Amy Fancourt

[p]Hi, thanks for visiting my page. [/p][p]I'm running the London Marathon for The Friends of Amani, Tanzania, because their work is saving lives and changing culture.[/p][p]Located in Morogoro, Tanzania, the Amani Centre is a non-profit organization that educates and empowers mentally and physically challenged children and young people. The Friends of Amani work tirelessly to support the vital work of this organisation.[/p][p]The Amani Centre receives no aid from the government for these children or their families, and the cultural stigmatism around disabled people in this part of the world is even worse than in the UK. All too often people believe that the mother of a disabled child is cursed, or that the child has been cursed by God. For this reason, many of these children are abandoned, neglected, or abused. The Amani Centre is a safe haven in all kinds of ways for these children and their families, and by helping individual families it is seeking to change an entire culture. [/p][p]Although Amani started out as just a small group of mothers meeting under a tree, the Amani centre has grown phenomenally. It is open to all people, and is managed by a partnership of Roman Catholic and Anglican dioceses in Tanzania. Amani is now located in three different villages around Tanzania: Chamvino, Mvomero, and Mikese.[/p][p]Thousands of children, young people and their families have been helped and continue to be helped by the Amani Centre and the services are all given for free by Amani and this work can only continue through generous donations and sponsorship; every penny counts.[/p][p]If you are able to donate something, it would make an enormous difference to the lives of the disabled children in Tanzania with whom Amani works. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and for your support,[/p][p]Amy [/p]