Herzlichen Dank! — Emergency Fundraiser Update

Dear JYF and AYF Alumni, dear Friends of the Academic Year in Freiburg,

We know the initial months of the pandemic have been a major stress test for everyone on a personal level. And at the time none of us could have foreseen how deep the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic would be on a global scale.

It is worth remembering one more in gratitude that in the midst of this initial uncertainty, our international community of AYF alumni collectively raised more than $11,000 for students facing immediate financial crisis within a few short weeks.

Your generosity made an immediate impact. Every cent of that $11,000 was disbursed in the spring of 2020 to help ten 2019-20 AYF students who need money to pay for basic living expenses like rent, health care, tuition, and groceries.

Your support meant that Allison Libbe, a 2019-20 AYFer and emergency aid recipient, was able to remain on track to graduate despite the additional tuition costs of studying during the summer. Thank you so much for supporting Allison on her academic path to graduation!

Thank you so very much for selflessly giving to students at risk of dropping out of university, living without affordable access to healthcare, and potentially facing eviction during a pandemic.

After the initial round, fundraising and other efforts to ameliorate the students’ situation continued for several months. The grand total of this joint campaign by the German and American chapters of our Alumni Club, aided by AYF Program Director Ulli Struve’s outreach and efforts in Freiburg, netted an overall relief package of about $53,000 in donations and, eventually, two month’s rent relief graciously offered to each AYF student by the Studierendenwerk.

We are so very grateful for everyone’s contributions! Without your gifts, we could not have met the students’ urgent needs. Thank you!