Dear Laurie,

Today is a GREAT day.  We just received the first photos from the orphanage in Shaka’s Kraal, South Africa.  As you can see, some of the children are proudly wearing Santa Rosa United jerseys. This has been quite a journey for us.   It started years ago when Christian, as a toddler, was besotted by African snakes, and was befriended by a South African woman who ran a snake sanctuary just north of Durban.  Our friendship blossomed, and she subsequently joined the board of the local AIDS orphanage. Last year, when Ingo was visiting South Africa, the children at the orphanage told him that while they appreciated the donations of computers from England, what they really wanted to do was to be able to play soccer with real uniforms and real cleats. (Many of these children don’t even own shoes.) So began our adventure.... When the boxes arrived, the festivities apparently lasted the entire weekend, and as you can see, the soccer equipment will be proudly worn by these adorable children. I can’t begin to tell you how much this means to them, and to us.

All the best, and thank you forever for your help. 

Kerin McTaggart (Christian Rencken’s mom)