One Hen from Kids Can Press: An Inspiring Story of a Child's Determination to Escape Poverty

26 Feb 2008 11:30 Africa/Lagos


One Hen from Kids Can Press: An Inspiring Story of a Child's Determination to Escape Poverty

CHAPPAQUA, N.Y., Feb. 26 /PRNewswire/ --

While children in Western countries usually don't worry about access to food, shelter, and the opportunity to attend school, three billion people worldwide struggle to live on less than $2 a day. Kids Can Press, publishers of Ryan and Jimmy, One Well, and If the World Were a Village, is known for its books that raise kids' social consciousness. One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference, written by Katie Smith Milway and illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes, encourages children ages 7 and up to think about the power we each have to initiate positive changes in the world. In addition, children can play online games to experience the impact a small loan has on a virtual village at www.onehen.org. The One Hen website also features video stories, links to microlending organizations, and special sections for parents, teachers, and librarians.


One Hen tells the story of Kojo, a boy from Ghana who uses the proceeds from a small loan to build a thriving farm. Kojo's story demonstrates the impact that microloans -- a lending system for people in developing countries who have no collateral and no access to conventional banking -- can have on one boy and his community.


At the end of Milway's fictional tale, children learn the true story of Kwabena Darko, the inspiration for One Hen. Mr. Darko built the largest poultry operation in East Africa and now sits on the board of Opportunity International, one of the world's biggest microcredit lending organizations. One Hen also explains the microloan system and offers information about relevant organizations for families to explore.


Author Katie Smith Milway has lived in Africa and worked with village banking programs. "When I stumbled on Kwabena Darko's story, I knew I had found a way to tell children about the power that one small loan can have to change lives," she says. Illustrator Eugenie Fernandes referenced an extensive collection of East African photographs so that her evocative and colorful illustrations would reflect Ghana accurately.


For more information about One Hen and microlending, visit www.onehen.org.


Source: Kids Can Press

CONTACT: Raab Associates Inc. for Kids Can Press, +1-914-241-2117,
info@raabassociates.com


Web site: http://www.onehen.org/


NOTE TO EDITORS: Kwabena Darko available for interviews in New York March 3-4; Katie Smith Milway available on an ongoing basis in Boston and New York.

World's Richest People: Homes of Billionaires

Matt Woolsey's story in the Forbes on the awesome palatial homes of billionaires is worth reading.

He tells us about the $56 billon man Bill Gates' 66,000-square foot compound built into a Medina, Wash., hillside, the home outside Seattle, has a 1,000-square foot dining room, domed roof library with secret chambers, 60-foot pool and five acres of space could host quite a launch party for future editions.

The London home of steel baron Lakshmi Mittal, ranked No. 5 on our list, is tucked between Kensington Palace and the Sultan of Brunei's spread. In 2004 Mittal paid $128 million for the townhouse, the highest single-home buy of all time, and situated in what is known as "Billionaire's Row." Mittal's mansion has garage space for 20 cars and is embellished with marble taken from the same quarry that supplied the Taj Mahal.

Just click on the title for more.

See the pictures.

Bill Gates Denied Visa To Visit Nigeria

There is this joke making the rounds online by Xight on Gizmodo that Nigeria recently denied Bill Gates a visa to travel there on his recent trip to Africa. The initial denial was "on the premise that they required proof he would not reside in Nigeria indefinitely, causing a strain on social services and a general nuisance for immigration."

This my joke of the year!

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" is Out!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is out!

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The Final Chapter

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh and final book in J.K. Rowling's magical Harry Potter series is released Satruday July 21, 2007.

The first copies of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows have been sold in London and Tokyo to hundreds of thousands of fanatics who kept vigil at the book stores overnight.

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Harry Potter Made J.K. Rowling The World's First Billion-Dollar Author*

After being rejected by a series of publishers, Barry Cunningham, then of Bloomsbury publishers, signed up Rowling and the author and company never looked back. * Rowling has sold 325 million copies of the first six books of the seven-book series about young wizard Harry Potter, his adventures at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and his battles with evil foe Lord Voldemort.* The seven books are called: "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" (published in 1997 and as "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the United States in 1998), "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" (1998), "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" (1999), "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" (2000), "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (2003), "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" (2005), "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" (2007).*

The final instalment has been released Saturday July 21.

Warner Bros. have distributed four Harry Potter movies so far, amassing a worldwide box office tally of around $3.5 billion. The fifth is in cinemas now.* Daniel Radcliffe, who soon turns 18, has played the central role of Harry throughout the film series, turning him into a household name in Britain. He has signed up to star in the final two films.

From Yahoo News.

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