I’m back in Minnesota, checking in with everyone who has supported the work in Ethiopia. One of my favorite visits is with the Women’s Track team at the University of Minnesota. Coach Wilson and the women are very enthusiastic about supporting the teenage girls on Team Tesfa. They are writing letters to Ethiopia and brainstorming ways to raise money. I’m hoping they will be able to make a trip to meet the girls. Meanwhile, they invite me to a practice at the Field House. This is me with team captain, Julie Schwengler, national level competitor in the 800 meters.

Dana

Sometimes it’s difficult to justify what we do to skeptics. Why don’t we do more? they ask. And I don’t know what to say. We do our best with limited resources. That makes for hard decisions.

It is hard to judge what the value of Teddy’s smile is when he received his dinosaur. Was the impact greater in the donor who felt warm and fuzzy for days afterwards rather than in Teddy’s life? What should our priorities be? How do we measure the difference education makes in these children’s lives, in their families?

We have enrolled three bright professors from Mankato State University into Tesfa’s educational advisory committee. Lilly, Linda and Steve are ready to solve multi-grade, trilingual education in rural settings for low-income students. We will have some answers in a couple of years after they visit Ethiopia and train our teachers.

We may be able to provide cost effectiveness calculations of early childhood education for low income Ethiopian children in the future. It’s a step. After all, limited resources should be used wisely. For now, providing education to those who don’t have it keeps us going.

Roxana, Minnesota