Having Budd MacKenzie speak to us about Trust in Education is almost an annual event. We have been supporting TIE for several years, and did so again this year with a donation.
Budd founded TIE in 2004, and has gone to Afghanistan twice a year for six years. He started by raising funds to build a school. But as he became more involved, his mission expanded. These are just a few of the projects.
Several years ago, local school children asked Budd where the play ground equipment was, and now TIE funds playground equipment, such as swings, slide, jungle jims, and soccer field goal posts. And even athletic shoes and shin guards after seeing a photo of girls playing in sandals.
In 2009, Budd was approached by Zoira, a young lady born in Afghanistan but who had been raised in California. After a visit back to her hometown in Farza, she was inspired to build a girl’s school. There was already one for boy’s. The new school will be 2 stories with more than 10 classrooms.
After receiving approvals from the Ministry of Education, they had a groundbreaking ceremony in 2010. The village men are volunteering their services and started digging the foundation immediately. They are on their way, with disbursements of materials only given after they have shown that progress has been made. TIE hopes to have the school completed at the end of 2011.
