Milestones
Countdown to the Orange Ball!
The Orange Ball page is now live! Buy tickets today!
Attend our annual gala event in Scottsdale, Arizona and help us directly fund 15 rural villages in Africa. The Orange Ball will be an exciting evening at The Clayton on the Park in the beautiful setting of old town Scottsdale. We’ll highlight the villages we are working in, introducing you to the pastors and leaders who are on the ground creating sustainable grass roots level change. See and hear from the children who have new hope. Meet our long term partners and hear from those who have served in Africa and traveled to South Africa & Zambia.
Celebrate with us as we look back on what we’ve achieved but most importantly look forward to the task ahead of restoring hope and creating sustainable change in rural villages across the face of Africa.
Out with the old. In with the new.
On September 1st, at 12.30pm PT the computer button was pushed and the name Helping Hands In Africa, the logo and the old website came down. It was replaced by Orchard: Africa.
The build-up to that moment reminds me of how I felt when my children turned 21. I was excited for their future and what being an “official” adult meant, but I also felt nostalgic over the passing of their childhood. For me, the change from Helping Hands In Africa to Orchard: Africa feels like a coming of age; as if we, as an organization, have passed a particular milestone and now move into a phase of mature growth.
I welcome this new era. I am confident for our future. It is not a blind confidence. I know there will be challenges and hard work – this is inevitable. The confidence I have is in believing that God is at work in us and through us. I believe He has gone before us, that He remains protectively behind us and that He walks alongside us as we take this new road and continue along the journey He has mapped out for us.
To those of you who have been on this journey with us, I salute you.
I have walked beside many of you along a dusty road in a remote African village. I have also walked next to many more of you along the winding paths of the Phoenix Zoo as you supported our Annual Walk on the Wild Side fundraiser. I have seen so many of you come and stand beside us, shoulder to shoulder, to help carry the load and to labor with us. You have made this “our” work, “our” calling. I thank you and I salute you!
Orchard: Africa is about hope and growth and change. It is about possibilities and new beginnings. It is about life.
Michelle Tessendorf
Orchard: Africa is live!
Hello from Orchard: Africa!
After months of going through the creative process our new brand has launched. During this time we had some great ideas, some rather silly ideas and some really horrible ideas that got kicked out the door. The staff is thrilled with the end result.
Helping Hands In Africa has become Orchard: Africa. We are still the same organization but with a different name and a different brand presence. Our commitment to the vulnerable generation in Africa is still the same, if not stronger. Our model and our strategy is the same, if not improved. Our leadership and our team are more committed than ever. Our marketing and our branding have changed … to reflect our strong commitment to real, impactful and sustainable growth in the lives of the vulnerable people we serve.
Apart from the obvious changes with our name and logo and website, we have great new ways for you to engage and partner with us. We also have a new social media presence on twitter , facebook and of course this blog where you can get news from us but also where you can respond.
One of the things we’re especially proud of is the Village page on our website. This is where you can get information on each village, see where it is located on Google maps, look at photos and see our progress. This Village Report page will be updated every month with news, reports, stats, photos and anything else we can think of to keep you in the loop.
We’ve been through months of hard work but it’s been worth it. We like the results.