As many of you know, Jason Kent has been a huge supporter of HFC. Last year he came and brought a Tippmann Boss stitcher to help our leather shop and help with a multitude of projects in Uganda. This year, his support grew even more. He returned with his wife and a (maker/hacker/genius) colleague, John. They brought over an xCarve for our hackerspace (which he purchased), a ton of Arduino gear (which he purchased), a mess of tools and diagnostic tools (which he purchased), one of six VEX EDR robots (which his son fundraised $1800 through a “lemonade stand” for, and FIN|ACK DOUBLE MATCHED for a total of a $5000 donation!), an Ultimaker 2 Go, parts and filament for our prosthetic parts project, parts and filament for our InMoov projects and SO MUCH MORE.
Some of the equipment the team brought over.
On top of this, Jason and his crew have already helped us in IMMEASURABLE ways and it’s only their first day on the ground.
You get the idea. These guys are unbelievable supporters and have done so much for us.
I found out that they were basically robbed coming through Dubai, by Emirates airlines. They flew in from United, transferred to Emirates, had to leave the airport because of the 8-hour layover, and when they checked in their bags, Emirates demanded $2600 in luggage overage fees (+$100 for an “overweight carry on”) or they could, “leave the luggage behind”. All this because they were not on a codeshare with United.
I’m sending out this plea to help raise funds to offset their expenses in any way possible. By supporting this effort, you are helping those that are helping us, brightening their trip (that is, after all a HUGE unexpected financial burden), encouraging them to “Keep on keepin’ on”, also sending a message that the community has their back and partnering with the Kent team in their attempt to bring in this amazing equipment and talent which will literally change lives here in Uganda. (Phew.. that’s a lot of benefits!)
Thank you so much for your continued support. This team has been amazingly good sports about the blow, but I know it was really tough on them, especially since they’ve done so much already. Thank you so all!
Please click here to donate to the HFC general fund.
More of the Arduino equipment brought by the team.
The unbelievable xCarve!
