In late 2004, North Stonington resident Linda Wilkinson traveled with her husband, Bruce, to Zambia, Africa, armed with $3,000 and a desire to help ease the AIDS epidemic there.

Just more than 10 years later, Chikumbuso Women and Orphans Project — an organization that got its start teaching widowed women who lost their husbands due to AIDS how to handcraft fashion products for sale locally and internationally — is celebrating an anniversary many nonprofits never achieve.

"I think I never thought that 10 years was a big thing, but when I tell people, they say, 'wow,'" Wilkinson said.

She said it's especially unusual for a nonprofit to continue thriving once the founder leaves the country where it is based. But, since Wilkinson stopped living in Zambia full-time three years ago, she said, Chikumbuso "is still going strong — even growing."

"Since it's been 10 years, a lot of the kids that I talk to have actually been (at Chikumbuso) since kindergarten," Wilkinson said. "When I said, 'Chikumbuso, what does it mean to you?' a lot would cry. That's where they've grown up."

Now, the organization that formed in Ng'ombe to help seven widowed women works with more than 40. Chikumbuso also educates and helps feed a total of 450 students — some in its grades K-6 operation and others through sponsorships to attend middle and high school. There were 30 students enrolled when the school first opened.

"I think (10 years) is a milestone," said Treasurer Sabrina Buehler, also a North Stonington resident. "It's just a testament to the commitment of not just Linda and those of us who are crusading for her, but also of the women over there, and the children."

To celebrate, Wilkinson and Buehler are hosting events, from documentary screenings to art auctions, throughout the year. Next on the list is the April 25 Chikumbuso 10K Charity Challenge, hosted on a course that starts near and ends at North Stonington's Jonathan Edwards Winery.

"We're trying to raise $10,000 for our 10th year," explained Buehler, who's organizing the event.

But Buehler knows that a 10K on a hilly course would be tough, so there are two other options for participants to choose from: a 1.5-mile fun run or splitting the 10K into a three-person relay.

She expects more of the money to come from fundraising — the group has set up a fundraising page on crowdrise.com — than from the sale of tickets, which range from $10 to $20 depending on the event. Still, $10 in Zambia can buy a bag of mealie-meal, or coarse flour derived from maize, which supports an average-sized family for an entire month.

Buehler said she and her family have been supporting Chikumbuso since the fall of 2005, but they're not the only ones.

From New London to Westerly, R.I., Wilkinson said churches, schools, Rotary clubs, businesses and individuals have embraced the group and its work, hosting fundraisers, buying handbags and sponsoring Chikumbuso children.

"North Stonington — and the whole area — has been ridiculously supportive of Chikumbuso," Wilkinson said. "I just want to say thank you."

The support comes from outside the country, too, which is something that amazes Wilkinson.

"I've never put a notice up anywhere asking for help," Wilkinson said. "Yet, on a daily basis, people volunteer."

For example, right when Wilkinson was questioning how to keep the quality of the widows' handbags up, a woman from England wrote that her husband was moving to Zambia for two years and that she wanted to volunteer with Chikumbuso. Her occupation? A handbag designer.

Wilkinson called the organization "a melting pot of goodness."

"There's something about Chikumbuso," she said. "I don't know if it's the ladies or the love, but so many people tell me, 'I was only there for an hour, but I have never forgotten it.'"

In the future, Wilkinson said she'd like to build an on-site seventh-grade classroom and to expand the number of students who get scholarships for post-graduation education.

Buehler said she would love to see Zambians take over the program, noting that some widows already have stepped into leadership roles.

Wilkinson said she's already heard some students express a desire to return to the organization.

"Many of our students are super smart," she said, explaining that one of Chikumbuso's seventh-graders recently scored the highest in all of capital city Lusaka on exams.

"These kids could be the next ministers, presidents, lawyers that help run the country," she said. "That's so cool to me."

l.boyle@theday.com

Twitter: @LindsayABoyle