I am writing to you today on behalf of the Friends of Iqbal group in order to seek your support in a mission we have undertaken to address a pressing social issue.

Friends of Iqbal is a group of people that got together in October 2005 in order to support the important work of Free The Children, the world's largest network of children helping children through education. The members of this group were brought together through our shared concern for the millions of children around the world who live in situations of extreme poverty, and also through our mutual desire to take action on this issue. The group adopted its name in honor of Iqbal Masih, the young Pakistani boy who escaped from a life of bonded debt slavery, and was subsequently murdered for speaking out against child labour. Iqbal's story was the inspiration for Craig Kielburger, who founded Free The Children in 1995.

Friends of Iqbal is working in partnership with Free The Children to support the children of Sierra Leone - the country classified by the United Nations as the most impoverished in the world. This small West African country suffered through an 11-year civil war which left most of the infrastructure devastated - in many communities, all public buildings including schools were completely destroyed. Tens of thousands of children were recruited as child soldiers. +

Through Free The Children's "Adopt a Village" program Friends of Iqbal has embarked on a campaign to support meaningful and sustainable grassroots development in a community in the Kono District of Sierra Leone. Our target for the year is to raise enough funds to provide the following:

1. Education: a one-room primary schoolhouse, including textbooks, furnishings, teacher training and 1 teacher salary

2. Health Care: health kits and a nutritious lunch program for 50 students

3. Water & Sanitation: a clean water system for children at the school

4. Alternative Income: income-generating resources for the mothers of the children attending the school

In order to meet our objective we are planning a major fund raising event with an expected attendance of 500 persons on June 2^nd 2007 at the Claireport Place Banquet & Convention Centre in Etobicoke.

We respectfully request that you give this cause some consideration by offering to be one of the sponsors for this event in the form of a donation or by placing an advertisement in the souvenir program which will be distributed at the event.

Thank you for your time, attention and consideration.

Donald F. Gonsalves

Coordinator; Friends of Iqbal Campaign

159 Ashridge Court

Mississauga, Ontario L4Z 1K5