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The Story So Far

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Who Are We?

We are a family… Micah, Mya, Aleck and Donna-Rae Cartwright. We travel, play and experience life together in a fun and exhilarating way.

Micah loves being on a bus, plane or train and enjoys airports the most! This is a good thing with the lifestyle we have.

Mya is always excited about new experiences and LOTS of people, ever the extravert, she makes introductions and friends everywhere she goes.

Donna is the administrator and brains of the outfit, she books tickets, plans itineraries and holds down the fort wherever that may be in the world.

Aleck is the action man, practical and always eager to push the boundaries and face a new challenge. Together we make a team that is vibrant, adventurous, challenging and eager to discover new cultures, take photos and eat wonderful/interesting things.

Micah was born in Northern Ireland, Mya in Scotland, we have lived together in Switzerland while the kids grew up and now we have just recently returned from Nigeria and are on our way to Thailand and India at the start of 2012.

What We Do

We work and travel all over the world offering Design Training as a Community Development Strategy. The goal of which is to train people in the first and third world in Graphic Design and Effective Communication.

Donna-Rae is a Graphic Designer, primarily in Print, but also recently started producing Documentaries and studying Motion Graphics. Aleck is doing more and more photography to add to his skills in Graphic Design. Both of them work within an organisation called Youth With A Mission. Aleck since 1996 and Donna-Rae since 1993. We also spend much of our time working in the University of the Nations primarily in the College of Communication. Donna-Rae works in the Provost Office to help to oversee students degrees as an Academic Advisor. Donna-rae has a BA in Journalism Mass Media.

Aleck pioneers new schools in different locations. Right now, their project is to develop training on each continent that serves the needs of each region. We have already worked in Colombia, Switzerland, the UK and Nigeria to do this. Next year we will be in India and the following year in Brazil and the USA. For short teaching opportunities, Aleck will travel out for a week or two at a time. For longer trips, we all go together as a family. He is also doing more and more photojournalism.

Where We Work

Aleck and Donna-Rae have been to many countries and continue to do so with their kids. When they are not starting new work internationally they usually return to Northern Ireland as our home base, simply because that is where our extended family are. Aleck and Donna are Zimbabwean by birth so they have a real soft spot for the developing world and are eager to invest their talents and abilities into multiplication and resource development. The projects we work on are designed to be strategic, long-term impact and require intense planning and input as they are in the development stages. Once we are on the ground in the location, we face many challenges, some locations lack electricity, running water and the convenience most people are used to, but other locations it is a cultural or economic challenge. Regardless of what the challenges are, our desire is to make a difference and find people willing to learn, to teach us and the joy of serving others.

Upcoming Projects

Ongoing Projects We have recently completed projects in Nigeria (6 months of 2011) Planned for next year is a 3 months School in Advanced Principles in Communication in Thailand Followed by a 3 month School of Design in India. These are our two International Projects for 2012 in Asia.

For 2013, we are planning two Schools, one in North America and the other starting in April 2013 in Recife, Brazil.

Why Do We Do It?

Our Christian faith leads us to believe that this should be shown in action through our lives, we face the same challenges as anyone else on the face of the earth. We need to put food on the table, educate our children, make a home and face all the challenges of life. In each point we realise that the whole of humanity is tied together by seeing that we have needs, the greatest of which is an understanding of our eternal impact. However, we do not want to ever be so content that we ignore those who have less than we do. Change comes through those who are not so consumed with their own need that they never look beyond their seemingly empty hands. We have so much, and have more to give. It’s when we give that we receive, but giving when you have little takes extreme courage. Also our faith is tested when we put it on the line.

How Is It Possible?

Our work is done through sponsorship, each month we see the miracle of people giving sacrificially to enable us to continue in our work as a family with two little kids. Having done this for over 15 years it is a constant source of amazement that we can live this life and see that people believe enough in us to contribute to the needs we have as we continue to push ahead with the projects we have planned. Often the resources come in unlikely ways, but it is always exciting to see how they do come in and at just the right time!

How You Can Help:

We work in a non-profit capacity, no-one pays us in our work, so we look to groups, communities, individuals, churches, friends and families who believe in us and see the effects of the work enough to support it.

If you would like to be a part of this growing team of people please let us know below:

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