Jim Kline, our Africa projects officer, recently returned from a trip to Ethiopia. While visiting a Catholic ministry we support in the capital city that provides physical therapy and education to children with disabilities, he met a little girl named Hewett.
A Life-Saving Ambulance
A recent study by the World Health Organization uncovered an alarming fact: More than 10 million women and children, mostly in developing countries, still die each year from causes which are largely preventable and treatable — such as unattended childbirth. In Haiti between 500 and 1,000 women in every 100,000 die each year giving birth.
Helping the Poor Help Themselves
Last year, we met a Zambian woman named Christine who had gone from riches to rags because of AIDS. Once the owner of three houses, she sold all her properties in desperation and used the money to pay a medicine man to cure her. In the end, she was left with no money, no friends or family to support her, and a worsening illness.
World Water Day
Did you know that an estimated 1.1 billion people around the world rely on unsanitary water sources for drinking? Clean water is a basic necessity that no one should have to do without. That number got a lot of attention this week as the U.N. and other international groups observed World Water Day, a time for raising awareness about the plight of those who lack access to clean water.
Healing Haiti
While traveling through Haiti, Cross Catholic Projects Officers Mike Wilson and Claudio Merisio visited the camps where our mission partners are continuing to provide medical care for earthquake victims. They got to see firsthand the incredible work that so many doctors, nurses, and volunteers are providing on a daily basis in tent facilities or even outside.
From the Field: Aid to Hospital Espoir
We received some good news from Mike Henry, our projects officer who has been coordinating relief in Haiti since the earthquake. He and one of our partner organizations were able to get medical supplies to a hospital we support near Port-au-Prince. Below is an excerpt from his field notes a few days ago: