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SUMMER 2014
RAIN  NEWS 

Dance your way through West Africa Day & support RAIN

A Year of Success for 
Nomadic Students

Without a place to live, food to eat, and funds for tuition, going to secondary school is an impossible dream for many nomadic young people. The Agadez Learning Center provides a place for students to live and excel in a social learning environment. Girls engage in embroidery, mat weaving and calabash carving, some displaying their work at the well-known Cure Salee Festival. Boys expend energy in soccer matches. Students enjoy both recreational and documentary films. They lean on mentor and role model Halima Aboucar, delegate responsibilities for a variety of posts and chores, and lead informal peer to peer tutoring sessions. 

We're excited to share that this year, the average success rate of ALC students was twice as high as their peers, demonstrating that with the right support, rural students - despite many challenges - can outperform urban students. Many showed great improvement, bolting from merely passing to excelling. Those graduating met with school staff about high school and specialty schools offering degrees in public health, engineering, agriculture and education. 12 students are returning this fall, to be joined by 13 girls from RAIN mentoring programs beginning their secondary school journey. Air Mountain communities such as Gougaram, Tadek, Tchinfiniten, Soulefet, and Tchintelouste will see a new generation of children going further in their education than ever before. This outreach to remote elementary schools reinforces our mission to provide access to education to all who seek it. 
"Thank you so much for everything.
I will never forget all of the special times
I spent at the center. Thank You, Thank You!"
- Assalama Alhousseini
2014 Graduate
Have you followed our new Company Page on LinkedIn? Join the conversation at  tinyurl.com/RAINLinkedIn
Rain for the Sahel and Sahara
forges partnerships with underserved rural & nomadic desert peoples of
West Africa to realize their ambitions
for education & enduring livelihoods.
Get ready for the soul-drenched sounds of the African Diaspora! Embark on a global voyage with
Randy Armstrong
& Beyond Borders,
be swept away by 
Akwaaba Ensemble 
& 12-piece  afrobeat force of nature 
Federator No. 1
The Seacoast West African
Dance & Drum Group
will bring you new moves & grooves. Bring a blanket & frisbee for a day of fun in the sun!



The 127th Sultan of the Air region of Niger will be visiting the Seacoast to celebrate
West Africa Day
- he will be presented with the Proclamation from Portsmouth Mayor Robert Lister in a special reception held at the Athenaeum September 19th.
Suggested Donation $35
Call 603.371.0676 to reserve.
We'll be painting this!



 


 


 


 


 


 


 

Grab a brush and a pint in a fun and friendly atmosphere at British Beer Company in Portsmouth! Take home your creation and the great feeling of helping others. 
 

Cost: $45
Thursday Sept. 4th  6-8pm

www.tinyurl.com/paintniterain   

 

Fatima Abdou, Assalama & Ahmed Lila with Halima & Bess saying good-bye
at the school year's end.
In the meantime, ALC students are back home, immersed in their nomadic traditions as they face another drought - the boys herding their families' goats, sheep and camels long distances to find pasture - the girls and their mothers walking many miles seeking water. 

School starts in a few weeks. Because of friends like you, the horizon of opportunity is in reach for these desert children of hardship and hope. 



We did it!
With your help, we reached our matching campaign goal of $25K from One Day's Wages to bring mentoring, gardens, S&L groups and an artisan co-op to the communities of Seiga & Ingui. RAIN staff is in the field now to get programs underway!