Material resources impact report - Winter 2025

An update on MCC material resources projects

Students pose for a group photo after receiving MCC school kits provided by the Meserete Kristos Church Development Commission (MKCDC) at Daero Tekli Elementary School in the Tigray region on 20 September 2024., Students pose for a group photo after receiving MCC school kits provided by the Meserete Kristos Church Development Commission (MKCDC) at Daero Tekli Elementary School in the Tigray region on 20 September 2024.

Ethiopia British Columbia — Feb 2025

menu_book Impact report
February 14, 2025

Supplies for Ethiopia’s young learners

Your generosity is removing barriers to education for vulnerable children
Monaliza Luel, center, and other children including Adonai Melese, left, and Melite Aregawi, right, at Daero Tekli Elementary School, hold their school supplies for a photo after receiving them in late September.
Thanks to your support, 15,000 children in Ethiopia—like Monaliza Luel (centre) and her friends—now
have essential school supplies. The civil war has made it tough for families to get basic things like
books and pencils. But that’s changing now because of generous people like you! (MCC/Arete photo)

For three years, the civil war in Ethiopia kept many children out of school. Families living in temporary shelters or with only one parent haven’t been able to afford basic school supplies. But thanks to your generosity, kids in the Tigray region now have what they need to return to school.

With the help of our partner, Meserete Kristos Church Development Commission, and volunteers like you, 15,000 children recently received school kits. These kits are giving children the tools they need to succeed, even in the face of hardship.

Watch and learn

 

QR Code for Ethiopia School Kit Distribution video.

 

 

 

Scan the QR code or click here to watch a video and learn more about the difference you’ve made in the lives of vulnerable students in Ethiopia.

Donors like you rose to the School Kit Challenge

Your support is fueling young learners in Ethiopia and around the world
Kalkidan Fistum, 13, holds the MCC school kit supplies she will use at Enda Ferensay Elementary School during the 2024–2025 school year. The kit was given to her during a distribution at Rama Secondary School, Tigray region , on September 19, 2024.
Kalkidan Fistum, 13, holds a school kit made possible by donors like you. (MCC/Arete photo)

Last summer, supporters like you came together in churches and community spaces across Canada and the U.S. to pack school kits for students in need. Each kit included vital learning tools including spiral notebooks, pencils, a ruler, pencil crayons, an eraser, pens and a pencil sharpener. Our goal was to assemble 24,000 school kits. But thanks to your participation and support, we exceeded that goal!

Together, you packed 30,349 kits and raised funds for an additional 1,460 kits. 

For Kalkidan, the civil war meant three years of missed school. “I felt terrible when I was sitting at home without attending school. Not going to school slows your mind down because you’re not learning anything.”

The supplies you helped provide mean kids like Kalkidan can finally get back to class.“We didn’t have anything, and without the donations, our families would have had to borrow money to buy supplies for us.”

Thank you for being part of this life-changing work!

Living with purpose and passion

Ken Kohlmeier standing with supplies in an MCC warehouse in British Columbia, Canada.
Ken and his wife, Linda, spend their summers beating the Arizona heat by volunteering with MCC in B.C. Their unique approach to retirement has them traveling, serving and living with purpose and passion. (MCC photo/Monet Lamphere-Ma)

Retirees Ken and Linda Kohlmeier have found a special way to escape the blazing summer Arizona heat: volunteering with MCC British Columbia.

These purposeful vacations began in 2016 and Ken and Linda have spent four summers since coming north to volunteer with MCC Thrift in Surrey and the Material Resources Centre.

“Scripture doesn’t speak about retirement except in the case of the Levitical priests who were to retire at age 50,” Ken reflects.

“The Great Commission and Great Commandment apply for our entire lives, so as God enables, we try to stay active and busy.”

Give a gift of life changing supplies

Material resources stories

Read these inspiring stories of how kits and comforters are reaching people experiencing conflict, disaster and poverty around the world. Meet the volunteers collecting and shipping kits, and the people receiving these tangible examples of God's love.