Dear <<First Name>> <<Last Name>>,

In spite of all the challanges that the corona virus has posed on us all, EXIST has been far from inactive since the last newsletter.

In this newsletter you can read about the reopening of Night Light Café and about what two safe houses have acheived with the support from Denmark. We have also had our first general assembly and are proud to present our new website.

Night Light Café in Copenhagen open again after lockdown

June 25th, just before 3 am, the night café on Vesterbro opened again.

During the last part of the Corona lockdown of Denmark some of our volunteers walked the street of Istedgade in Copenhagen some very early mornings, carrying tea and sweets in a basket for the Nigerian women.

On June 25th the new Corona regulations allowed our Night Light Café for these women to be open each Thursday morning from 3 until am as before.

The first 3 times only very few of the women came for a visit, a cup of tea and a small meal in the cozy room below the church on Vesterbro Torv. But the 4th time it was open, the café had 10 visitors who enjoyed a little break and a chat with each other and the volunteers. Once or twice one of the Nigerian women also spontaneously started singing – and others quickly joined in.

Physical closeness is currently not permitted, however. We must adhere to the many strict rules demanded by our host and by society regarding distance, extra careful cleaning of handles, tables etc. in order to keep the risk of spreading Corona at a minimum. The summer of 2020 is not a time for hugs. Nevertheless it does offer the opportunity for emotional presence.

Donations from you and EXIST gave new hope to 2 safehouses

2 Nigerian safehouses each received 84.000 DKK from the sale of safehouse shares and other donations collected in 2019 and the first half of 2020. They explain below how they spent the money.

Click here if you want to know more or to buy shares in safehouses.

THANK YOU from Daughters of Abraham Foundation

Margaret Bargo, Director of Daughters of Abraham Foundation safehouse, says thank you.

”THANK YOU to all contributors who have supported Daughters of Abraham in 2019 and 2020.

Your contributions have resulted in several practical investments and made it possible to develop our vision further.

• The women now have a well-equipped kitchen for cooking and a comfortable dining room

• Damaged doors and old mattresses have been replaced with new ones

• Staff has become better equipped to give medical help and treatment

• We have bought rabbits which creates an income, and the dining room is now so nice that we can make money by renting it out for conferences, weddings etc. This is important as we wish to be able to be self-sustainable to as large as extend as possible as well as to teach the women who live her to do the same.

THANK YOU from the bottom our hearts for the support which makes it possible for Daughters of Abraham to make an ever better effort for humankind!”

THANK YOU from Greater Love Lighthouse

Fula Bulus, Director of Greater Love Lighthouse, says thank you.

”We thank everyone for your commitment and amazing efforts to support our work aimed at helping the women here. We express our best and warmest wishes for each of you for your support which has made it possible to carry out the daily work and develop the vision for our safehouse.

Many women have experienced a new start in life and are in the process of developing skills which enable them to create a sustainable future with self-sufficiency and a life as good citizens of Nigeria.

Our focus is

• Growing fruit and vegetables

• Chicken farm

• Creating jewelry

• Primary school/education

• Sewing/tailoring

Greater Love Lighthouse was able to do renovate furniture, to paint and do other maintenance of the building.

We continue to prioritize education of the staff.

Thank you for your donation. You are part of making another person’s dream a reality.”

EXIST’s AGM via ZOOM - with video from safehouse

The AGM took place via ZOOM and was transmitted in real time on Facebook. In the green frame is our partner, Anne Abok, who was with us for appr. 30 minutter from Nigeria.

There were ”visitors” all the way from Nigeria at EXIST’s AGM in Copenhagen on June 3rd. It was shown on our Facebook page and offered a real-time update from Anne Abok in Nigeria, our partner and International Director of the NGO MeCAHT.

Anne told us about the situation in Nigeria and gave us all new hope that in spite of the pandemic a lot of positive things are happening, and a lot more are about to happen as soon as circumstances allow.

Also representatives for Greater Love Safehouse i Nigeria were ”present” at the AGM in the sense that they’d sent a video beforehand. It was shown on the day and allowed us to “walk through” the house, to see the women’s production of Corona face masks, and let us enjoy a lot of beautiful jewelry they sell on the markets.

The wellbeing is pretty high in this safehouse as well in spite of the Corona crisis and there is hope for the future.

The women in Greater Love Lighthouse sew face masks in large quantities at the moment. Photo from the video.

You may see the AGM in its full length here. If you only want to watch the video from the house in Nigeria, start at 14:27 and meet Fula Bulus who’ll show you around: https://www.facebook.com/exist.danmark/videos/953089688452778/

All 5 board members continue their work in the now just over 1 year old NGO. In the video you can see each of them introduce themseles and talk about why they do this voluntary work. You can also find a portrait and see the name of each boardmember here.

New and more user-friendly homepage

A totally different platform and a fair amount of work has made our homepage function better on mobile phones. Also, we have updated some of the information.

Here, you can read about both EXIST and the NGO’s visions and activities. You may also find a lot of information about human trafficking here on the new homepage: https://exist-ngo.org.

You can make a big difference for relatively small money

At the moment, less than 200 people are members of EXIST, but as soon as we reach 300, people who wish to donate money to specific projects or generally to the NGO, may deduct the money on their Danish tax form. This may mean a lot to our activities and how many people we are able to help.

Also, a good and broad membership base is important for an organisation. It means commitment and a steady income – even when membership is as relatively inexpensive as here: Just over half a Danish Krone per day which is the equivalent of 200 DKK per year.

Click here to become a member. It only takes a moment.

THANK YOU for your commitment!

EXIST is making a holistic effort against human trafficking. We prioritze the following three focus areas:

• Advocacy through awareness and preventive information activities
• Rehabilitation and reintegration
• Capacity building and competence development.

Feel free to contact Project Manager Karin Kjærgaard: kk@EXIST-ngo.org / 0045 40 14 34 35.