1. YOU

Help-for-Hope is first and foremost YOU! Your donations, your participation in race events, your ideas and feedback, and your support are making all the difference. On behalf of the many children who benefit from your generous involvement, THANK YOU!

Since 2005, more than 100 friends and supporters as well as one corporate sponsor have donated funds to Help-for-Hope, mainly through word-of-mouth. And the voice is spreading rapidly. Want to get involved? Click here for more information on donations, on joining the team, on feedback and ideas.

2. THE RACING TEAM

Help-for-Hope first participated in a race in April 2005 (Geneva Marathon), with Luigi Costa, Julien Gantenbein and Stephan Bissig. Since then, the team has grown rapidly.

New racing team members include Charl van Zyl, Pieter van Tiel, Amparo Cantuña, Adam Hartley, Isabella Bissig, Roman Staempfli, Monica Roth, Giorgio Kostoulas, Francesco di Marco, Roger Iseli. For pictures of the various racing team members in action, click here ...

A very special tribute goes to the spouses, partners and families who so actively support the initiatives of Help-for-Hope and patiently dealt with the training hours of racing team members. Thank you!!

A special mention also to Maître Didier Buffat in Nyon, who generously ensured a solid legal basis for Help-for-Hope since the very beginnings, and to Gisèle Christe, who was instrumental in supporting the birth of the new website. Thank you Didier and Gisèle!

It's easy to join, and it's tons of fun! Please let us know if your are interested ...

3. THE FOUNDERS

Monica Bissig-Gallegos

Born and raised in Quito, Ecuador, Monica has completed her higher-level school education in the US, graduating from Providence College, Rhode Island. She has lived in Ecuador, the USA, the UK, Japan, and Australia, and currently resides in Switzerland with her husband and their 4 children.

Monica has become increasingly involved with children's work over the past 10+ years. She was elected „Head of children's activities “ at the Harvard Business School, gathering to a student body of over 1'600 students and some 100 families. She has sponsored children in four continents, has initiated a child-to-child sponsorship program with SOS Children’s Villages in Ecuador, and is currently engaged in an educational initiative for children in Switzerland. Monica is co-founder and chairwoman of Help-for-Hope.

Jenö C. A. Staehelin

Born in Basel, Switzerland, Jenö graduated with a Ph.D. in Law from the University of Berne, and an LL.M. degree from Harvard Law School. He was admitted to the “Bar” in Zurich, and has lived in Berne, Geneva, Stockholm, Paris, Munich, Tokyo, Boston and New York.

Jenö has started his law career at a premier international law firm, before joining the Swiss diplomatic service. He was appointed Ambassador of European and North American Affairs, then Swiss Ambassador to the Vatican, and later Swiss Ambassador to Japan. As Permanent Observer ofSwitzerland to the United Nations in New York, he led the initiative for full membership of Switzerland in the UN, and became Switzerland's first Ambassador to the UN in 2002.

In 2003 Jenö has been elected Chairman of the Board of UNICEF in New York, and in 2004 he became President of the Mine Action Support Group (MASG), a leading worldwide organiztion against antihuman mines. He is an Advisory Board member to the Dean of the Harvard Law School, Board member at the "Académie Internationale pour la Paix", and has recently been elected Board member of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Jenö is co-founder and Board member of Help-for-Hope.

Stephan Bissig

Born and raised in Bellinzona, Switzerland, Stephan graduated with a Masters in Economics from University of Fribourg, and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He has lived in Argentina, the USA, the UK, Japan and Australia, and currently resides in Switzerland with his wife and their four children.

Stephan's professional career includes international roles with Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Bain&Company, and Egon Zehnder International. He has worked with the Bridgespan Group in San Francisco (a Bain&Co. spin-off focusing on strategy consulting in the non-profit area), and has done pro-bono work with SOS-Children’s Villages in Bolivia. He joined Egon Zehnder International in 2001, and in 2007 has founded his own company Leader Growth LLC, active in executive search and executive coaching. Similar to his wife Monica, Stephan has been engaged in helping children for now over 10 years. He is co-founder and Board member of Help-for-Hope.