How do I participate in this project?
It's simple – just write a message from your heart and mail your card/letter to Hearts in Unity at our USA address. Your card/letter will then be shipped to one of our Tanzanian villages and hand-delivered to a child, teacher, other adult, or to a family who is in need of your words of encouragement.
For those recipients who are not able to speak English, your card/ letter will be translated for them into their native language of Swahili. Each handwritten card/letter you send is a blessing and will surely be treasured, kept close at heart, and read over and over.
What type of card/paper should I use?
You can write your message on colorful notepaper, a notecard, or on a picture postcard. If you like, you can decorate your letter/card with drawings, stickers, etc.
If you'd like to draw/color your own designs on blank postcards, click HERE for our POSTCARDS document that you can print on heavy paper (cardstock), cut into 4 postcards, and decorate as you wish.
Recycling colorful greeting cards you've received from others is a wonderful idea. If you are using recycled greeting cards, simply cut off the front of the greeting card and use it as a postcard, writing your message on the blank side of the recycled greeting card front cover. Using recycled Christmas cards is just fine as we do deliver cards in Tanzania around the Christmas holiday. However, please avoid using recycled greeting cards that have phrases such as “Happy Birthday,” “Get Well,” “Happy Mothers/Fathers Day” or other similar “special occasion” messages.
No separate envelopes for your individual written cards/lettters are necessary (the extra weight just adds to your postage costs and to our costs to ship the cards/letters to Tanzania).
Can I write more than one card/letter?
Of course! You are more than welcome to write more than one card/letter and to invite your family and friends to write cards/letters also. This is a wonderful project for a school, church, or community group. Multiple cards/letters can be sent to Hearts in Unity in the same envelope/package. You are also welcome, if you like, to include a photos of yourself or your family with your cards/letters.
Will I receive a reply from my card/letter?
With the thousands of cards/letters we deliver to the children in our Tanzanian villages each year, we are not able to provide individual replies to your cards/letters. We do, however, post photos on our website of the school children who receive these “Messages from the Heart” so you can see the smiles and delight these cards/letters bring.
What should I write?
A short, simple message with a greeting and words of encouragement is best. Please personalize your card/letter by including your first name/signature.
Need a few ideas on what to write?
• Share a little about you and your family…names, ages, where you are writing from (city, state)
• Share a simple message of compassion, hope, encouragement and friendship
• Please avoid asking questions as the recipient will not have an opportunity to reply directly to you
Including the following verse in your letter (especially if you write the message in Swahili) would be especially encouraging and familiar to the recipient:
Please also consider including all or some of the following verse in your letter so that the recipient can
read part of the letter in their native language of Swahili:
Haya ndiyo ninayokutakia katika maisha yako...
Bwana awabariki na kuwalinda,
Bwana awainulie uso wake na kuwabariki,
Bwana awaangazie nuru ya uso wake na kuwapa amani.
The translation is included below (you do NOT need to include the English translation in your letter):
This is what I wish for you in your life...
May the Lord bless you and protect you,
May the Lord be kind and gracious to you,
May the Lord look on you with favor and give you peace.
If you like, you can include additional Swahili in your letter also. The following phrases would be appropriate.
Where should I mail my card/letter?
All cards/letters should be mailed to the following address.
Multiple letters can be mailed in the same envelope/package.
Hearts in Unity
“Messages from the Heart”
P.O. Box 41
Germantown, WI 53022 USA
If you are sending a large quantity of cards/letters from the USA, the U.S. Postal Service has flat-rate boxes that will help minimize your postage costs when mailing your cards/letters to Hearts in Unity. Monetary donations to Hearts in Unity to help offset our subsequent shipping costs to Tanzania are always appreciated. Our cost for shipping cards to Tanzania
is currently, on average, about $3 per pound.
Please include the form below (or note with similar information) with your cards/letters.
Send a "Message from the ♥ Heart"
In the unique project
“Message from the ♥ Heart”
you can share a
heart-felt message of greeting,
friendship and encouragement
with a child in Tanzania.
As the 5th poorest country in the world, the average household income in Tanzania is less than $400 a year, and families often comprised of at least 6 people struggle to survive on less than $1 a day. At this heartbreaking poverty level, many parents struggle to feed their children even one simple meal per day.
For the 2.5 million orphans in this third-world country, the challenges of daily life are even more overwhelming. It's easy to get discouraged and lose hope when this is the life you face day after day.
But you can help make a difference!
Bwana asifiwe! Nayaweza mambo yote katika yeye anitiaye nguvu.
Praise the Lord! I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
♥ Hearts in Unity ♥ P.O. Box 41 ♥ Germantown, WI 53022 USA ♥
© 2008 - 2010 Hearts in Unity
All rights reserved
Please Print
My First Name _____________________________ Last Name _______________________________________
Organization Name (If Applicable) _______________________________________________________________
Mailing Address ______________________________________________________________________________
City, State, Zip Code __________________________________________________________________________
Yes, I would like to receive Hearts in Unity periodic newsletter updates by email.
My email address is: ________________________________________________________________________
Jambo............................Hello
Habari yako...................How are you
Mimi ni mzima................I am fine
Jina langu ni _____.......My name is _______
Uwe na siku njema........Have a good day
Amani ikae nanyi..............Peace be with you
Bahati njema....................Good luck
Anapendwa......................You are loved Mungu akubariki sana......God bless you
Mungu awalinde...............God watch over you
For a printer-friendly version
of this information, click here
For a printer-friendly version of this information, click here
Feed them, clothe them, educate them, love them.
Reaching out to the children of Tanzania, Africa, with hearts in unity...
making a difference.... changing lives... one precious child at a time.
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Message from the ♥ Heart
Cards delivered so far:
Received from 35 countries so far: Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rica, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Helvetia, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore. Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, and the USA (Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin)
5,244
Click on photos above to enlarge
For printable postcards you can decorate yourself, click here
To receive a postcard of thanks from a child in Tanzania as a thank you for a gift of school supplies, click here
