Serge Betsen Tour: A colourful start

The Serge Betsen Tour started this weekend in Limoux!

 

 The program included workshops defence led by Serge Betsen, David Ellis and other rugby players. This activity was available to the children in the morning (600 young were present). For lunch, Serge Betsen and David Ellis talked about rugby values in the business world. An autograph session was organised during the afternoon before closing the festival of rugby with a friendly match. The event concluded with a gala evening: everybody met around a nice dinner and music entertainment.

 

The first date of the SB Tour gave the SBA the opportunity to raise public awareness about the issues concerning underprivileged children in Cameroon and elsewhere. Through this meeting and your support we managed to raise funds while gathering the rugby union and rugby league …everybody’s getting closer thanks to rugby!

 

The Serge Betsen Academy and its Chairman thank the organizers of this festival.

Event Serge Betsen Tour : a must-seen event

Rugby enthusiasts and rugby supporters, you will not be surprised to hear that the Serge Betsen Testimonial is almost here!

So get ready for a legendary tour of the famous rugby man, which began on May 19th and will finish on June 6th in Biarritz, at the Aguilera stadium.

  

The first three dates of this SB Tour aim at approaching rugby players, and other legends of rugby through workshops set up for young people, autographs sessions and private parties.

Concerning the last date of the SB Tour, it will draw a deep attention starting with a remarkable opening match between former partners of the French Team of Serge Betsen, and former partners of clubs related to other sport legends.

A second match will take place between the “President’s XV”, and the team that Serge Betsen will have select. The team of the SBA President will be composed of rugby players and no-rugby players.

The Serge Betsen Tour will promote its association, “Serge Betsen Academy” to raise the public awareness about the issues concerning the help to underprivileged children in Cameroon and elsewhere through the values of rugby. It will be an opportunity to raise funds to finance current and future projects of the SBA. So please join us on June 6th in Biarritz and book your tickets here!

 

Reminder of the SB Tour dates:

 

– Limoux, May 19th

– Tarare, May 26th

– Clichy, June 2nd

– Biarritz, June 6th

 

 

 

Important links:

 

➢ Additional information on the Testimonial:

http://www.facebook.com/JubileSergeBetsen

 

➢ Additional information about the association:

http://www.sergebetsenacademy.com/fr  (website)

http://www.facebook.com/sergebetsenacademy  (Facebook page)

Event: Alboanides

May 5th – never cast a clout till May is out at the Alboanides

 

On May 5th, the Serge Betsen Academy was invited to an event organized by the association Alboan- the Alboanides. The SBA children sponsors, volunteers and partners could meet the chairman Serge Betsen and the team of the charity.

On this occasion a cocktail and a concert of “The Mellow” took place. During the evening, an artist, Franck Cazenave created a painting which was then auctioned as well as a shirt signed by Serge Betsen. Most of the benefits have been given to the SBA. Subsequently, Alboan gave the Serge Betsen Academy a partnership for a project in Cameroon . A fashion show and dancing night ended this beautiful event. 

The SBA would like to thank the children sponsors who participated to the Alboanides as well as the members of Alboan and the volunteers in Biarritz who organized this event. This action was a fantastic  opportunity to share good times and raise funds.

 

Bafia: Focus on the visit of the centre

After a quick lunch, we arrived at the centre where the children were waiting for us. After warm greetings, Charles Bessong with respect and apprehension read  us a letter written by all the children. Here is the transcription:

“Dear godfathers, honorable big brother, dear Mr Kais, beloved visitors,

The children of the Rosy centre warmly welcome you. Your visit brings us back energy and the proof that we are not abandoned and that we will never be.

For many children worldwide, meeting the big brother, “Serge”, represents a dream. What an honor for us, children of the big SBA family, to have him among us.

We also take the advantage of your presence to tell you from the bottom of our hearts: thank you for all you do for us, children of poor families, orphans for some of us, from divided families for others. We were hopeless, condemned to do small jobs, to be in the street, exposed to prostitution, to precocious marriages, to delinquency. Although you have had huge achievements and even if time is what you are lack most, you didn’t forget those who have remained at a lower level.

You’ve decided to sacrifice your time.

You’ve mobilized your relationships.

You’ve invested your energy and your knowledge to bring us back the love for life, to make us feel hopeful again for a better tomorrow for us and for our families.

We are truly thankful and pray God to bless you for a long life; to give you more material assets; to broaden your contacts in order to be able to realize everything you planned for us and that our tears of disinherited children may be dried forever.

Concerning us, children of the Rosy centre, sons and daughters of the SBA, we can’t promise to become important rugby men because nobody among us has the strength or the techniques necessary; we can’t swear we’ll become little Mozart; we have the will to do that but not always the means.

We guarantee to you that with all the sacrifices you make for us, we will say no to all forms of social deviances and we will prevent the progress of analphabetism.

You will always find in us a group of ambitious and volunteer children; through us, your work keeps on going. You are the one who has made the name Betsen famous, a Bafia patronymic.

We love you, we admire you and eventually we all together tell you: “go ahead!”

After a notable translation of this beautiful text by our friend Odile, which moved the whole delegation, we concluded this great afternoon in happiness and laughs distributing shirts to the children.

Partnership: Intermed Exportation

http://www.intermedical.com/

 

 

Cameroon: An English delegation visits the centres

At the beginning of November 2011, a team of seven people from the UK came for one week with Serge Betsen to visit all the Academy centres in Cameroon.

The group, mainly composed of businessmen, won this trip with the presence of Serge Betsen during a charity dinner organised in London for Serge’s testimonial. Odile was the only woman participating in this trip. Many thanks for her patience and her good mood throughout the trip. The group could also see the functioning and work carried out by the SBA in Cameroon. As well as discovering a new culture, meeting the children was certainly an unforgettable moment for them.

Cameroon: Official opening of Jardin Eden centre

It’s with much emotion that the new  SBA centre Jardin Eden, in the heart of Yaoundé, was officially opened on 8th November 2011, by Serge Betsen and the English delegation.

On this occasion, we were pleased to welcome Miss Anne Gain who is the French Ambassador’s wife.  All 13 volunteers were engaged in the presentation by our centres to our guests including a show prepared by the children, who were very impressed by Serge. Songs, dances and snacks gave the rhythm to this afternoon of plenty of laughs and exchanges. The ceremony ended with an intense dance to folk music from a local group in the centre’s garden with all the guests, who were glad to have shared these happy moments with the children and volunteers of the centre. The centre opened in September. It welcomes more than 30 children daily. The activities are organized as follows: a scholar support workshop, a library-toy workshop, a hobby workshop (songs, dances, DIY etc…). Many thanks to Jutta and Cécile who are jointly responsible for the centre for their role in the success of this project.

Cameroon: Reception at the French Embassy

Serge Betsen and the SBA delegation were welcomed to a lunch by Sir Bruno Gain, the French Ambassador in Cameroon and his wife, on Tuesday the 8th of November 2011. This lunch gave us the opportunity to present some of the officers of the centres and most of all the actions of the Academy in Cameroon.

Event: “Sport pour Tous” with Serge Betsen Academy

Serge Betsen Academy participated to the first day of “Sport pour tous” (Sport for everybody) organized on October 12 2011 by Michel Moulin, creator of the sportly weekly newspaper Le 10 sport.

 

This day gave the children of the rugby school of the CS Clichy the opportunity to participate in different workshops run by well known sportsmen (Grégory Coupet, Daniel Bravo, ChrIstine Arron, Brahim Asloum, Teddy Riner, etc..).  The children will remember this meeting with these high-level sportsmen as a magical moment. The children also had the opportunity to try other sports like athletics, football, judo, tennis and others. The day was ended by a guided visit of the French stadium, including a good snack.

Event: A day with Serge Betsen in Monein

On September 15th, the chairman of the SBA- Serge Betsen, and volunteers of the Biarritz branch , ran a day of rugby workshops in Monein (South-West of France)

 

 This event was won during the auctions at Serge Betsen’s Testimonial on June 6th. It gave a great opportunity to more than 150 children to meet the rugby player and to learn from his experience. It was also the occasion to raise public awareness about the children concerned by poverty in Cameroon, as well as raising funds for them.

We thank the volunteers and all the instructors and organisers for this lovely day !