Aase Bonde is a 76-year-old woman. She has chosen to spend her summer this year raising money for the village Tourouba in Burkina Faso, Africa, where her dream is to establish clean water and water supply for a vegetable garden – the day her dream comes true, the 3,000 citizens in the village will be self-sufficient.
“Even though many people are worried about the pandemic, it’s still important to help other places in the world, and it has always been my goal to help in Africa – it’s never too late,” Aase smiles referring to her age.
That’s why she has been riding around Denmark on an Indian Motorcycle for two weeks to raise money, proving that it’s never too late to do what you love or make a difference in the world. “I was so lucky to be able to borrow this beautiful Indian Motorcycle from the dealer in Horsens that wanted to support my project,” says Aase.
This isn’t the first time that Aase has helped in Africa, which has been her big dream ever since studying nursing at Den Sønderjyske Sygeplejeskole, Sønderborg. Aase established a primary school with six grades in Burkina Faso. Today, that school has around 550 students of boys, girls and nine teachers. Aase co-financed the school herself as it was challenging finding sponsors for bricks and other expenses.
Furthermore, Aase has formed a soccer team, that collects the trash in their community twice a month, and a weaving club for young and vulnerable girls in the Tourouba area that also teaches nutrition and cooking skills that they can use in the future. With hospital equipment from Denmark, an x-ray department has been established as well as creating more delivery rooms and dental clinics. Six hospitals have now been upgraded through better research and treatments.
In general, the sustainable approach is important to Aase so that it is long-lasting change. To help with this, a charity association has been established named DBL-KOONSO (Danish-Burkinabe-Link)
To stay updated on their work, visit the website – www.burkinaskole.dk