Bitcoin Forum

This is the main "Amani-Kinderdorf" Bitcoin donation thread. If you want to donate, just go to http://amani-kinderdorf.de/index.php?id=213&L=1 and check for the Bitcoin address at the bottom. Your donation is highly appreciated and even small amounts can make a real difference.

Amani-Kinderdorf (meaning Amani orphanage) is a German NGO working with and for AIDS-orphans from Tanzania. The term AIDS orphans refers to the fact that these children lost their parents because of AIDS, not to the fact that they are infected themselves. Only a small number of these children actually has to live with AIDS.The Amani organisation built two pretty big orphanages in rural Tanzania (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanzania) so far and is always looking forward to get some financial help to fund their various projects mentioned on their site.
If you want to learn more about their work, just check it out: http://amani-kinderdorf.de/index.php?id=1&L=1

If you have any questions about the work of this organisation, please don't hesitate to contact me directly in this thread or via PM.
Unfortunately the children in these orphanages don't know (yet) what a Bitcoin is but I really hope that they can benefit from their existence. ;)

//edit: just fixed some typos...
//edit 2: It was mentioned that the term AIDS-orphan may have been used to gain more sympathies and thus more Bitcoins. As I pointed out below this term just refers to the fact that many orphans lost their parents to AIDS. OF COURSE these orphanages in Tanzania are open for ALL orphans and not just for those who lost their parents to AIDS.
//edit3: Rewrote some stuff due to public demand

I hope my donation as someone who is not at all tired of Bitcoin works just as well for making the world a better place ;)

Are you affiliated with Amani-Kinderdorf? Do you know if they are in any way related to SOS-Kinderdorf?
Anyway - keep up the good work!

Can you give us a number on how much money reaches the actual cause over what is spent on the organization itself? Efficiency represented in a percentage, if you will?

It definitely just works as well! ;) Thanks a lot for your donation. I was just alluding to all the discussions on this forum about Bitcoins failing.

Well, I worked for them in Tanzania for a while but I'm not a decision-maker within the organization.However, I should be able to answer most of your questions. :)

Nope, they are not related to the SOS-Kinderdorf initiative. Amani-Kinderdorf is an independent organization, which is just working on several projects in Tanzania. They are not (yet) as global as SOS-Kinderdorf. btw: 'Amani' is a Swahili word and means 'peace'.

Thank you. If you people keep up the good donations, this NGO can keep up its good work. ;)

Unfortunately I can't answer this question right now as I don't have the exact figures. Anyway, I will forward your question to someone who should have them and post the answer here as soon as I have it.

Can you explain the reasoning for having a "parents died of AIDS" orphanage? I mean if there were extra spots would you let other kinds of orphans in? Or does it just happen than most orphans are of this type because that's what poor parents die of most of the time and mentioning AIDS gets more sympathy?

Well, I know this kind of reaction when it comes to organizations working in developing countries. Most people are suspicious and I probably can't do anything to convince them of any good intentions we might have.
But at least I can try to answer your question:

I don't have exact figures but I would guess that up to 90 percent of the children living in these orphanages lost their parents to AIDS or AIDS-related diseases. The mentioning of AIDS in this context was just done to illustrate that sad fact and not to gain more sympathies.
Of course the orphanage is open to any kind of orphans but unfortunately the majority happens to be orphaned because of AIDS. But once again: The organization won't show any child the door just because he or she was orphaned by anything else but AIDS.

Well, I think Bitcoin is the source of donations due to its various advantages. It has never been so easy before to donate a bit love. Even very small amounts are no problem at all and reach their destination in minutes.

Just for your information: Amani has already received 2.5 Bitcoins in total which is not that bad for one day, imho. Thanks a lot to everybody who has donated so far. :)

Sorry for the delay but the person I was asking was having a bad cold. But finally I got an answer to your question, Immanuel:

In 2010 the organisation had to pay a bit less than 4 % for administration costs. In 2011 the administrative costs are 3,9 % so far.
Thanks for the question!

We are now also listed on  Bitcoins for Charity (http://bitcoinsforcharity.org/).
Thanks to everybody who has donated so far! :)

Nice start, thus far: http://blockexplorer.com/address/1NoA98grVfXfVqysU4ijM9jhMBD8vmrUC8

Rid this:


And I'll donate 1 BTC. PM me when done, and I'll do my part as promised.

Bruno

I think it was good humor, but I agree that a neutral donation thread to this organization would be better. A new thread maybe, with the extended information in the first post.

Donated some. Will donate more later. :)


I agree with Waldschrat, it's the best tool for donations by far.

I agree with you as being good humor. I remember the time frame of when it was written--Bitcoin going D,D,D. I somewhat forgot that fact, though, when I posted my last post on this thread. Thank you for re-bringing it to my attention. That said, it still doesn't set well with me, today. The cause is a noble one and having a Bitcoin link on an established website is a great feat, in and of itself.

@Phinnaeus Gage: I rid the paragraph you mentioned. I was just referring to the ongoing flame wars about Bitcoin being dead and thought (and still think) it would be a good idea to add some humor, even if the topic is serious. Anyhow, I do agree that some people may feel a bit offended by this and just deleted these parts to make the start post as neutral as possible.
Thanks a lot in advance for your Bitcoin! :)

Well, you can't link to a website available in two languages describing all the projects in detail and even showing many pictures from Tanzania, do you? Maybe the fact that we are now listed on Bitcoins for charity and our German Wikipedia article (http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amani-Kinderdorf) could add some more credibility. If you are still in doubt, feel free to tell me which other proof you need to be sure that this organization is no scam.

@memvola: Thanks a lot for your donations. Do you still think a new thread is needed or does the entry post suffice now?

I think this thread is informative enough. Next donation tomorrow. I'd love to see direct donation possibility for more hands-on organizations like this.

I just replied to Waldschrat via a PM. I have donated 1 BTC as promised. Not much, but every tad helps their cause and, moreover, the Bitcoin movement. (is movement the right term?)

Bruno

Thank you both for donating even more, respectively keeping your word. You guys rock! :)

This is a 100% legit organization with a web presence spanning several years. Whois and WayBack confirms this, therefore I didn't take the time to see if there's a Tom Williams somewhere in the organization, for if there is, it'll be a different TW.

Bruno

Thanks for pointing that out. If anyone is still in doubt, you may want to write an eMail to the Amani management to confirm their work. Their contact details are listed on the website.

I like this charity, hence the bump. Moreover, I just donated another Bitcoin to this organization. Not much, but I'm willing to bet somebody's going to get to eat a meal because of it.

Here's the link: http://amani-kinderdorf.de/index.php?id=213&L=1

Thanks for your donation, Phinnaeau Gage. Somehow however it didn't show up and it's even not listed on Block Explorer (http://blockexplorer.com/address/1NoA98grVfXfVqysU4ijM9jhMBD8vmrUC8). Did you use the address 1NoA98grVfXfVqysU4ijM9jhMBD8vmrUC8 ?
P.S: Sorry for the late reply

Looking back, it's quite possible I didn't send it for I believe when I penned that post, I was penning another post at the same time which was in reference to your charity. My intent was to send the Bitcoin after posting that post although the post stated that I already did such. Oops! Hope I don't get banned for admitting this lie falsehood. At any rate, I've sent it now--prior to posting this post.

Hope all is well with you, Waldschrat, and your charitable organization.

Bruno

Thanks a lot, Bruno. You rock! :) The donation is now listed as well on BlockExplorer.
I'm totally fine at the moment and I really hope you are, too.

@all: None of your donations have reached the organization yet. Before accusing me of scamming you, let me explain:
The Amani charity started to accept Bitcoin donations at the beginning of October. Because of the highly unpredictable (at least for me) Bitcoin value the organization and me agreed that I send them the Bitcoin donations every quarter in euros (looking at the current MtGox price) and just keep the Bitcoins. That means that I will keep collecting donations till the end of December before sending the value of the collected Bitcoins in euros to Amani.

It may even give you a good feeling as I'll use the Bitcoins for paying stuff in Bitcoins and keeping the Bitcoin economy busy while I get rid of some of my fiat-money by sending it to Amani. ;)
I hope this approach is fine for you all. If not, please just let me know. I'll also keep you up to date in this thread about any transactions.

Hi guys,
First of all i have to apologize because it took me so long to post this but I have been a bit occupied lately by private issues.
However, I just wanted to let you know that the Bitcoins you donated back in October, November and December have finally found their way to the Amani organization. (In the form of Euro)
Some months ago the value wasn't that high but I used today's value from MtGox (5.5 Euro / Bitcoin), which results in the incredible amount of 112 Euro for this charity.

Thanks a lot to everybody who donated. You really made the world a better place! :)
If you ever feel like donating again, you may want to do it now as the value of Bitcoins seems to rise pretty fast these days.

Hi guys,
Long time no see...
I just wanted to inform you that I recently sent 30 euros to Amani-Kinderdorf again.
Thank you very much for your continuous support!

And once again I was able to donate 12 euros because of your Bitcoin donations. Thank you so much!

@ OP:

I suggest you list your cause here: https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Donation-accepting_organizations_and_projects
and here: https://de.bitcoin.it/wiki/Spenden

attain higher visibility

good luck!

Thanks a lot for that advise! Is there anyone out there who has an account for the wiki and who could add this information?

Thanks to your support, I was once again able to donate to the Amani-Kinderdorf. This time 30 euros in total. Thank you very much! :)

Donated goes to a great cause.

Thanks a lot siesatsu but are you sure that you sent the Bitcoins to the right address? Your donation doesn't show up yet on Blockexplorer. [1]
[1]: http://blockexplorer.com/address/1NoA98grVfXfVqysU4ijM9jhMBD8vmrUC8

siesatsu is a scammer and used a video of starving children to get people to send money to his own Bitcoin address in another thread.
However, one Bitcoin showed up a few days ago and I donated the money in form of euros to the Amani organization. Thank you!

ummm..... interesting news does he have a scammer tag yet?

Yes, he does. He earned it partly because of this thread. [1]

[1]: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=137131.0

Once again I was able to donate (this time: 9 euros) to the Amani-Kinderdorf organization because of another Bitcoin donation. Thank you!

Thanks to another generous donation I was again able to donate 40 euros to the Amani organization. Thank you once again for your continuous support. :)

10 more euros just found their way to the bank account of Amani-Kinderdorf e.V. Thank you!

40 euros once again! Thank you and Happy Easter! :)

Another kind soul just donated some more Bitcoins. Thus, I was just able to donate 15 more euros to Amani-Kinderdorf.
btw: I was just wondering if anyone could think of these updates as Spam. I just want to keep everything as transparent as possible for you, so please tell me if that's ok the way I do it or if you want to have less updates from me.

I couldn't believe my eyes as I saw two transactions making up 1.1 Bitcoins. This translates to 130 euros, which found their way to the banking account of the Amani-Kinderdorf. Thank you very much!

Wow, once again 1 Bitcoin (roughly 150 euros right now) was donated...

28 more euros are now to be found on the bank account of Amani-Kinderdorf thanks to another Bitcoin donation.

13 more euros! :)

+ 60 euros!

Thanks to you I was able to send 58 more euros to the Amani-Kinderdorf. :)

+ 100 euros! YEAH!

+ 97 euros thanks to you guys!

+ 63 euros. Kudos!

Thanks to your generosity I was able to send the Amani-Kinderdorf 6070 euros! And this isn't even the whole story. There are some more coins (are parts of coins), which are currently also waiting to be transformed to euros. Once the whole amount has been transformed I will let you know again.

In the meantime, I would like to thank you very much once again. 6070 euros surely is an amazing amount and I know that not many people are willing to give that much money to charity. May you be blessed by God, Allah, Karma or whatever you believe in. Thank you! :)

//edit: Sorry, I made a mistake concerning the exact amount. I sent them 6070 euros and NOT 6090 euros.

Due to some delays at the bank of a buyer it took some time but now I was finally able to once again donate 310,60 euros to the Amani-Kinderdorf. Now, all Bitcoins from last year have been transformed to euros and a new year of donations can begin.

Since publishing the Bitcoin address online the insane amount of 8115,60 euros has reached the bank account of the Amani organization. Thank you very much!

+195 euros once again thanks to you.

+ 20 euros.

+ 150 euros!

+ 194.4 euros

Happy Easter!

I would not generalize to the whole world, but my life just gets better with Bitcoins

+ 280 euros. Thank you!