our cause. It’s about the very civil rights, our forefather fought and suffered for… It’s about the environment we are able to work as citizens of the world. And if the “greatest nation on earth” , as they like to proclaim themselves, the beacon of democracy, as they see themselves and the country almost all our email traffic touches in one or the other way – then it’s time for everybody, regardless in which field one is working to stand up and say “no” and “stop it”. Maybe even the word “resistance” against those abusing their mandate and making a joke of democracy and liberty has to come into play.

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rogerhollander's avatarroger hollander

Roger’s note: Sorry to repeat this story so soon, but this article expands  on the issure in an important way.

 

Edward Snowden: ‘Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Yahoo, Apple, and the rest of our internet titans must ask themselves why they aren’t fighting for our interests the same way’

 

 

A Texas-based encrypted email service recently revealed to be used by Edward Snowden – Lavabit – announced yesterday it was shutting itself down in order to avoid complying with what it perceives as unjust secret US court orders to provide government access to its users’ content. “After significant soul searching, I have decided to suspend operations,” the company’s founder, Ladar Levinson, wrote in a statement to users posted on the front page of its website. He said the US directive forced on his company…

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Filed under: General, Networking, Politics and Society, Religion and Ethics, Society and living environment, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

06/18/2013 • 10:21 am Comments Off on Another mission…

Another mission…

European Union Headquarters - Brussels, Belgium

European Union Headquarters – Brussels, Belgium (Photo credit: Sailing “Footprints: Real to Reel” (Ronn ashore))

After one week in Cape Town sitting in a plane again, this time to Brussels in Belgium. I was offered the opportunity to meet those relevant people in the EU (European Union) dealing with African and South African affairs. It will be a big challenge for me to understand and digest in a couple of days the mechanism of EU-African relationship. But as HOPE Cape Town is a joint venture between European and African people, I strongly believe to see the bigger picture is an important step to understand the synergies behind single projects. And the question of funding is for me in the moment only second best – it is really first to make my homework and understand the principles of political and economic ties and so have a background image for further investigation into EU funding for Africa. I feel like a student again 🙂 and I am very grateful for the organizers to give me this opportunity.

Generally I believe in networking and sharing to reach the goal of ongoing support for those in need – in the case of HOPE Cape Town the need to deal with HIV and AIDS in their mainly anyhow devastated lives of poverty, unemployment, little education and almost no light at the end of the tunnel. South Africa is going through a challenging time with Madiba, the moral conscience of South Africa in his last chapter of life and politicians in place who seem to have subscribed to corruption and attending to everything gaining them wealth but ignoring mostly the plight of the people. That might be a harsh judgement but I strongly believe that South Africa deserves better. Maybe the looming farewell from Nelson Mandela will serve as a reminder about the dreams and hopes after 1994 and ignite the longing and yearning to reach this dream of a real rainbow nation where poverty, corruption, crime, unemployment is seriously tackled by people in power who care deeply about the future of all South Africans.

HOPE Cape Town is working only in one little sector of health within all the areas of human life. But as it needs all mosaic pieces to create the final picture, the organization is willing to contribute whatever is necessary to make the vision of a prosper and thriving South Africa possible. One drop in the big ocean – right so – but let’s join all drops to accumulate into a stream taking us forward.

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Filed under: General, HIV and AIDS, HIV Prevention, HOPE Cape Town Association, HOPE Cape Town Association & Trust, HOPE Cape Town Trust, Networking, Politics and Society, Reflection, Society and living environment, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

06/03/2013 • 7:09 am Comments Off on Kids for Kids – Look at our Manenberg kiddis…

Kids for Kids – Look at our Manenberg kiddis…

Kids from the After School Care Project in Manenberg performing via SKYPE for their new friends in Ruemmelsheim. A great afternoon to raise funds for this worthy project in South Africa in the Trollbach Halle in Germany.

Filed under: Catholic Church, General, HOPE Cape Town Association, HOPE Cape Town Association & Trust, Networking, Reflection, Society and living environment, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , ,

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