We had our first meeting for Kopila Women's Center yesterday and we were so happy with the turn out.  64 women between the ages of 15-60, all of whom signed up for health, literacy, sewing and business classes. Our sewing machines have arrived (with big thanks to Mia Amicas Globally and our wonderful friends in Atlanta!) Classes begin this week!!! I am so excited for what's in store and all the potential these strong women will bring to our project. They were standing up yesterday, talking, participating, and sharing their ideas like I've never seen before. They seemed so willing, eager and excited do everything they can to provide for their children and lift their families out of poverty.  

The ladies were all coming up to me after the meeting with smiles on their faces and sharing what particular skills they thought they could bring to the group and what their interests were. We were all so fired up. One woman said she wanted to learn how to cook different kinds of foods and make momos. Another woman said she's always dreamed of learning to read and write. Another young woman told me she can't wait to sit behind a sewing machine and help make the kids uniforms and bags. Our big dream is to have our own local store with things that our women make and sell and obviously sustain our school with the clothes and local materials we need.  

Right now we've got about a million ideas running through our heads. We are looking forward to sitting down with our women, breaking them into smaller support groups and having them lead us forward based on what their DREAMS are.  The dreaming phase of every project is so much fun.

How sweet does our center look?  It's coming along!!!

Special thanks to ALL OF YOU for your support and enthusiasm of this project! Please share (in the comments below) any ideas you have and or let us know about other women's empowerment projects you think we could learn from. Women for Women International seems to be leading the way—we are eager to learn more about their programming and other groups with similar goals models and curriculums.

Also, this may seem frivolous but it's about 107 degrees in the women's center because it's on the top story and absorbing a ton of heat.  I sit in there for one minute and my skin is sticking to itself.  I really want to splurge and surprise the women with an air conditioning unit so they have a comfortable place to work!  If anyone would be interested in funding or investing in this, please let us know.

Check out Mia Amicas fair trade market place—a percentage of the proceeds of their sales support our women's center! Donate directly to our porject right here. Gifts made in support of the Kopila Women's Center will go towards:

• Knitting needles, yarn, thread, fabrics, and additional sewing machines to get us started. (All purchased locally)
• Reading, literacy and basic math workbooks and curriculum
• Jewelry making materials
• Stipend salaries to support our trainers/teachers

Okay, I could go on and on but REALLY thank you!!!!  #awesome #excited #wahooooo #KopilaWomen #MothersUnite

xoxo  Maggie

Hi everyone, this is John guest blogging for Maggie once again!  We’ve had some exciting things going on here at Kopila Vall, including our first Annual Kopila Field Day.  Field Day kicked off our Inter-House competition between Sun, Moon, Star, and Sky house and this year the stakes have been raised.  In addition to competing for the house trophy, we’ve also promised the winning house a year end MoMo party.  For those of you who were not following last year, the inter-house competition is a year round event, with points awarded for excellent behavior and achievements.  As for Field Day, the morning started off with lots of energy, and the enthusiasm lasted throughout the day.  Whether it was the Sun House and their award winning house cheer, or the oldest kids rooting for the nursery and KG students the day surpassed even our most optimistic expectations.  Some highlights were the Donut eating challenge, which involved seeing which student could eat a donut hanging from the ceiling the fastest, an epic tug of war tournament, a nursery fruit & vegetable themed relay race, and last but certainly not least a Sari wrapping competition, where 4 Sr. Boys dressed up their house teachers.  When all was said and done the Star house emerged victorious, and the day concluded with a school wide dance party up on stage.  Next up for the inter-house competition is art month, which kicks off this Friday!  Enjoy Ben's Photos.

Ben took an updated family photo of all the kids and me on the front porch before school last week.  It was the morning I was all in a flurry leaving for the states and somehow we got everyone together.  When the picture flashed up on the big screen behind me at the Forbes Women's Summit, I could just make out the reflection in the corner of my eye.  I kept telling myself in my head, "don't look, don't look, don't look!" because I knew I would just burst out into tears on stage.  I really really lucked out with this bunch and it's just amazing to me how much love a heart can hold.

Thank you all for your sweet Mother's Day wishes.  I got to spend Mother's Day Weekend with my mom, sister, and grandmother for the first time in years.  It was perfect.    

I am on the road again but just wanted to say hi and remind everyone that today is the last official day to apply to our fellows program!!!  Our team is really looking forward to reading through applications this week.  Thanks to everyone who applied so far.

xo Maggie

Forbes surprised Maggie with the Forbes Excellence In Education Award! Word is that she inspired a standing ovation. Thank you all for being such a big part of the Kopila and BlinkNow story! Video to come!

“We don’t need make-overs. We need to make the world better!” - Maggie Doyne forbes.com/sites/meghanca… #redefinepower

— Forbes Woman (@ForbesWoman) May 9, 2013

Gauri Gurung 

Gauri is our 2^nd grade teacher at Kopila Valley. She has a bachelors degree, and in her free time loves to read, dance, and play with children. Gauri is a very positive and confident teacher, and is a wonderful role model for the children of Kopila Valley. It gives her much pride and satisfaction to serve underprivileged children, and to have a hand in brightening their futures. She hopes that the children of Kopila Valley will grow to be strong and independent citizens of Nepal, who will work to serve and improve their country. Gauri is happy to be a part of the solution, and hopes that the work of Kopila Valley will inspire people all over the world to do their part to combat injustice and inequality.

 “I am very happy to be a part of the solution in Nepal by being a good teacher for the students of Kopila Valley.” – Gauri Gurung

Stay tuned as we continue to introduce our team!!!

My friends got me into instagram and I love it just like they said I would.  Here are some pictures from our week!

Namraj and Maya on my lapT.V. timeNena and Safira (home and wellness fellows) making fermented vegetables with the kids!Visit to the temple for a blessing!We spent our last Saturday before school started swimming at the river. Hari and Namraj building a moatWe love our mornings reading on the porch. This is a favorite spot in front of my room.Shanti, Monica, and Maya walking to the market to buy mangos.Just before school. #myboysI've been back and forth to the new site all week. Belu is my friend and care-taker on the property!Amrika's been planting all kinds of salad, cucumbers and tomatoes everywhere. Best gardener in the world. Namraj started his first week at nursery school. I walked in and found him like this. Not sure he's totally ready.Ben our incredible English teacher hanging with the kids at recess.I'm going to spend the rest of the week introducing you all to our Nepali team!  They are the people who make it all happen.  

Yup, that's an old coca-cola bottle.

People who come to visit are often surprised that the kids here don't have toys but it's amazing to watch what they come up with when left to their own devices. They make up games using sticks, stones, rope and scraps of rubber. Over summer break the boys made their own "Life of Pi" inspired raft and took it to the river. I couldn't help but smile every time I looked at them swimming around with it.

It's fun to think about all the potential out there that will be unleashed when we offer our world's children, their most basic right to an education. The 67 million children worldwide who are out of school = 67 million more little minds to create, problem solve, and collaborate to make the world better. Kids just like Pankha with their own unique abilities and talents, who can turn a coke bottle into an electric car in an hour :)  Think about all that potential and how exciting it is. I know that most people wouldn't use the word "exciting" with that stat in the same paragraph and yes, it's also really sad and heartbreaking and despicable that we have so many children who are suffering in our world.  But I use the word exciting because the solution is a simple one and this is something we can fix with relatively little resources. Education in my humble opinion, really is the answer.     

waiting for assembly to start

We designate our first two days of every school year to orientation. It involves welcoming our new students, a ton of scheduling logistics, and going over school rules and procedures. It takes two full days and a lot of collaboration and hard work.  The kids all receive their new books for the year and are measured for new school uniforms.  We have our guardians fill out a school agreement form to be sure that they do their part and commit themselves to our mission. We've been trying to figure out the bus pick up route and fill out paperwork for each and every one of our student files.

We go over the dress code, health and hygiene, morning assembly, attendance, and safety. The kids rotate from station to station. I was with Man Kumari (our science teacher) and Safira (our home fellow) and we definitely had the serious station. Our topics included stranger danger, drugs and alcohol, bullying, and sexual harassment. Not the most "FUN" things to talk about and the conversation varied depending on the age group but the kids really did follow along and participate, and it felt good to have an open and honest conversation with them.

We also have our students sign an honor code and we talk about what it means to be a Kopila student both in and outside of school. The kids pledge that they will not "lie, cheat, steal, or disrespect others."  John implemented the honor code this year and it's been a really good way to hold the kids accountable for their actions. 

Over the next few days the kids will get split up into their houses, (Harry Potter style) and then the competition for the Kopila cup begins! We're kicking off this week with a big field day competition. Assembly was really great today.  Ben announced the kids who made honor role and the principal's list.  We introduced our new school bus driver, Ganesh, and our new school nurse Srijana! We're so excited to welcome them both to the team. The kids seem really into the school spirit and ready to kick off the new year.

In other news, our well rig hit 120 feet today and things are looking pretty muddy!  Water (at our future High School site) should come any day now.

Thank you all so much for sharing in our school bus excitement and Matt Madeiro's birthday surprise! Thanks to my teachers, principal, staff and fellows for all their hard work these past few days :)

Krishna Bogati and Sagar on the front porch all ready for school

This is a game changer for our students and exactly what we needed to expand our reach and provide access to kids who would not have the chance otherwise. It will also be saving many of our current students 2-5 hours (on foot) of commuting each day.  That's extra time they can spend on homework, helping siblings, and doing work around their homes. As for me, I can finally fit my entire family into one vehicle. What a gift!!!  

Test driving! Our little tribute to Matt MadeiroView from my office. My heart skips a beat every time I look out and see the bus parked there.Thank you Matt Madeiro and all of you who made this dream come true!  It is starting to feel more and more real by the day.  We're coordinating the bus route and bus stops and timing today and tomorrow.  First pick-ups start Wednesday.  Thanks for sharing in our excitement!!!  More videos and photos to come. We love you. xoxo  

Naveen, Birendra, Deepak

The kids here at home have been troopers this week while the fellows, staff and I have all been tied up with admissions and various projects going on. They've read books and watched too much T.V. and cleaned their rooms. They are really good about entertaining themselves. Yesterday they made their own remote control car out of a coke bottle. I promised them a game of cops and robbers (their favorite) the other night but then someone walked in the gate to ask something about admissions, and then one of the school kids came in with a staph infection that I wanted to treat and before I knew it, it was dinner time. It's amazing how fast the days go. Time just gets swallowed up. I find myself staring at my children every day in awe and asking myself how they got so old. I swear Santosh sprouted like a bean stalk this month and little Krishna Bogati turned into a teenager over night. I feel like I'll wake up next week to a house full of teenagers. I did some math last night and realized that in just three years we'll have six 18 year olds.  

I am trying to treasure the quiet moments we have together and sadly there have been very few of them these last few weeks with so much and work and travel. Insert mama guilty feeling here. It's the worst. I'm looking forward to getting back into a steady routine with the new school year and trying to stay conscious of the fact that every single moment is precious.  

We've been doing these little "family meetings" where we talk in smaller groups about certain topics. The boys, Ben and I talked about fighting the other night and taking the "higher road" rather than punching, kicking, throwing stones, and getting physical. We're working on it :) I gave all the boys a few practice scenarios and asked them how they'd handle different situations. Their answers made me laugh. A few of them are enrolled in mandatory yoga and meditation classes with Nena and it seems to be helping.  

The little girls meeting last night turned into us all sitting on my floor eating mangos and then I let them sleep over, 8 of them laying side by side on a few mattresses. I woke up the next morning to their bodies all tangled together with their blankets. So precious. The older girls have turned into my protectors.  They have their eyes on me, making sure I'm not too stressed and wanting to know what they can do to help and every day I look at them and wonder how I ever got so gosh darn lucky. I'm taking them all out to dinner for some girl time tonight. We haven't done that in forever.

School starts on Sunday! The books have arrived. Our teachers are getting their rooms and schedules together. The fellows have been incredible with helping get ready for the new year and holding down the fort. I don't know how I got so lucky with this team.

Happy Weekend Wishes!

xo Maggie