Dear Army Of Good, Happy New Year, and lots of thanks. I wanted to update you on my plans for supporting the refugees in 2019.

As most of you know, Ali and the soccer team have found another sponsor, and I imagine they will have a good a year in 2019 as they did in 2018. I hope so.

My refugee work continues. But I’ve learned a lot about how to do it efficiently and effectively. None of this would have happened without your support, I thank you.

As you know, I’m shifting focus and exploring ways to make our work more effective and focused. We were spending a lot of money, and doing a lot of good but I came to believe the best use of our resources is to focus on individual people – children, mostly – and seek to alter the course of their lives.

I was concerned that I was asking for too much money, and plugging small holes rather than lasting ones.

The first move was to help Sakler Moo, the gifted middle school student, pay his tuition at the prestigious Albany Academy. He is thriving there, and I am still collecting money for his 2019 tuition, due in September.

This really worked, thank you.

I’ve set up a special Sakler Moo Education fund, you can contribute by sending a donation to the fund via Paypal, [email protected], or by check to Jon Katz (Sakler Moo Fund), P.O. Box 205, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

I have taken on his families share of the scholarship – $2,000. This is not something they can do.

We have $3,000 in the fund, there are pledges for $2,000 more.

This has turned out to be a model for the work I’d like to do in the coming months, only I’m asking the schools to fully fund the costs. Sakler is especially gifted, we have changed the course of his life.

I am working with the Albany Academy and one other private school to help identify gifted refugee students in the public schools and get them full – not partial – scholarships. They are eager to diversify their student body.

The fund-raising is focused and bounded, it will change the lives of the young people who participate.

I’ve contacted several teachers in the Albany Public Schools, and they have chosen two young people who are standout academic  students, one, the young woman,  is from Burma.

We are seeking a scholarship for a female student. Next week, I’m meeting in Albany with Alex, a senior at the Albany Academy, he wants to join with me to raise $6,000, the school will fund the rest.

We’ll use my blog and if necessary, a gofundme page to raise the money. Alex will focus on the school community, I’ll reach beyond that with the Army Of Good. I’m excited about this approach, I hope it can grow.

The program is set up so that I won’t need to fund raise for this young women, her costs will be met in full.

It has taken a lot of behind the scenes work, which is why it has taken so long. I’ll get there.

The school administrators are totally supportive of the idea, which I  hope can be expanded to other schools. I asked RISSE, the refugee and immigrant support center if they wished to participate, they declined without explanation.

This was not a surprise, but I was sorry to hear it, they have some outstanding young women there.

So I’ll keep you posted. I will, of course, continue to support the work at the Mansion with the residents there. I will continue to ask for financial support for that work.

In the meantime, please consider supporting the RISSE Amazon Wish List. It helps the students in their after school program and their families. We know exactly where the money goes.

There is no better way to start my day than to support the work RISSE is doing.