CONSIDERING
CHARITY WORK?
APPLY FOR THE
AARON LEWIS AWARD
THE AARON LEWIS FOUNDATION
On 15 December 2008, Lt Aaron Lewis, of Rochford, Essex, was tragically killed in action in Afghanistan.
Aaron wanted to make a difference to the world. He wanted to bring help and hope to those in need.
That desire gave him the courage to deploy with 29 Commando Regiment to Afghanistan in September 2008. Aaron was killed just three months later; just 11 days after his 26th birthday.
Aaron’s loss has been felt deeply, but his passion for “making a difference” has lived on. In 2009 alone, Aaron’s family and friends raised over £100,000 for a collection of charities by way of marathons, sponsored cycles and rugby tournaments in Aaron’s honour.
On 15 December 2010 the Aaron Lewis Foundation (ALF) was created – its aim is to continue to make
a difference. The ALF is Aaron’s legacy – it enables family and friends to work together and to combine their charitable efforts in order to make a more significant contribution to some of the causes about which
Aaron was so passionate. The ALF is dedicated to supporting charitable initiatives (both locally and further afield)
and to helping to transform lives through sport and community.
THEAARONLEWISAWARD
This year, the ALF plans to support up to 2 outstanding young persons in their pursuit of a charitable project by offering assistance with funding for that project. This is the fourth year that the Aaron Lewis Award has been offered and whilst it is open to all students in the Southend and Rochford area, only Belfairs Academy students have a presentation delivered to them advertising the award.
If you are seriously considering doing voluntary work or some other form of charitable project when you finish your studies at the end of this or next academic year, then we invite you to apply for the Aaron Lewis Award. If we likeyour proposal, then we may provide you with a grant to cover up to half of the costs. Undertaking voluntary work can be expensive, especially if you want to do it abroad. This is a fantastic opportunity, which could allow youconsiderable help with those costs.
The Project
The ALF is open-minded about the project you choose to undertake, but in order for us tosupport you, the project MUST be genuinely charitable and must fall within the officially recorded boundaries of transforming lives through sportand community. The main focus of your plans must be to help others. A project which simply benefits you will not be considered. Some examples are provided below.
The ALF would consider granting the award to an applicant who is proposing to:
1. Go to the Philippines to spend 4 weeks in poor communities assisting medical and voluntary organisations; or
2. Go to Africa with BUNAC for 6 weeks to embark on a voluntary scheme teaching children / coaching sport to children / assisting in an orphanage etc.
However, the ALF would not consider granting the award to an applicant who is proposing:
1. To go travelling for 6 months and plans to spend a few days helping out in an orphanage whilst they are away; or
2. To go trekking in Nepal for 6 weeks (even if they were doing this on a sponsored basis to raise money for a charity).
Here are some organisations which run voluntary schemes that you might consider investigating further:
• Fields of Life - fieldsoflife.org
• Camps International (through the school)
• BUNAC -
• Raleigh International - raleighinternational.org
• Projects Abroad - projects-abroad.co.uk
• Smile International - smileinternational.org
• Gap 360 - gap360.com
The Aaron Lewis Foundation takes no responsibility for organising or underwriting your project. It is simply offering to provide you with funding assistance to embark on a project of your choosing. Responsibility for the project itself will lie with you and with the organisation running the project.
Level of Support
The ALF will provide up to 50% of the funding required for your project, subject to a cap of £1,500 per person. Therefore,if your project costs £2,000 in total and the ALF has agreed to back you, then the ALF will contribute £1,000. If your project costs are £3,000 in total, then the ALF will contribute £1,500. If your project costs are more than £3,000, then the ALF will contribute £1,500 (i.e. the maximum contribution).
Any funds will be paid directly to the organisationsrunning the projects where possible.
What we are looking for
Aaron Lewis was an exceptionally committed and dedicated young man. He always aspired to be the best he could possibly be andhe wanted to make a difference in the world.
We are looking for someone who has a well thought through plan and demonstrates a willingness to apply themselves whole heartedly to that plan. Your proposal doesn’t need to be long – we don’t want reams and reams of paper! –but it doesneed to be considered. Show us why you want to undertake the particular project that you have chosen, how you plan to go about applying yourself to the project and why you think you deserve our support. You should also include some initial ideas that you have come up with for fundraising.
Fundraising - WE WILL SUPPORT YOU
Remember that you will need to be responsible for raising a minimum of half the costs of your project.
Those involved with The ALF have built up a considerable amount of experience in fundraising. Thanks to their endeavours, in excess of £200,000 has been raised by way of initiatives associated with Aaron.
If you are successful in obtaining the Aaron Lewis Award, you can count on our backing for your fundraising activities. You can ask us for help with ideas and we will do our bestto lend hands-on assistance with any fundraising events or initiatives that you undertake.
How to Apply
To apply, you need to submit the following:
1.An application form – found on the Aaron Lewis Award section of the website – completed and emailed to the address in the ‘Contact Us’ section of the website.
2.A character referee. This should be from a responsible person who knows you well and can testify to the qualityof your character (e.g. a teacher, an employer, a coach, etc.). It should not be a family member.
If you have questions, please contact us with the subject line: ‘Aaron Lewis Award’.
Each proposal will be assessed on its merits and the granting of the Award is at the sole discretion of the ALF Trustees. The date we receive your application will dictate the year in which we would be able to grant the award. Typically, all awards are granted after application and interview before the Christmas of the tax year in which the funds are available from the ALF.
We can’t wait to receive your proposals.
FormoreinformationabouttheALFpleasevisit:
AARONLEWISFOUNDATION.ORG.UK