Before my first visit back to Ethiopia in 2008 (since leaving in 1974), my son had been clearing his room and given me lots of unwanted pens and pencils to take with me to give to kids – I purchased simple pencil cases and filled them with these items to donate to children. As soon as I got to Addis, I was immediately struck by the multitudes of children (the population had more than doubled in my over thirty years absence) and handing children pencil cases was something useful and always well received. In fact some children couldn’t believe the simple pencil case was just for them – they expected to share the contents with siblings or classmates. …. Once I realised that a simple pencil case was a meaningful gift and helped support a child’s education, that is quite simply how Project Pencil Case started and evolved from a simple hobby into a registered charity. Just as it it started out as a grassroots charity, so it remains and continues to operate as a grassroots charity.
Beyond donating thousands of Pencil Cases over the years, PPC has been able to provide schools and students with vital school furnishings including desks, chairs, academic and reading books, blackboards and uniforms. We also provide scholarships and in 2021 during the conflict in Northern Ethiopia we began supporting Feeding programs.
Project Pencil Case partners with Arakele Fashion Design College in producing Pencil Cases, Uniforms and Period Kits.
Arabella Stewart 