Sometimes, a chance encounter leads to something more. That’s what happened with Waste to Wonder and the Global Orphan Empowerment Academy, founded by Marie Gillen. It all started when her husband met our Operations Director Vince Smith by chance in a barbershop. The pair struck up a friendship, and in March 2021, Waste to Wonder Worldwide is now helping Marie fulfil her charity’s ambition of enhancing the quality of life for children across Western Africa.
Meet the Global Orphan Empowerment Academy
The mission of the Global Orphan Empowerment Academy (GOEA) is to give less fortunate children and orphans the chance to access opportunities that can change their lives. The GOEA works with children in deprived areas of Gambia, Senegal, and Sierra Leone.
The charity’s work encompasses every area of a child’s development, including education, physical and mental wellness, social and psychological development, and spiritual well-being. They also provide these children with food and shelter while providing them with the personal development and skills needed to break the cycle of poverty.
Marie and her organisation have been providing donations and support to hospitals and schools in The Gambia for years, with Marie carrying out humanitarian work on the ground for over 20 years.
In that time, she has provided aid to over 6,000 children, mostly in rural and underserved communities and schools. She has also visited over 3,000 children in Gambian hospitals, providing clothes and toys to poorly children, as well as crucial medical supplies to help equip the hospitals. The purpose of her work is to create a better life for children.
Marie has said, “Our vision is to see under privilege boys and girls become successful, change the lives of their families and give back to their communities.”
Her work hasn’t gone unnoticed either. In 2016, she was featured in The Gambia’s most prominent media outlet, Gambia Observer, and recognized as a Humanitarian Exemplary. In 2017, she also received an award for donating trophies to the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
Marie continued, “Without the support of organisations like Global Orphan Empowerment Academy, these children would be trapped in the cycle of poverty that leaves them with little to no opportunities in life. For these children, education is a luxury and having three hot meals a day is unheard of.”
Challenges Faced by Orphan Schools
Orphan schools, such as those supported by the Global Orphan Empowerment Academy, are lifelines for children in underserved communities, but they face a unique set of challenges every day. One of the most pressing issues is the struggle to provide quality education in environments where resources are scarce. Many orphan schools operate with limited funding, making it difficult to secure essential materials, maintain safe shelter, and offer nutritious food to the children who rely on them.
Access to qualified teachers and staff is another significant hurdle. In remote or rural areas, attracting and retaining experienced educators is a constant challenge, which can impact the consistency and quality of education. Without stable support, it becomes even harder for these academies to build a strong foundation for their students’ futures.
Technology is transforming education worldwide, but many orphan schools are left behind due to a lack of digital resources. Without computers, internet access, or up-to-date learning tools, children in these schools can miss out on vital opportunities to learn new skills and prepare for life in a rapidly changing world. This digital divide can make it harder for orphan schools to empower their students and help them compete on an equal footing.
Beyond academics, orphan schools must also address the emotional and psychological needs of their students. Many children have experienced trauma, loss, or instability, and require specialised support to heal and thrive. Unfortunately, limited resources often mean that emotional care and counselling are not always available, making it more difficult for children to overcome their challenges and build a brighter future.
Despite these obstacles, the mission of the Global Orphan Empowerment Academy remains clear: to empower children, enhance their lives, and create lasting change in their communities. By providing education, shelter, food, and emotional support, GOEA and similar organisations are helping to break the cycle of poverty and give children the chance to succeed.
The ongoing work of orphan schools depends on the support of people who believe in their mission. Whether you choose to sponsor a child, donate resources, volunteer your time, or simply share their story, every action helps to build a stronger community and a better future for children in need. As we continue to search for ways to improve the lives of orphans and underserved families, it’s clear that supporting these academies is a powerful way to create opportunity, empower the next generation, and help children reach their full potential. Join us in making a difference, together, we can help orphan schools continue their vital work and change lives for years to come.
How Waste to Wonder is helping
During March 2021, three School in a Box containers have been packed with donated furniture from our clients and are currently on their way to GOEA. These pieces of redundant furniture are being given a second life and a new purpose. The furniture will be used to furnish existing school sites or facilities, helping to support the education of children in need.
This activity is part of Challenge100, which is the target of distributing 100 School in Box containers in 2021. Each container is 40 foot and can carry up to 20 tonnes of furniture. Through this flagship programme, we’re proud to be able to play a role in enabling Marie’s organisation like many others to give these children the support they so desperately need.
Furnishing classrooms, these items will set up an environment where young people can learn and flourish. Some of the furniture is used to improve or repurpose existing sites within the community. Items will also be redistributed throughout the local community to children and parents to improve their quality of life and give them the kinds of luxury that we take for granted.
Altogether, the young people in these disadvantaged communities will be able to learn life skills, improve their living conditions and empower themselves to break the cycle of poverty.
Through our School in a Box programme, Waste to Wonder is privileged to collaborate with charities internationally, each of them with a worthwhile cause close to our hearts. We want to help these charities and organisations to continue to grow and expand, and that ambition relies on our customers.
The School in a Box programme relies on businesses choosing to Ethically Clear their redundant furniture, rather than recycle or send to landfill, and we want this approach to be the de facto choice for businesses when they need to clear their furniture.
We believe in this cause so passionately because not only is it the right thing to do ethically, but it also delivers fundamentally better results for businesses too. From offsetting carbon emissions, to saving financial costs, to making an immeasurable difference to the lives of others, it really is a win-win-win.
To date, we have also worked alongside Global Orphan Empowerment Academy to install 30 solar-powered borewells, providing clean, reliable water to over 60,000 people.
Access to water transforms daily life. Children no longer need to walk long distances to collect water, freeing up time and energy to attend school and focus on their education. Families can grow crops to feed their communities, improve food security, and generate income by selling surplus produce — creating pathways out of poverty rather than reliance on aid.
This work goes hand-in-hand with our wider commitment to long-term, community-led change. Together with the Academy, we are now building a Sustainability Cookery School in Gambia, a project designed to equip young people with practical skills in sustainable cooking, agriculture, hospitality and tourism. The school will support employment, encourage the use of local ingredients, and help create resilient local economies rooted in dignity, opportunity and self-reliance.
How redistributing your unwanted furniture can enhance your business
In most clearance projects, the sad reality is perfectly reusable furniture is sent to the bottom of the waste hierarchy. It’s either broken down into scraps for recycling or even worse, sent to landfill. When there are so many causes such as GOEA where this furniture can change lives, it doesn’t make sense. That disconnect is why Waste to Wonder exists.
Every business – in any sector – is thinking about its corporate social responsibility. It’s no longer just something that you attach to your year-end report. Consumers and clients are actively seeking information about how businesses are making a social impact and lowering their carbon footprint.
Simply by choosing our ethical clearance service and donating to our School in a Box programme, your business demonstrates its commitment to corporate social responsibility.
Every item of furniture you donate supports the work of people like Marie and the GOEA. The beneficial impact to the environment and the communities we help is substantial. Your business also saves considerable amounts in disposal costs, all you have to do is allow us to manage your office clearance project. The involvement of experts in our team ensures that each project is managed efficiently and that the positive impact is maximized for both your business and the recipient communities.
As part of our service, we track the furniture and stay in touch with our charity partners to see the positive impact of each donation. We create a legacy report that can feed into CSR policies or can be used as an effective tool to engage stakeholders. If you have a clearance project you’d like to discuss, get in touch with the team at Waste to Wonder.
