African orphanages / schools to penpal with?

Question

in my high school we are part of a club called Z.E.B.R.A.S (zulu education through books recouces and sciences) and we donate to kids at a missionary school in kwazulu-natal region that my teacher is familiar with. i was hoping to get together penpals from this area, or any part of africa that me and my classmates can penpal with, from schools or orphanages or anything. if anybody has any ideas or helpful info that could get me started thatd be great!! =]

Answer 1

It's a great idea but Kwazulu-Natal is different than the US.

Most kids would not be able to afford to send a letter to the US on a regular basis.  Paper and pencils are also a very cherished item.

When you send a letter/package to someone in South Africa, the postal service charges the recipient to pick up the letter or package.  The bigger the package, the higher the cost of the "pick up fee".  

It's a wonderful idea and I've wanted to do it myself but the postage costs make it difficult, especially for orphanages who are already strapped for money.  We have found that if they have access to a computer, email or web cams are possible.  South Africa has sketchy electricity issues and they must pay to use the Internet.  It's not like in the US, if you leave your computer on, they will charge you for using the Internet all day.

Maybe you could do a fund raiser to get a computer, web cam and they regularly send money to cover the cost of using the Internet.  If that's not possible, we find missionaries traveling to and from South Africa willing to pick up and drop off letters from/for friends.

I admire your interest, heart and drive.  I hope you can figure something out!