Giving Back

To make that gift a reality, Magda traveled throughout the US, talking about her experiences as a climber and her dream of improving the lives of the Nepali people. Her presentations raised $10,000 in donations, enough at that time to build an elementary school. After spending 3 months in rural Nepal helping the community of Yarmasing build a school, she returned to Denver and co-founded Namlo International with her husband, Dr. Hugh King.

Based on their experiences in Nepal, Magda and Hugh saw that the key to success was helping communities take responsibility for their schools -- including participating in their construction, developing income generating projects to support their schools, and working together to provide governance and support for good teaching and learning. Their goal was not just to build schools, but also to make them self-sustaining. They also saw an opportunity to connect American school children with Namlo schools, so that US students could experience the joy of making a difference.

While working with the schools, the Kings found that most Nepali men travel abroad for work, leaving their families to scrape by on the infrequent and sporadic monies they send home. To alleviate the extreme poverty and financially lift up the families, Namlo has developed sustainable vocational programs including traditional weaving, sewing, ginger root cultivation and organic coffee farming. These vocational programs require detailed and ongoing training, all of which Namlo provides at no cost to the participants.

Following years of success in Nepal, Magda and Hugh ventured to explore other regions that could use similar assistance and found a perfect fit in Nicaragua. Along with building schools and developing educational programs in Nicaragua, Namlo realized one of the biggest challenges in remote villages is lack of access to water and other sanitation issues. To implement water and sanitation programs to help meet these challenges, Namlo is partnering with Rotary International, Engineers Without Borders, and with other local and international organizations to collectively accomplish this goal.