Dear Friends,

This past year has been one of incredible learning and growth for In a Perfect World. We successfully supported Girl Prep & launched our first series of Youth Ambassador service projects. Last week I had the privilege of visiting with a non-profit organization called Akanksha in Mumbai, India. Akanksha's mission is to equip children with the education, skills and character they need to lead empowered lives. As you can see, our missions are closely aligned!

Akanksha focuses on children living in Mumbai's slums. A commitment is made to support each child by giving him or her a strong educational foundation, a good time, self esteem and values, and to help them plan how they can earn a steady livelihood as a step towards improving their standard of living. I had the opportunity to visit the slums to see where the children live. It was an eye-opening experience. I met families living in cramped 6x6 rooms with no ventilation or running water, many of them single-parent households with several children. Somehow though, everywhere I went, I was greeted with smiling faces. And at the school where I volunteered the children welcomed me with open arms, calling me "Didi" or "big sister".

As you all know, Mumbai was the site of horrific terrorism last week. After spending my last day with the children at school, I found myself at the center of the chaos as my hotel was attacked. I am grateful to have narrowly escaped & I am now safely back in North America. But my heart is with the people of Mumbai as they struggle to make sense of what happened there. I feel compelled to help them, particularly those directly affected by this senseless tragedy. So in addition to the work we will do to support Akanksha's mission, I am pleased to announce that we have decided to expand our reach in India with Project Mumbai.

We all truly appreciate your support and encourage you to join us in our commitment to help the children of Mumbai.

Sincerely,

Manuela Testolini
Founder, In a Perfect World®
December 3, 2008