Got pennies?
They may not be worth much to you – or to the Royal Canadian Mint, which has stopped producing or circulating the one-cent piece – but each penny has the power to save lives and create hope.
That's the message of the Fleetwood Gogos chapter, which is collecting pennies to support African women who are caring for grandchildren who have been orphaned by AIDS.
The members of the Ubuntu Ogogo group are working on behalf of the Stephen Lewis Foundation's Grandmothers to Grandmothers campaign to help turn the tide of the ravages of HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa.
The foundation funds grassroots projects in African communities that provide grandmothers and orphaned children with social and psychological support, microcredit loans, school fees and uniforms, shelter and activities, from community gardens to poultry, pig and goat rearing.
The Ubuntu Gogos are part of a network of grandmother groups in Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, and the Sunshine Coast called the Greater Van Gogos (greatervangogos.org).
To find out how to donate your pennies, contact ubuntuogogo@gmail.com.