Overshadowing Macedonia during the year, thousands of asylum seekers and migrants from war-torn Syria and the Middle East arrived at the country’s border.

Once Macedonian authorities understood the desired destination of these unfortunate travelers, the tiny country opened its doors to provide a safe pathway to the north and the European Union countries. The impact of this historic exodus has yet to be fully realized. Macedonia, no doubt, will be impacted more in the future.

Meanwhile the Macedonia Schools Project had grants to distribute and school supplies and books to ship.

Grants

This year we had two funding cycles thanks to the Oregon Community Foundation, the Speroff Family foundation and several other donors.
In the spring we provided three mini-grants for a total of $1,000:
• Bratstvo-Edinstvo School, Ohrid: Balls and PE equipment
• Vanco Nikoleski School, Leskoec: A lap-top computer
• Josep Broz “Tito” School, Struga: Maps for all four schools
We greatly appreciated Boardmember Vesna Verzioska’s work in distributing the funds to the local schools.

In September we distributed three more mini-grants for a total of $3,500
• Bratstvo-Edinstvo School, Ohrid: Two CD players, two chalk/white boards, math flashcards and window improvements for the English Resource Center.
• Vanco Nikoleski School in Leskoec and Kuratica: Two CD players & two projectors
• Josep Broz “Tito” School, Struga: A projector, lap-top, maps, dissection kit, balls and other PE equipment.
Photos of many of these items appear on the MSP website at: www/makschools.info.

Boxes for schools

Throughout the year we sent several boxes packed with books and school supplies. Ken Wanderer, a former Portland teacher, donated several dozen math books. Members of Podkrepa in Portland, Oregon, donated many books and school supplies. Podkrepa continues to support the Lasker Chess Club at Bratstvo School especially through the efforts of Bob Bouneff. Our last box of the year went to Vanco Nikoleski School in Kosel. It contained numerous school supplies donated by Blazo Mitasev.

Volunteer teaching experience

Unfortunately we did not find anyone to volunteer for the summer teaching program. We hope to recruit candidates for 2016.

Other stuff

As of November we now have 189 likes on the Macedonia School Project active Facebook Page. The MSP website is receiving about 100 hits a month. Gradually the word is getting out. Also we now have a convenient PayPal donation site on the website for our contributors.

We thank all who have contributed to the Macedonia Schools Project over the years. Special thanks go to the teachers, students and staff of the schools involved. Due to their dedicated assistance and enthusiasm we have accomplished much.