JULIA

Casa Mea’s first child, Julia, was abandoned at birth by her mother in the maternity hospital. A doctor at the hospital eventually named Julia and completed her birth certificate. When she arrived at Casa Mea she was very sickly; suffering from low birth weight, anemia and rickets. She is now a thriving 3 and a half year old who attends kindergarten and loves to sing, dance, and play outside.

AND ADDED ADDITIONAL CHILDREN

Because Casa Mea received its accreditation and license from the Romanian authorities to operate a children's home, in May of 2007, three more children arrived at Casa Mea. These children were also ill when they arrived; suffering from intestinal parasites, anemia, and dental caries.

Amalia, at 8 years of age, is the eldest of the three siblings. She is in the second grade and loves to draw and color. She is also very helpful with the younger children.

Maria is 6 years old and in her last year of kindergarten. She is our little cheerleader, always encouraging the other children to sing and dance.

Octavian, who is 3, goes to kindergarten with Julia and is all boy. He loves to play in dirt with his cars and trucks!

CASA MEA’S MISSION STARTED WITH ONE HOUSE...AND RENOVATIONS CONTINUE

Casa Mea purchased its first house in Prejmer, Romania. The house was an old working farmhouse. In addition to housing a three generational family, it also housed several chickens, cows, and pigs and had its own hayloft. When you enter the gate onto Casa Mea’s property there is a central courtyard. The main house is on the right. It now has 6 rooms and 4 bathrooms. When completed, it will have 4 more rooms and two more bathrooms for the children. Also the main house has an office, a laundry room, a bunkhouse for short-term volunteers and it will have a small apartment for long-term volunteers. On the left side of the courtyard there is a two-car garage and a smaller house. The smaller house will eventually be rebuilt and house the live-in caretakers. The courtyard is a play area for the smaller children whereas the huge barn at the end of the courtyard will become an indoor sports arena/play area for the older children. Behind the barn is a large vegetable garden and field.

Renovations on the main house started in June of 2004. Since that time, the house has undergone significant structural and functional changes. As a result of these changes, in January 2007, Casa Mea's house was accredited as a home for children by the local Romanian authorities and in the Spring, Casa Mea received its license from the national Romanian authorities to operate a home for children.

THE HOUSE

Casa Mea has

• replaced all the dirt floors on the ground level with concrete
• removed the chicken coop, cow and pig stalls
• reinforced the foundation
• replaced wood burning stoves with central heating
• added thermal insulated windows & doors
• replace the old water pipes
• replaced old electrical wiring
• added gutters to all the buildings on the property
• created a bunkhouse, laundry room, office and 2 storage areas
• totally renovated the kitchen, dining room, and added a coat room and mud room
• totally renovated 3 bedrooms and a playroom
• added 4 bathrooms
• added a concrete stairway to the 3rd level
• created an outdoor play area for the children
• replaced old fences
• purchased most of the furniture, including bedding, towels, dishes, pots and pans
• purchased a car
• replaced the entire roof on the main house
• replaced old open septic lines with a closed system
• entirely replaced the oldest section of the house

Replacing dirt floors with all concrete floors
New section of the house	New kitchen
New Roof	New Bathroom

This progress on the house was made possible by volunteer work teams and generous donations from people just like you!

SUPPORT CASA MEA’S MISSION: HERE IS HOW

1. Make a financial donation

Share a financial gift with Casa Mea and support our mission

Our goals for the next two years are ambitious but our accomplishments so far inspire us to push forward. Our goals for the coming years are

Completion target date 2007

Donate Now:

By credit card: by clicking on "Make a Donation"

By check: Mail your donation to Casa Mea, 6705 Shadow Crest Drive, Plano TX 75093

By automatic withdrawal: contact Melanie Clark, Treasurer, for details at 972-306-6705 or mel@casamea.org

Donate Appreciated Stock:

Instead of making cash gifts, you can avoid paying capital gains tax on the appreciated value of your assets and receive a tax deduction of up to 30% of your AGI by making a gift fo appreciated securities directly to Casa Mea. Please contact Melanie Clark, Treasurer, for details at 972-306-6705 or mel@casamea.org

Donate While Shopping online:

Casa Mea has a great new fundraising tool and it's so easy to incorporate into your everyday online ordering for many products/services. www.iGive.com will donate $5.00 to Casa Mea for the first purchase made within 45 days of registering. Plus the purchase itself will generate from 2.5% to usually 6% of the purchase price for Casa Mea. Just log on to www.iGive.com and sign up - choose Casa Mea as your recipient cause. There are over 650 retailers - many of them recognizable. Sign up today. Every purchase made through iGive's website will generate much needed donations for Casa Mea.

2. Sponsor a Child

A Child Sponsor provides a monthly donation which is dedicated to providing on-going day to day care and support for a particular Casa Mea child. This enable the donor (s) to develop a relationship with a child while helping that child reach his/her full potential. We estimate that we need $300 per month per child. In exchange for your monthly donation, Casa Mea will keep you personally informed of the child's progress with quarterly updates and pictures of your sponsored child. More than one person may sponsor a child. All it takes is 3 people donating $100 a month to support a child?

3. Volunteer

Volunteer work teams

Work teams are groups of volunteers who devote their holiday/vacation time to come to Prejmer for a week or two to complete a specific renovation project on the house. These teams generally consist of both skilled and unskilled workers and may even consist of support personnel such as a cook. These teams are invaluable to Casa Mea. For instance, a team of five men from Northern Ireland worked from sun up to sun down for a little over a week installing the kitchen. In addition, they donated all the materials and appliances. Another work team from the UK worked solidly for a week to complete the dining room, coatroom, and bathroom. This team also donated all the materials and supplies with the money they raised prior to coming to Prejmer. Four brave American women spent several days scrapping layer after layer of old paint off the walls.

These teams provide their own transportation to Romania and their own accommodations while they are here. However, in the future, Casa Mea hopes to be able to provide free accommodation in its bunkhouse if future work teams desire to stay on site during the project.

If you are interested in forming a work team to help with these renovations, please contact Jan at jan@casamea.org.

4. Visit us

If you would like to see first hand the house in Prejmer, meet the children and explore Romania, please pay us a visit. We would love to see you all!

5. Adopt Casa Mea/Spread the word

You can make your employer or your church or your school aware of Casa Mea's mission and ask them to "adopt" Casa Mea as its special charity. Then as a group, you and your colleagues can support Casa Mea. Or you can simply spread the word of Casa Mea to your friends and family. Send your friends and family the Casa Mea News and/or tell them about Casa Mea's mission.


6. Host A Fund Raising Party

You can host a fund raising party in your home. All you have to do is invite some of your friends to your home for hors d' oeuvres, or a barbecue, or whatever type of party you would enjoy and, in exchange, ask your friends to make a contribution to Casa Mea.

THANK YOU

You can donate now simply by clicking on the “Donate Now” button or you may mail your donation to Casa Mea, 6705 Shadow Crest Drive, Plano, TX 75093.