Afghanistan humanitarian to speak in Bigfork

Eighteen years ago, Budd Mackenzie founded the nonprofit organization Trust in Education with the belief that “everyone should have the opportunity to make a difference.” After 20 visits to Afghanistan, Mackenzie will tell his personal story in a presentation, “War for Hearts, here and there” on Sept. 20 at the Bigfork United Community Methodist Church.

Mackenzie, a 75-year-old attorney from the Bay Area, lives on Swan Lake in the summer.

“I strongly believe we have a commitment to rebuild what we helped destroy,” he said in reference to the U.S. financing of freedom fighters against the Soviets in the 1970s, which resulted in the death of 1 million Afghans and the displacement of another 5 million.

For the past 18 years, Trust in Education has provided humanitarian aid to the Afghanistan people based on a belief that education is the solution to almost everything. In 2003, the group financed construction of a school in the village of Lalander for 120 children, and a third of them were girls. By 2010, the organization had funded classes in 10 more villages and constructed another school.

Through education they strive to improve opportunities and equality for women in a country that is considered among the worst places for a woman to be born.

“Education is the solution to ending cyclical poverty," Mackenzie explained. "An educated woman is less dependent upon a man. And, an educated man is more likely to support rights for women. It completely alters the trajectory of lives by giving people more choices.”

Trust in Education provides educational, economic and health care assistance to Afghan families, through a broad range of projects that not only included the construction of two schools but has included solar ovens, playgrounds, soccer fields, sponsorships for the education of street children, economic development projects and meeting basic needs of clothing, health care and supplies.

According to their website, “Through it all, we have served as a messenger between Americans and Afghans, tying them both together with a vision for a brighter future.”

In 2018, Mackenzie spent the summer on Swan Lake writing a book "Off the Couch and into the War for Hearts and Minds" about his experiences in Afghanistan. The book was described by Kite Runner author Kaled Hosseini as “a chronicle of extraordinary humanitarian efforts by an ordinary person … a passionate cry against apathy and its insidious power … A call to action to give something of ourselves to those who suffer most.”

Currently Trust in Education projects are at a standstill. There are 22 Afghan Trust in Education employees who are pleading to escape their homeland, and 10 of them have filed for P-2 visas for themselves and their families. As far as Mackenzie knows, none of them have left the country.

After the withdrawal of the last American troops in Afghanistan, the future of the country and Trust in Education are blurry.

In response to the changes, Mackenzie responded “You and I have found many ways to aid the poorest of the poor in Afghanistan for 18 years, primarily through education. I am confident that if there is a way for us to continue, together we will find it.”

A goal that is still crystal clear to Mackenzie.

Mackenzie has been recognized as an unsung hero by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Mackenzie will share his stories, insights and observations in his “War for Hearts, here and there” at 7 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021 at the Bigfork Community United Methodist Church on 750 Electric Avenue. The presentation will also be streamed live on the Bigfork United Methodist Church YouTube channel. If you attend the church presentation, masks are recommended to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

TIE projects

Served over 10,000 children, more than half girls

Constructed two schools

Provided after school classes

Established seven computer libraries

Created a student sponsorship program educating “street children”

Translated 1,000 Khan Academy math videos into Dari

Provided clothing, 1.5 million meals, 7,000 solar cookers, and water pasteurization indicators to families living in refugee camps