In this video message, AFS-USA President and CEO Tara Hofmann shares a variety of updates on current activities, plans, and achievements. Bullet points of items discussed in the video are available so you can easily review and share these important updates!
Author: Tara Hofmann
No year has tested us more—we repatriated nearly 2,000 students and, as a result, faced unprecedented financial challenges. In true AFS spirit, volunteers, staff, supporters, and friends responded to the crisis by doing everything we could to move our mission forward. Please read and share Our Year in Review!
Regardless of all that we’ve encountered this year, the adjustments we’ve made, and the resulting sacrifices we’ve faced, I am extraordinarily thankful for all that AFS-USA Volunteers have accomplished this year. Whether it was helping facilitate the mass repatriation of our students, moving full-speed ahead with family-finding, implementing new methods for engaging with host families, students, and other volunteers, or any of the multitude of investments of time and talent, you have kept the AFS mission alive and well.
I know that last week’s announcement indicating a significant change to our inbound FLEX and YES programs was not only disappointing, but also unsettling. Many of you have worked hard to place these students with host families while also looking for new host families to host the unplaced students. Your efforts have not gone unnoticed, regardless of this transition to a virtual-only program for the spring, and I am grateful for the work you’ve done on behalf of these participants.
Here is an update on our #ChaptersSupportingAFSUSA, an initiative suggested by April Murphy that we have put into motion. I am grateful for those who have stepped forward to contribute funds at a time when AFS-USA really needs your support.
I am writing to invite you to the 2020 Virtual AFS Summit, which will be held from November 12-15, 2020 and is open to all AFS-USA Volunteers.
In the last week of September we launched #ChaptersSupportingAFS-USA—an idea that came from April Murphy, Chair of the Greater Phoenix Chapter and President of the AFS Arizona Superhero Team. April has asked her colleagues to contribute some of their existing funds back to AFS-USA at a time when the organization desperately needs funds.
Thanks to nearly 2,000 members of the AFS Family, AFS-USA met the $500,000 Candace and Bert Forbes Challenge! This means that we have raised a total of $1MM to help AFS-USA during what continues to be the most challenging time we have ever faced.
A Labor Day message from Tara Hofmann to all volunteers.
AFS-USA is launching a major fundraising campaign that will employ all of the communications tools we can- direct mail; email; social media; zoom calls and telephone calls (and when possible in-person calls) with donors; and a fundraising challenge to match $500,000 which has been generously set-up by Bert and Candace Forbes, long-time donors and supporters of AFS-USA.