Our Story...

It all started in 1992 when a young woman named Carol Sandiford travelled around Africa and was moved by the plight of many Africans, particularly children. She wanted to make a difference so, on her return to Adelaide, she made copies of  her photographs of African wildlife and people and made them into greetings cards. She sold these to raise funds to support a group of schools which she had visited in Malawi. Other fundraising efforts followed for a few years. Various family members and friends helped to raise cash via garage sales, stalls at fairs, chocolate wheels,etc.  customizing

When Carol later moved to Melbourne with her husband to live and work, her mother, Sallie, took over the task of supporting the Africa ‘baby’. Sallie’s supportive boss Sue suggested cooking baked potatoes to sell at work for Monday lunches. “Eat for Africa” was the ironic catchword! We raised around $1600 a year for the next few years in this way, sufficient to provide writing materials and other necessities for the schools which Carol had been supporting in Malawi. We also posted the occasional bag of clothing items donated by staff members. 

The school principal would regularly report to Sallie with full details about how money had been spent. The main ‘rule’ was that the money must only be spent directly to help the children with their education (no ongoing expenses such as pay for teachers etc.) However, one year the report included “Accommodation for CEO” [ie the principal himself] followed by an amount in the local currency equivalent to around $800 – approximately half of what we had raised for the year. 

We immediately started looking for another charity to support in Africa – the criteria being, no attachment to a particular religious group and no big overheads. Carol found Ralph Hoey and World Youth International, [WYI], based in Adelaide, and we started taking our funds there each year. As well as the baked potatoes, Sallie started making stained glass angel suncatchers to sell to her workmates, friends and family which became very popular. In 1999 “Eat for Africa” became “Angels for Africa” and the name is here to stay until someone thinks up something even better!

While Sallie was in Kenya she was teaching the orphans action songs, telling them stories and helping with homework by the light of a single oil lamp. She researched the possibility of connecting electricity. She was welcomed by the principal of the large local primary school [1200 children] and introduced to the committee. The school was in dire need of classrooms with an average of 100 children to each room. There were no books or posters in any of the classrooms. She met some parents including Syprine, who became a long term contact and friend.

Back in Australia Sallie continued to give lessons in stained glass and to make stained glass items for sale to support schools in Kenya. Students Paula and Chris, having filled their respective houses with beautiful leadlight windows, offered to continue coming down from their homes in the Adelaide hills to Sallie’s home studio and use their well-honed skills to help as volunteers with the manufacturing process – a generous offer which was gratefully accepted.

Over the years we have added many new items to our stained glass repertoire including gum leaves, yachts, hearts, cats, birds, butterflies, and Christmas trees, to name a few. We sell these items, attractively packaged, for a nominal sum, thanks to all our loyal and hard-working volunteers and generous donors of glass and equipment.

We have also found additional ways of raising cash. Fund raising events involving food or films, regular raffles, and from time to time we receive very generous cash donations from private benefactors. Every cent raised in any way goes directly towards the education and wellbeing of needy

Kenyan children in rural areas.