The following interview will be aired on The Authors Show May 2 and 3. This is a sneak preview. The Authors Show is one of the most highly ranked author radio shows in the world and I am honoured to be a part of it

Authors Show Interview

“What am I up to? Oh, not much. Just enjoying the BEST sushi ever, with the most delicious cold sake, Kikusui Ginjyo, and reading my autographed copy of “Kilimanjaro and Beyond,” a Finalist for the First Horizon Award, in the Eric Hoffner Book Awards. Yessssss!  And the book is amazing!!! I keep getting goose bumps!” – Stacey K. Black, Los Angeles, CA

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Each year, the Eric Hoffer Award for books presents the First Horizon Award for  superior work by debut authors (i.e the first published book of any type by the author). I am very proud to announce that Kilimanjaro and Beyond has been named a finalist in the 2012 competition.

According to the Eric Hoffer Award website “After our rigorous first round of judging, less than 10% of the titles become category finalists.  We consider this a distinction of its own merit and, in 2008, began officially listing these titles on-line. Finalists are selected by category scoring. There are typically 1-6 books per category selected as a finalist. Finalists fall into approximately the upper 10% of all books that entered the contest.”

We are very proud of this award.

I am very pleased to introduce my new blog/website here at KEEP ON CLIMBING. Feel free to leave comments on the design. I will be posting new entries and letting you know very soon about some new exciting events that are coming up.

Make sure you mark the page and come back often for updates.

I did an interview on The Authors Show yesterday that should be aired in a few weeks. The show is the number 1 ranked show out of 882 million competitors when anyone googles “author radio” so I am pleased to be a part of it. My interview with 100 Huntley Street (Canadian TV show broadcast nationally) will also be aired in the coming weeks.

Stay tuned for dates!

I am very pleased to be a part of Writers for a Cause. By crafting and marketing books spanning a variety of genres, the website has a number of professional authors who “improve quality of life through financially supporting a myriad of non-profit, non-political organizations serving communities.”

We direct the money we raise to Plan Canada International for various projects. The most recent is to help youth and young women establish small businesses in Tanzania. A portion of the proceeds of book sales is used for that purpose.

Check out the philanthropic authors at the website.

Writers for a Cause

The final results are in and Kilimanjaro and Beyond won first place in the Spiritual/Inspirational category in the Reader Views Reviewers Choice Awards. Yay!!!

I really enjoyed doing this interview with Donna Brown for her blog, Book Bags and Cat Naps. Thanks Donna!

Interview for Book Bags and Cat Naps

I am very pleased to announce that Kilimanjaro and Beyond is a finalist for an award from Reader Views in the spiritual and inspiration category. Results will be anounced sometime in March.

Stay tuned!

We are starting to plan some fantastic events for 2012 to raise more money for the micro finance project in Tanzania that will help young uneducated people, most of whom are women, start small businesses. I am happy to report that we raised $9,510 in 2011 so after the federal government contributes their share, that is $38,040 raised directly and indirectly through our projects.  Thank you to everyone who contributed!!

I just received a report from Tanzania through Plan Canada that speaks to the kind of work that was done in Year 1. A total of 94 Village Savings and Loan Associations were established in three different communities in Tanzania. This was slightly below target for the reasons mentioned below, but still an amazing accomplishment. Having seen the associations in action, it means that there are many more entrepreneurs in Africa starting self sustaining businesses so they can feed their families and send their children to school.  It is one more important step in lifting them from the cycle of poverty they have found themselves in.

The Africans face tremendous challenges that we don’t even think about and I thought it would be interesting to reprint the exact quote from the report.

“In somecommunities, participation was slow at the beginning of the program ascommunities were busy working in their fields. The farming season was a constraint as farmers migrate to farms forharvest making it difficult to get groups/people on time to Village Savings and Loan (VSL) meetings duringweek days. In the dryseason, participation rates were much more positive. A period of heavy rainsalso made some of the program areas inaccessible for Plan and Partner staff. The rainy season caused road blocks and delaysin activities. This situation persisted in Ifakara and Mwanza from March to May2011. For example, areas in Ifakara were flooded, making it difficult for VSLgroups to meet regularly as well as field visits. Due these factors, project implementation wasdelayed in both Quarter 1 and 2 of Year 1.”

In spite of the challenges, work is progressing and we are continuing our efforts to do our bit.  Stay tuned for updates on upcoming events and, of course, I would be happy to make presentations on the work we are doing.  A portion of the proceeds from our book, “Kilimanjaro and Beyond” also goes to the project.

One final point I would like to mention again is that we have partnered with the Atma Foundation in Oregon.  As mentioned in a previous post, they have already sent school supplies to the classroom we collectively helped to fund and they will continue to do so. I am grateful to Alysha Atma and her dedicated team for the work they are doing.