For all of us, 2020 was a challenging year. We had to adapt our way of living to the current, often unforeseeable, situation and try to make the best of it. But we also learned that challenge brings opportunity, and some changes benefit us more than we would’ve thought…
Think about students enlisting to bring food and groceries to quarantined elderly people, the quality time you spent with your family members, and the things you did to take care of yourself like working out at home, or enjoying the outdoors more than usual… oh… and yeah… the planet’s nitrogen and carbon dioxide emission also significantly decreased; rivers became clearer and air became cleaner.
As many of you will know, PM-International reacted and adapted quickly to the ever-changing economic challenges in 2020 and made it the most successful year in the company’s history. We were lucky enough to be only slightly impacted by the consequences of the Covid-restrictions, since our digitalization-processes and online-presence were things we focused on years ago. Becoming more successful, however, provides us with the opportunity to contribute even more to our charity, PM We Care.
What we do
This topic is dear to our hearts. That’s why EVERY SINGLE FitLine product purchased contributes to our charity PM We Care and directly benefits children, their families, and communities all over the world. With your help, we were already able to take on 3,000 sponsored children through our partner World Vision, and provide emergency relief funds to support those affected by the Covid pandemic in Europe, the tsunami in Japan, the typhoon in the Philippines, the earthquakes in Italy and Nepal, as well as many more local projects. And we are deeply thankful for all of you enabling our important work. Last year alone, we were able to donate more than $2 million to charitable efforts… which, if you think about how many people you’re helping with it, is just breathtaking! THANK YOU ALL!
As pointed out before, our continued success allows us to give back more every year. For 2021, we set ourselves an ambitious goal: sponsoring 1,000 additional children in 2 new Area Programs in Bangladesh and Cambodia. “What is an Area Program?”, you might ask yourself. Well, it is a commitment we make to our partner World Vision to support a specific local area for 15 years. That means we will reach way more than 1,000 children in these areas, as we help to positively change their lives and support their families as well as the whole communities.
New Area Programs
Our first new Area Program for 2021 will be in Phnom Penh, the capitol of Cambodia. Many families from the countryside decide to move into the city to seek out their luck, but often find themselves ending up in poor situations. The giant city slums in Phnom Penh suffer from very bad sanitary conditions and over-population, the average income of people there is just about $ 2 per day. Subsequently, health and hygiene related issues are a huge problem for the children living there.
Together with World Vision, we will be working on hygiene projects, garbage disposal, education programs for expecting mothers, Children’s Rights, child safe places, as well as education centers. It is our explicit goal to make our sponsored children active agents of change in their communities, so it is vital to teach them and their parents about the importance of school and education, and create safe and protected places for them to develop. With your support, 500 children and their families in Phnom Penh will look towards a brighter future… and with them, thousands of lives will change for the better. YOU make this possible and that is AMAZING!
The second Area Program for 2021 will be in Amtali, Bangladesh. This coastal region often suffers from natural catastrophes like storms and floods. Most families living there are relying on agriculture as their main source of food and income. If their harvests get destroyed, the situation gets very challenging. Children often have to help out on the fields instead of going to school.
In Amtali, we will support another 500 children and their families with the creation of food banks and savings groups. These give the families the possibility of rationing their food and borrow crops from the banks in order to make up for a potential loss of their produce. Additionally, we will heavily invest in the avocation of Children’s Rights to educate parents on this topic. Every single child should enjoy their childhood and be free to choose their own path. Again, your continued support makes it possible to change these lives!
2021 is going to be an ambitious year for PM We Care. With these 1,000 additional sponsored children, we will grow our overall support to 4,000 children in more than 25 countries worldwide. This achievement is not ours, but YOURS! With your support and continued enthusiasm, we will be able to do more good every year. It is up to all of us to make more change happen and reach new milestones, so let’s roll up our sleeves and go for it!
Thank you all! You are amazing! 😊