• Ouch My Eye: our fabulous hosts –thanks for not only letting us use their fabulous space but also donating their time to help set up for the event. Please support them by visiting their gallery and café at 1022 1st Ave South and at www.ouchmyeye.com.
• Food and Drinks: IMAGINiT provided the wine, Pryamid Brewery (www.pyramidbrew.com) the beer, and  Tup Tim Thai (118 W. Mercer Str.) the pad thai.
• The Berger Partnership provided the graphics and postage for the postcard and web.
• Motrecraft, for their inspiring musical performance
• Darith Marith of Coldwell Banker Bain, who presented a check for $1,694, his second major contribution to AWB-Seattle through the Community Partnership Program – see below!

Please return the favor to all these supporters by supporting them in return – we owe them a huge debt of gratitude and look forward to continuing to partner with them in the future.

Help AWB year round by referring Dararith (Darith) Marith dmarith@cbba.com to anyone you know with any real estate related needs.

• We have hired a development consultant and are broadening our fundraising efforts
• We are poised to begin searching for an executive director

Goal Two: Cultivate and Broaden Volunteer Participation

• We are developing a new Project Volunteer Handbook
• We are working to secure commitment of design firms to support volunteers through paid staff time / benefits
• We are expanding local projects to provide frequent opportunities for volunteer involvement through workdays / community charettes.

Goal Three: Strengthen Existing Relationships and Nurture New Projects

• We are recruiting new volunteers to existing projects
• We are working to establish an on-site presence wherever possible to support community-based design
• Determine geographical regions as well as areas of new project focus
• We have initiated a number of new project contacts and our project portfolio is growing

Goal Four: Expand Financial Support

• We are developing our current donor base to encourage repeat and increased donations
• We are seeking support from employee funds of local corporations
• We continue to hold fund-raising events

Deb Jensen, our new development consultant, has done a tremendous job of preparing us to solicit grant funding. With her help we are poised to take our commitment to provide design services to communities in need to the next level. Thank you so much for you help and advice Deb!

Ventarron, Peru
AWB- Seattle is working with the Museo Tumbas Reales de Sipan and the community of Ventarron, Peru to design a bamboo roof to protect the oldest murals in the Americas and develop a master plan for community-based tourism in the townof Ventarron. This August, three AWB volunteers, Stephanie Wascha, Keasa Jone and Ben Spencer are travelling to Ventarron to prepare for roof construction and work with community members to further refine their vision for the future. Tasks completed while on-site will include;

• Assess bamboo cultivation, harvesting and preservation in the region and specify bamboo sources and preservation processes.
• Specify and price building materials in addition to bamboo
• Meet with government officials to facilitate permitting process
• Teach community members how to build bamboo trusses
• Evaluate new areas of archeological excavation as they relate to the roof design and adjust footing layout to assure they will have minimal impact
• Conduct community planning workshops to flush out community priorities

Please see the design of the Ventarron roof structure here and be sure to attend the Ventarron event this coming September.

School and Vocational Training Center, San Miguel Escobar, Guatemala
Architects without Borders-Seattle has been working with the community of San Miguel Escobar in Guatemala, Seattle-based non-profit Global Visionaries and As Green As It Gets on the design of a new school complex and vocational training center. This project will serve as a prototype for sustainable, community-built education and local enterprise facilities in Guatemala. The project has benefited significantly from a great number of volunteers and we have recently completed preliminary schematic design.
We are pushing forward with design documentation in the month of August in order for our partners to begin the first phase of construction in September. Several of our team members will be heading to San Miguel Escobar to help coordinate the project.

The first phase will involve the design of two classrooms to be built by volunteers from the community and Seattle this Fall.