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Other Ways to Help

More than anything, FORGE needs your donations to continue its work. If you want to help in other ways, we encourage you to consider the options below.

• FORGE Giving Group
• Wish List
• Run a Book Drive
• eBay

Wish List

While FORGE is most in need of funding for its projects, there may be other ways you can help us in the pursuit of our mission of investing in individuals.

Due to the high costs of shipping overseas, FORGE generally prefers to receive cash donations rather than in-kind (material) donations because cash donations allow us to save money on shipping and purchase locally-produced materials at a cheaper price. Still, there are several items and partnerships that we are currently looking to acquire in the United States. If you are able to help fulfill any of the following needs, please email info@FORGEnow.org and a FORGE staff member will get in touch with you for coordination. Like cash donations, in-kind donations are tax deductible.

In-Kind Goods

• Laptop computers
  • Computer skills are highly sought-after in FORGE camps, as they offer refugees higher marketability when the time comes to secure employment or open a business.
  • In order to train refugees in computer skills, FORGE needs durable, functional laptop computers.
  • Secondhand laptops are welcome if they are in working condition.

• Computer software
  
  
  • To increase the capacity of our computer training centers and to offer educational resources to the refugee populations we serve, FORGE uses its computer centers as information resource access points where refugees can go for information.
  • We currently need reference software, educational games, and similar computer software that can be used to learn about any variety of subjects.

Sponsors

• Shipping Sponsor – Because FORGE is so geographically diverse, we often rely on shipping to transport materials. This expense cuts into funds that, if sponsored, would go directly toward FORGE’s mission and operations. We’re currently aiming to secure shipping sponsors for both domestic and international shipping.
• Air Travel Sponsor – On average, FORGE flies 17 round trip flights from the US to Africa each year. These expenses, while necessary to our work, would directly support our work if they were sponsored.
• Vehicle Sponsor – FORGE relies heavily on its vehicles. We use bicycles to get around, but our vehicles are instrumental in the transport of supplies and materials to remote locations in each camp. We’re currently looking for a vehicle sponsor to purchase the requisite vehicles for FORGE.
• Solar Power Sponsor – Because the camps that FORGE works in don’t offer electricity, we use solar power to run our computer centers, libraries, health centers, and all of our other projects. With amazing advancements being made in solar energy research, we’re looking for a solar power sponsor to support upgrades of FORGE’s existing solar facilities as well as construction of new ones as our projects expand.
  

Run a Book Drive

One of the ways that FORGE receives funding is through the hard work of college students across the country who run book drives. To run these book drives, FORGE partners with Books for Africa (www.BooksForAfrica.org) and Better World Books (www.betterworldbooks.com), who provide supplies, support, planning, packaging, shipping, and marketing expertise for the drive.

The students who run the drives find success when they start early in the semester and recruit a dependable group of friends to help support the drive. The number of people you’ll need on your team depends on the size of your campus.

After marketing the drive with materials provided by BWB, book collection begins when students begin selling books during finals. You’ll set up collection boxes across the campus and direct fellow students to support your drive by giving their unwanted books. At the end of the quarter/semester, your team will package the books into boxes provided by BWB and a shipping company will come pick them up and bring them to BWB. FORGE receives funds for each qualifying book.

Running a book drive is a great way to learn about grassroots fundraising for non-profits and provides experience in leading and managing a team in pursuit of a goal.

Interested in running a book drive to benefit FORGE? Contact us at info@FORGEnow.org, and remember – the earlier you start, the better off your drive will be.

eBay
Through eBay’s non-profit giving affiliate, MissionFish, you can sell items on eBay and donate a portion (or all!) of the earnings to FORGE. This is a great way to support the mission of FORGE when cash donations aren’t entirely possible. Here’s how:

1. Go to www.eBay.com and sign into or register an eBay account. If you would like your sale to be tax deductible, use this eBay account to also register for a MissionFish account (www.MissionFish.org).
2. On the top of the eBay page, click on “SELL.”
3. Type in a brief description of the item you plan on selling
4. Select the appropriate category for your item.
5. Input all necessary information into the “Describe your item” page
6. Under “How you’re selling,” select FORGE as the non-profit to which your donation will be made. Don’t forget to choose a percentage.
7. Move through all description fields and list your item.
8. When your item sells, FORGE will receive your chosen percentage of the earnings. MissionFish distributes funds on a monthly basis, by wiring straight into the FORGE account.
9. Please remember: eBay policies apply and FORGE is in no way connected to the listing, procedures, shipping, or feedback on your transaction(s). Please review eBay guidelines.

If you forget to select FORGE as your benefiting non-profit on eBay, you can always make a corresponding donation on our DONATE page.

Good luck!