Zest4Kidz

Sending Medical Aid

Matt — Tue, 08 May 2012 11:54:37 +0000

One of Zest4Kidz’s main strategic projects this year has been the establishing and running of our home for children with disabilities. Children in remote villages in Uganda are simply not receiving the medical aid they need to combat their physical disabilities. Zest4Kidz finds these children and helps rehabilitate them. This past weekend our mission just got a little bit easier thanks to the amazing organization Project Save, based in California, USA. They are an organization which collect medical equipment and then source that equipment to projects in the developing world. This past weekend, a shipment left California en route to Uganda to aid Zest4Kidz and the children we work with.

Volunteer in Uganda This Summer!

Matt — Wed, 02 May 2012 09:46:47 +0000

We are currently putting together a team to work in Uganda this Summer 18th-25th August. The team will be helping with some building projects at our Zest4Kidz Rehabilitation Home, running some community-building camps for children in the area encouraging integration of children with disabilities, as well as visiting a few of our partner organizations in the region. We are really excited about this trip and hope you’ll join us!

For more information on how to apply, visit our Uganda Trip Page.

Katie Taylor

Matt — Tue, 01 May 2012 14:12:00 +0000

We are excited to announce that Katie Taylor has partnered financially with Zest4Kidz to help children in desperate circumstances around the world. Not only is she helping us to promote our Zest4Kidz Business Partners but she has chosen to become one as well! We are extremely grateful for her partnership.

Katie Taylor’s accomplishments include being 3X World Champion and 9X European Champion! She’s also represented Ireland in football and will represent Ireland in the 2012 Olympics! She is also Zest4Kidz’ ambassador bringing awareness to the charity.

We know that you will join us in supporting Katie this summer. Go on Katie! We’re behind you!

Sustainability in Uganda

Matt — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:37:08 +0000

The home of our new sustainability project

Zest4Kidz has a habit of constantly dreaming bigger than our budgets. We do this for a few reasons. 1. We know that any success we have will be attributed to God and God so far has never been restrained by a budget. 2. We believe that God wants to do great things through the Irish people to help children in desperate circumstances around the world. 3. Big problems take big solutions.

As these dreams take form and become projects we put sustainability into the core of the strategic plan. As projects become self-funding, Zest4Kidz can move to the next project, fulfilling our dream to see every child in the world loved.

: Patrick clearing the field for planting

One of these sustainability projects is in full-swing at the moment in Uganda. Zest4Kidz are in the middle of planting 10 acres of Maize before the rainy season! The profits from the harvest will be put back into the sustainability project, allowing it to fully fund our rehabilitation home for children within one year! Our three-year plan is to grow the sustainability project into a pig & poultry farm.

As our rehabilitation centre becomes sustainable, it will allow our funding to be invested into new projects, helping more children. That gets me excited!

If you would like to become involved in our sustainability projects please contact me at matt@zest4kidz.com

Matt Kingsley
Operations Manager
Dublin, Ireland

Jacinta’s Mad Skydive

Matt — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 13:18:01 +0000

Jacinta Carty is an amazing character. She is full of stories, laughter and is always up for an adventure. What’s more she has a huge passion for helping children, having attended Zest4Kidz trips to Belarus. So for her 60th birthday she did the only sensible thing and decided to throw herself out of a perfectly good airplane to raise funds for Zest4Kidz.

At the end of April Jacinta will be celebrating with a jump and we hope that you’ll get behind her.

If you would like to support Jacinta in her skydiving adventure please visit our donation page and write “Jacinta” in the donation notes.

Here’s a short radio Interview Jacinta did on Newstalk.

Jacinta on Newstalk

If you would like more information on how you too could skydive for Zest4Kidz, please visit www.Skydive4Charity.ie

Behind the Scenes With Katie Taylor

Matt — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 12:15:42 +0000

Here’s a short video of our shoot with Katie Taylor at her gym in Bray, Co. Wicklow to help us launch our Zest4Kidz Business Partners initiative.

Jest4Kidz Video Promo

Matt — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 09:49:48 +0000

If you have a moment would you do us a favor and share this video with a few of your friends or post it to your facebook page? On the 11th April, the Jest4Kidz comedy night will be taking place at the Olympia in Dublin. It will be a night of fun and laughter. Tickets are only €20 – AVAILABLE ONLINE from Ticketmaster.ie

See you there!

Jest4Kidz Radio Promo

Matt — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:22:22 +0000

Here’s our radio promo for the upcoming Jest4Kidz event on 11th April in the Olympia Theatre. Let us know if you hear it on 98FM or Newstalk!

Women’s Mini Marathon

Matt — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 10:17:14 +0000

The Flora Women’s Mini Marathon application deadline is just around the corner: 20th April or when maximum entrant numbers have been reached. Zest4Kidz is looking for volunteers to run, walk, or saunter on our behalf. If you think you have what it takes, you’re exactly who we’re looking for. If you don’t think you have what it takes… you’re exactly who we’re looking for! This “race” is for women aged 14 and older and it is loads of fun. If you’d like to run on our behalf here’s what you should do:

1. Register Online

2. Send an email to info@zest4kidz.com

3. Download the Zest4Kidz Sponsorship Card for the Women’s Mini Marathon

4. Choose a country for run for by reading a bit about our work in Belarus, India or Uganda

5. Join us on Monday 4th June before the race starts for a bit of craif and to collect your Zest4Kidz T-Shirt!

Thank you for helping us bring light into little lives.

Matt Kingsley
Operations Manager

Katie Taylor Photo Shoot

Matt — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 15:20:29 +0000

Katie Taylor has recently become our Zest4Kidz ambassador. She took a day out of her busy schedule preparing for the Olympics to film some promotional material for us highlighting our Business Partner program. Here’s a few pictures from the day…