Today, Jim York (Mark’s father) transported all of the equipment up to the Twin Cities to prepare for shipment. The equipment was stored at Matter’s St Louis Park warehouse. It was quite a sight to see the equipment for the first time. Everything was in really good shape, the tractor Read more…
On the 6th of February, 30 a group interesting and generous people gathered in the lobby of my apartment for a fundraising soirée. Guests included lawyers, Professors, PhD students, fundraisers, and some of the best people I know. The guys wore suits and ties, while the ladies (for the most Read more…
Progress Update Dear Reader, Thank you for sticking with us! This is our first shipment of agricultural equipment to Africa, and we have learned a lot. Among things that we have learned are: Import taxes for a private organization are 47% of the value of the shipment, vs. 2% for Read more…
Tractors are nice, but without any additional equipment, they have very few uses. Implements are needed to plow fields, plant crops, and control weeds. Thus, we have used funds received from our generous donors to procure the best equipment for the job. The first implement we purchased was a three-bottom Read more…
It has been quite an ordeal to figure out how we can allign with an NGO (Non Governmental Organization) in Africa. As Louis explained in last weeks blog posting, there is a significant import tax savings if there is an NGO in Burkia Faso that is the importer of the farm Read more…
A note to update you on the progress on the Tractors for Africa project! We first began our discussions with farmers in Burkina Faso in the summer of 2014. Our friend, Justin Diabli manages a Cooperative of small farm holders there. From our discussions came the idea that older and smaller farm Read more…
Sixty years of wear and tear does a lot to a coat of paint, and we decided that our Farmall 400 needed a fresh one. To paint a tractor like this requires painstakingly removing the built-up dirt, grease, rust and grime of six decades of farm work. Painters must then Read more…
Starting this Friday, we will be updating our blog on a weekly basis! Please continue to check back for updates, and be sure to comment below in the comment sections. We will look forward to hearing from you! In the meantime, check out this cool article about our project in Read more…