Thank You Notes

by Betty Trummel

As Jimmy Fallon reads his thank you notes to his audience, we smile and laugh at his jokes. Other real-life thank you notes make us smile as well, and they encourage us to contemplate the message sent by the writer.

I received several very poignant thank you’s at the conclusion of our June trip to Zambia, and I’d like to share those with you. They center around the work A to Z does to provide scholarships to vulnerable students in Zambia.

First, from Jimmy, whose school fees were paid this year as a result of a donation to A to Z Literacy:

“I wrote this note to thank you for paying my school expenses. May you continue with the good heart that you have. You did something that not everyone could do all the way from America, just to help me here in Zambia. I promise you I will work hard at school and get good grades. May God bless you and your family.”

From Winfred (Jimmy’s younger brother, tallest child in the photo): “Thank you very much for what you have done for me and my family. My life was about to get worse. Thank you for taking me back to school and I promise to work hard at school.”

And finally, from one of the mothers, Esther (on the right), who is struggling as a single parent to raise five children: “I want to say thank you for what you have been doing for me and my family. You are really helping me a lot. Please pass my message of appreciation to the families who helped pay my children’s school fees last year. You are giving me the love that a mother gives her children.”

Such gratitude from these three and so many others who face enormous challenges each and every day, and are helped by generous donations to A to Z. Thank you so much to our donors. Your contribution makes a difference in lives locally and globally.