Since our last project, two of our members, Gina and Manu have moved to Mumbai. While we were sad to see them leave, we are excited about the prospects of having a few Bringing Smiles projects in India. In fact, end of August they pulled off a spontaneous soccer event at the “Jan Vikas Society” orphanage for boys in Navi Mumbai, a home for 36 street children. What was planned to get be an initial get together with Gina, Father Francis (caretaker) and the children turned out be a memorable, fun filled afternoon for everyone involved. Gina was discussing her plans to meet Father Francis...

Als Gina uns fragte, ob wir für „Bringing Smiles“ einige Projekte unterstützen würden, war uns klar: „Wir sind sofort dabei“. Unsere ersten Erfahrungen konnten wir schon bei dem Projekt „Garden“ sammeln und stürzten uns voller Vorfreude in unser zweites Projekt. „Cooking for Smiles“. Gina hatte uns vorher erzählt, dass die Menschen in der Einrichtung „Shelter“, einer Tagesstätte für Obdachlose der Diakonie Düsseldorf, jeden Tag Frühstück und warme Mahlzeiten bekommen können. Das Essen ist subventioniert und kann für einen geringen Betrag gekauft werden. Doch...

Bringing Smiles wollte den Gästen der Obdachloseneinrichtung in Düsseldorf einen besonderen Tag bescheren. An diesem Tag hatten sie die Möglichkeit, ein Drei-Gänge-Menü kostenlos zu genießen. Besonderer Wert wurde darauf gelegt, den Gästen die Möglichkeit zu geben, etwas Außergewöhnliches zu essen, was ihnen sonst nicht geboten werden kann. Als Vorspeise gab es eine Spinatcremesuppe, als Hauptgang ein Rumpsteak mit kleinen Kartoffeln und buntem Gemüse und als Nachtisch eine Mascarponecreme mit frischen Erdbeeren. Die Gäste wurden mit einem Kaffee begrüßt, welcher auch die Wartezeit...

I learned about the ‘Bringing Smiles’ initiative not a long time ago. After a quick catch up with Gina to understand a bit better the whole idea of the organisation, she told me that the next project on the schedule was going to take place in an orphanage in Köln. That was enough for me to decide to join the group. Learning about the preparation of the project was already very inspiring. The agenda was pretty clear: a rock garden, repaint garden furniture, trim hedges and set up the (Brazilian!) hammock we brought as a present. It all started at 9h15 on a sunny Sunday in Düsseldorf....

Sometimes, opportunities are given – and we just need to take them. I had to go on a business trip to Johannesburg, South Africa. And thanks to a great manager I was allowed to leave a day earlier than initially planned. A whole day was given to me and what I would use it for was more than clear. Bringing smiles :) From one to the other day Dynal managed to get me in touch with Daisy, an old school friend from Zambia, who is currently based in Johannesburg. Thanks to her we managed to come up with this project to bring smiles to children in South Africa. We’ve targeted Soweto, a township...

How did it start? Our group of friends decided to have a vacation in Mumbai and celebrate the new year's eve there. During that time the idea of this organization was budding. We thought of this as a wonderful opportunity to kick start our mission of bringing smiles. And in deed the smiles on the innocent Indian children we met are unforgettable and precious! So how did it all happen? Enter Diveagar.... 28th Dec 2011 Diveagar Beach is located approximately 170 kilometers south of Mumbai. After checking in we decided to visit some nearby villages and experience the life there. As we reached...