These text will not display in live site if no content is inserted
DO NOT COPY & PASTE CONTENT IN HERE!!! Copied text will NOT display properly
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why, when and by whom was the SEED organization established?
The concept of SEED is the brainchild of Professor Melaku Lakew. SEED was established officially as a registered organization in October 1994, in Washington DC. However, it was in existence since 1992. It was established by a group of friends and professionals who had been discussing about the sources of inspiration for Ethiopians in the Diaspora. Basically, in trying to answer questions such as: How do Ethiopian children in the Diaspora get exposed to successful role models amongst their own people? Are we taking full advantage of what is available to us wherever we may reside? How do we help ourselves in the assimilation into our new homeland? How our children and we should, get involved in community services and give back to make the world a better place in which to live? How do we help our children in defining their identity and heritage, so that they know who they are and are not defined by others?
2. What is the primary objective of the organization?
SEED is a non-political, non-sectarian and a nonprofit organization. SEED’s primary objective is to promote and advance the interests of Ethiopians and their children in the Diaspora. It is also to recognize and acknowledge the contributions of any individual, regardless of national origin, who has made significant contributions to Ethiopia and Ethiopians in such things as humanitarian, scientific, educational, cultural, business, musical, athletics, and other endeavors. Our goal is to make SEED a “go-to” organization for anything that has to do with Ethiopians in the Diaspora and as a networking resource for the Ethiopian community.
3. What are the requirements/criteria for the selection of awardees and how many people have you awarded so far?
The criteria for selection of honorees are posted on our website. Honorees are classified into five to six categories: student honorees, adult honorees, young adult honorees, posthumous honorees, organizations or groups. Student honorees are mainly high school seniors that have excellent academic performance and community service combinations. We have a point system of criteria for selecting students to be honored. With regard to students, we review GPA, SAT scores, community service, recommendations, etc. We add these points and the students with the highest score will be selected for the honor using the democratic process of majority rule by the board.
Like the students, adult honorees are nominated by the public together with supporting information of their lifetime achievements to date. In most cases, these individuals are known by many in the Diaspora Community. SEED salutes and thanks these individuals for their accomplishments and presents them with an award honoring them for their achievements.
Young adult honorees are up-and-coming adults who have shown tremendous potential and promise in whatever endeavor they are pursuing and deserve to be recognized and supported by our community. These individuals are usually recommended by young people who believe them to be inspiring role models.
Posthumous honorees are individuals who have passed away, but whose lifetime achievement is deserving of the honor. SEED believes that our community needs to honor our role models while they are still alive. We believe that we need not wait until the best among us pass away to celebrate their work. We must praise our role models while they are still alive, when their ears can hear them and their hearts can be thrilled by them.
Organizations and groups are honored for making significant contributions that positively impact Ethiopia and Ethiopians. For example, ENAHPA, seleda.com, HOPE Enterprise, etc.
Over the last 21 years we have honored about 200 individuals and, a great number of high school and college graduates have received medals and trophies.
4. Who are your members?
SEED is a public organization. Membership is open to the public. Our members are primarily Ethiopian, however our organization is open to anyone of any race, religion, or nationality who shares the vision and mission of SEED.
5. How do you assess the performance of the organization since its establishment?
Those who have witnessed SEED’s progress over the last several years may best answer this question. For an organization, which is run by a group of individuals on a voluntary basis, we have come a long way. One of the most noticeable ways SEED’s performance has grown is by the mere fact that the young children, who have been attending SEED’s annual event for many years, have themselves been honored by SEED. We believe that those that have been honored before have positively impacted these children.
Our objective is long term. Given the promises our young honorees make during their acceptance speech about giving back to the Ethiopian community, we believe we are on the right track towards our goals and objectives.
6. Do you have the support you need from Ethiopians in the Diaspora?
Yes, we do get the support from the Diaspora community. Each year over 300 people attend our event. We receive modest financial contributions from some individuals. We do hope that this support will continue to grow and improve in the future. We invite anyone to become a member.
7. Do you work with educational institutions or organization in Ethiopia? If so, which one, what kind of relationship do you have?
The short answer is yes. However, we need to strengthen our efforts in this area. Currently we work closely with HOPE Enterprises, thanks to Executive Director of HOPE and SEED award recipient, Dr. Minas Hiruy. He has agreed to help SEED establish a branch in Ethiopia. We have formed an ad-hoc committee locally and hope to follow up on their progress.
Under the auspices of “Books Without Borders”, a group Prof. Melaku helped founded is inspired by SEED. Over 20,000 books have sent to a college in Ethiopia. We hope to collaborate with like-minded entities and see in what areas we can be more effective in working together. We hope these kinds of activities will help us forge a solid networking relationship with institutions in Ethiopia.
8. What do you expect from Ethiopians in general regarding your role?
The three major areas of our activities are the annual award ceremony, the quarterly newsletter, and the establishment of our interactive database.
Our expectations are that fellow Ethiopians continue to support our mission by becoming members, attending our annual event, by reading and contributing to our news article, by visiting our web site and registering themselves and submitting ideas and networking on our secured web site. Any other feedback from the public would be greatly appreciated.
9. How can I make a contribution to SEED?
Should anyone want to make tax deductable contribution,
please make out your check to SEED
and mail to:
SEED, P.O. Box 848, Pomona, NJ 08240
The concept of SEED is the brainchild of Professor Melaku Lakew. SEED was established officially as a registered organization in October 1994, in Washington DC. However, it was in existence since 1992. It was established by a group of friends and professionals who had been discussing about the sources of inspiration for Ethiopians in the Diaspora. Basically, in trying to answer questions such as: How do Ethiopian children in the Diaspora get exposed to successful role models amongst their own people? Are we taking full advantage of what is available to us wherever we may reside? How do we help ourselves in the assimilation into our new homeland? How our children and we should, get involved in community services and give back to make the world a better place in which to live? How do we help our children in defining their identity and heritage, so that they know who they are and are not defined by others?
2. What is the primary objective of the organization?
SEED is a non-political, non-sectarian and a nonprofit organization. SEED’s primary objective is to promote and advance the interests of Ethiopians and their children in the Diaspora. It is also to recognize and acknowledge the contributions of any individual, regardless of national origin, who has made significant contributions to Ethiopia and Ethiopians in such things as humanitarian, scientific, educational, cultural, business, musical, athletics, and other endeavors. Our goal is to make SEED a “go-to” organization for anything that has to do with Ethiopians in the Diaspora and as a networking resource for the Ethiopian community.
3. What are the requirements/criteria for the selection of awardees and how many people have you awarded so far?
The criteria for selection of honorees are posted on our website. Honorees are classified into five to six categories: student honorees, adult honorees, young adult honorees, posthumous honorees, organizations or groups. Student honorees are mainly high school seniors that have excellent academic performance and community service combinations. We have a point system of criteria for selecting students to be honored. With regard to students, we review GPA, SAT scores, community service, recommendations, etc. We add these points and the students with the highest score will be selected for the honor using the democratic process of majority rule by the board.
Like the students, adult honorees are nominated by the public together with supporting information of their lifetime achievements to date. In most cases, these individuals are known by many in the Diaspora Community. SEED salutes and thanks these individuals for their accomplishments and presents them with an award honoring them for their achievements.
Young adult honorees are up-and-coming adults who have shown tremendous potential and promise in whatever endeavor they are pursuing and deserve to be recognized and supported by our community. These individuals are usually recommended by young people who believe them to be inspiring role models.
Posthumous honorees are individuals who have passed away, but whose lifetime achievement is deserving of the honor. SEED believes that our community needs to honor our role models while they are still alive. We believe that we need not wait until the best among us pass away to celebrate their work. We must praise our role models while they are still alive, when their ears can hear them and their hearts can be thrilled by them.
Organizations and groups are honored for making significant contributions that positively impact Ethiopia and Ethiopians. For example, ENAHPA, seleda.com, HOPE Enterprise, etc.
Over the last 21 years we have honored about 200 individuals and, a great number of high school and college graduates have received medals and trophies.
4. Who are your members?
SEED is a public organization. Membership is open to the public. Our members are primarily Ethiopian, however our organization is open to anyone of any race, religion, or nationality who shares the vision and mission of SEED.
5. How do you assess the performance of the organization since its establishment?
Those who have witnessed SEED’s progress over the last several years may best answer this question. For an organization, which is run by a group of individuals on a voluntary basis, we have come a long way. One of the most noticeable ways SEED’s performance has grown is by the mere fact that the young children, who have been attending SEED’s annual event for many years, have themselves been honored by SEED. We believe that those that have been honored before have positively impacted these children.
Our objective is long term. Given the promises our young honorees make during their acceptance speech about giving back to the Ethiopian community, we believe we are on the right track towards our goals and objectives.
6. Do you have the support you need from Ethiopians in the Diaspora?
Yes, we do get the support from the Diaspora community. Each year over 300 people attend our event. We receive modest financial contributions from some individuals. We do hope that this support will continue to grow and improve in the future. We invite anyone to become a member.
7. Do you work with educational institutions or organization in Ethiopia? If so, which one, what kind of relationship do you have?
The short answer is yes. However, we need to strengthen our efforts in this area. Currently we work closely with HOPE Enterprises, thanks to Executive Director of HOPE and SEED award recipient, Dr. Minas Hiruy. He has agreed to help SEED establish a branch in Ethiopia. We have formed an ad-hoc committee locally and hope to follow up on their progress.
Under the auspices of “Books Without Borders”, a group Prof. Melaku helped founded is inspired by SEED. Over 20,000 books have sent to a college in Ethiopia. We hope to collaborate with like-minded entities and see in what areas we can be more effective in working together. We hope these kinds of activities will help us forge a solid networking relationship with institutions in Ethiopia.
8. What do you expect from Ethiopians in general regarding your role?
The three major areas of our activities are the annual award ceremony, the quarterly newsletter, and the establishment of our interactive database.
Our expectations are that fellow Ethiopians continue to support our mission by becoming members, attending our annual event, by reading and contributing to our news article, by visiting our web site and registering themselves and submitting ideas and networking on our secured web site. Any other feedback from the public would be greatly appreciated.
9. How can I make a contribution to SEED?
Should anyone want to make tax deductable contribution,
please make out your check to SEED
and mail to:
SEED, P.O. Box 848, Pomona, NJ 08240