IT’S TIME TO GATHER FOR GOATS!

Creative Learning Academy is raising funds to buy a goat for each classroom—25 in total! LHI will send a picture of each goat when it is distributed, along with information about each recipient family. And the kids will even be able to name their class goat! Besides being a fun activity, we know this will be an important experience for the kids to learn about other children around the world and the value of compassion, kindness, and generosity. Please join Creative Learning Academy and Cherish in supporting the amazing work LHI is doing!

Please note: By clicking on the donate button above, you will be taken to www.cherishthis.org, and your donation will go to Cherish. Creative Learning Academy will match all donations made through Cherish, doubling the impact of your support! 100% of your donation and the matching funds will then be donated to LHI to provide goats to refugee families.

WHY ARE SYRIAN FAMILIES IN JORDAN?

In 2011, Syrian students peacefully protested the oppressive policies of the Assad family, which had been in power in Syria for four decades. These protests were met with brutal reprisal. Soon, the country was plunged into a civil war that has left countless civilians dead, crucial infrastructure in ruins, and the country split between several factions fighting for control of the country. Violence, as well as a dire humanitarian crisis—millions of Syrians have been cut off from reliable access to food, water, medicine, and other essentials—have forced millions of Syrians to flee the lands they have called home for centuries in search of a better, safer life.

Many make their way south to find refuge in neighboring Jordan. While there are two official refugee camps in Jordan, around 82% of Syrian refugees live in small unofficial camps in the Jordanian desert. There, resources are scarce—in one camp we visited there was only one bathroom for 155 families.

While many Syrian refugees in Jordan hope to return to Syria one day, they know that there is no end to the war in sight. And, even if there were, so much has been destroyed that there would not be much to go back to. So, Syrian refugees in Jordan hope for the means to be self-sufficient, and not dependent on humanitarian aid for survival. For any person, there is great dignity in being able to provide for yourself and your family.

WHY GOATS?

Goat milk? If not, you should! Goat milk is not only highly nutritious, but also more easily digestible than cow’s milk. Having a ready source of healthy fat and protein that is also rich in vitamins A, B, K, E, and D is so important for our beneficiaries because just getting to the nearest town for food and supplies is too expensive for most families to do on a regular basis.

Goat milk is not just for drinking! It is also used to make a wide range of delicious foods like labneh, a strained yogurt that is often flavored with olive oil and spices. Goat milk is also used to make a deliciously creamy butter, ghee, and tangy goat cheese.

We don’t provide just any, old goats. We source a Shami-Baladi crossbreed. Also fittingly known as Damascus goats, Shami goats are a friendly breed native to the Middle East. Shami goats are prolific milk producers—a female Shami goat can produce between 350 to 650 liters of milk each year. Not only that, Shami goats have a reputation for birthing twins and triplets. Baladi goats are well-adapted to hot, arid environments like the Jordanian deserts where beneficiaries of LHI’s Gather for Goats program live. So, the goats that LHI sources are ideal for helping people achieve self-sufficiency because they can not only survive less-than-favorable conditions, but also produce a lot of milk and baby goats!

LHI wants to be sure that the goats we distribute are young and healthy. So, we count on Mohammed, a goat expert with training from the University of Jordan, to inspect each goat prior to distribution. Only the best goats for the job pass Mohammed’s inspection!