On October 22nd, Banko Design partnered with iN2L for our first ever telethon to raise money for Community Development Volunteers for Technical Assistance (CDVTA) in Cameroon. The event was successful beyond our wildest dreams! Thanks to our generous donors, we were able to raise over $50,000 to support CDVTA’s efforts to provide much-needed services to rural villages in Northwest Cameroon.
Curious about how these funds will be used? CDVTA recently provided Banko Design and iN2L with a look at how our donations will be utilized throughout 2021 and 2022.
CDVTA was excited to share that with our contributions, they will be able to complete a safe drinking water system in Northwest Cameroon that will supply clean water to more than 8,700 vulnerable people. CDVTA will also be using the funds to renovate schools and add new, ventilated, gender sensitive restrooms to improve hygiene and incentivize disadvantaged girls to attend school in poor villages.
Additionally, donations will fund education around care and dementia awareness, as well as COVID-19 and AIDS prevention to elders and their families in six villages. Funds will also assist in expanding agriculture production, mitigating the issues of food insecurity in four villages of Northwest Cameroon.
So, why are we so passionate about CDVTA and the work they’re doing? Banko Design’s Principal, Melissa Banko, chose to practice design in the senior living space largely because the field has a built-in component of giving back. Designing beautiful, comfortable and safe living spaces for seniors ultimately raises their standard of living. So, when given the opportunity to give back to seniors and their caregivers, who are mainly women, through CDVTA in a similar capacity, Melissa said, “It was an easy ‘yes.’”
Banko Design is honored to contribute toward establishing services, resources and a clean water infrastructure that will benefit the people of Cameroon. We’re looking forward to hosting our telethon annually to continue to support the mission of CDVTA. To learn more about CDVTA, visit their website: www.cdvta.org.
