World Malaria Day

Happy World Malaria Day!  Oh wait, malaria, as we well know, is nothing to celebrate.

Ethiopian Orphan Relief works with our partners in endemic regions of Ethiopia to help prevent the transmission of malaria.  For those of you who know little about the disease, I’ve included a fact sheet from the World Health Organization:

Malaria is a preventable and treatable mosquito-borne disease, whose main victims are children under five years of age in Africa.

The World Malaria Report 2012 summarizes data received from 104 malaria-endemic countries and territories for 2011. Ninety-nine of these countries had on-going malaria transmission.

According to the latest WHO estimates, there were about 219 million cases of malaria in 2010 and an estimated 660 000 deaths. Africa is the most affected continent: about 90% of all malaria deaths occur there.

Between 2000 and 2010, malaria mortality rates fell by 26% around the world. In the WHO African Region the decrease was 33%. During this period, an estimated 1.1 million malaria deaths were averted globally, primarily as a result of a scale-up of interventions.

Funding situation

International disbursements for malaria control rose steeply during the past eight years and were estimated to be US$ 1.66 billion in 2011 and US$ 1.84 billion in 2012. National government funding for malaria programmes has also been increasing in recent years, and stood at an estimated US$ 625 million in 2011.

However, the currently available funding for malaria prevention and control is far below the resources required to reach global malaria targets. An estimated US$ 5.1 billion is needed every year between 2011 and 2020 to achieve universal access to malaria interventions. In 2011, only US$ 2.3 billion was available, less than half of what is needed.

Disease burden

Malaria remains inextricably linked with poverty. The highest malaria mortality rates are being seen in countries that have the highest rates of extreme poverty (proportion of population living on less than US$ 1.25 per day).

International targets for reducing malaria cases and deaths will not be attained unless considerable progress can be made in the 17 most affected countries, which account for an estimated 80% of malaria cases.

50 countries are on track to reduce their malaria case incidence rates by 75%, in line with World Health Assembly and Roll Back Malaria targets for 2015. These 50 countries only account for 3% (7 million) of the total estimated malaria cases.

At present, malaria surveillance systems detect only around 10% of the estimated global number of cases. In 41 countries around the world, it is not possible to make a reliable assessment of malaria trends due to incompleteness or inconsistency of reporting over time.

This year, the World Malaria Report 2012 publishes country-based malaria case and mortality estimates. The next update on global and regional burden estimates will be issued in December 2013.

The easiest way to prevent transmission of malaria is to provide bed nets for everyone living in a malarial zone.

Several years ago, EOR made a commitment to provide bed nets to FOVC, our partner in Southern Ethiopia. We brought hundreds of them on our trip in November 2011.

At Lights of Hope next month, we will once again ask friends to donate $10 for bed nets to combat malaria.  Each $10 donation will pay for 2-3 nets (depending on the exchange rate at the time of purchase).  A single net is large enough to cover a sleeping area for 4-6.  Your $10 donation could prevent the transmission of malaria for more than a dozen people!

Not planning to attend Lights of Hope?  Why not make a donation today, and help EOR combat Ethiopia in southern Ethiopia?

Thanks for all that you do, every day, to support the work of Ethiopian Orphan Relief.  We couldn’t do it without YOU!

Paige

 

Jane Kurtz Author Visit

 

Author Jane Kurtz and students

Author Jane Kurtz speaks to Findley Elementary Students

On April 4th 2013, children’s author Jane Kurtz visited Findley Elementary for an author’s visit. Jane donated her time and expertise at last year’s 2012 Lights of Hope auction. Seventeen families from Findley pooled their funds and bought this author’s visit from the silent auction.

Jane Kurtz spent the majority of her childhood in Ethiopia. She has since written over 30 books, many of which take place in Ethiopia. Jane talked to the over 800 students and staff about how the books she writes draw on her experiences. For instance, she spoke about a boy that lived near their family growing up in rural Ethiopia. He raised pigeons for extra money. Jane’s brother asked him to teach him how to raise pigeons. This has become the story in the book, “Only a Pigeon”.  As she spoke, she showed photo after photo of her life from when she was a child to mother and now grandmother. At all times, she said, she loved to read and tell stories: gifts, she says, she received from her mother and father.  Kindergarten through 5th grade students were captive as she spoke.

Findley teachers were unanimous in saying this was one of the best author’s visits they have ever had at the school. They said students were enthusiastic about writing and couldn’t wait to rewrite assignments with new ideas. Jane’s ideas and encouragement about writing and telling your stories invigorated an entire school.

Jane continues to be involved in Ethiopia through Ethiopia Reads, a nonprofit dedicated to bringing books and setting up libraries in Ethiopia. You can find more information about Jane Kurtz and her works at http://www.janekurtz.com/index.html and Ethiopia Reads at http://www.ethiopiareads.org

Thank you to Jane Kurtz for being a strong supporter of Ethiopian Orphan Relief. Having her give of her time was such a treat. Her gift resulted in a large amount of money given to EOR at the auction and again to the 800 kids that learned about her life and writing. If you want an amazing author to come to your school contact Jane Kurtz. This is one woman who has had many adventures and is a perfect storyteller to share them.

Molly Curran

Water bringing smiles

We wanted to share with you this great photo that our friends at Water 1st sent us!  A few months ago Water 1st was in Ethiopia visiting their various projects. While there they placed this plaque in honor of YOU are amazing donors. Here are a few of the children who are benefiting from the Kelecho Gerbi water project in Busa, Ethiopia.

The Kelecho Gerbi project serves 4,085 in the community. In 2010 Ethiopian Orphan Relief donated $10,000 towards this project. The Kelecho Gerbi project provides long-term water supply, sanitation, and hygiene-education services to the community, improving the health, educational prospects and economic opportunity of the community.

Thank you for all YOU do for the children in Ethiopia.

Take the night off cooking….for a great cause!

The 7th grade Leadership Class at Duniway Middle School in Mcminnville, Oregon is doing projects locally, nationally, and internationally. For their international piece, the class voted to raise money for Ethiopian Orphan Relief!

Tomorrow in McMinnville, Oregon at Mazatlan’s Mexican Restaurant from 5pm to 8pm you can take a night off cooking and support the students in raising funds for EOR.

Thank you Maddy G and the kids at Duniway for making a difference!

You can find Mazatlan’s at 2714 N Hwy 99, Mcminnville, Oregon

The gift that keeps giving

Exciting news from Lola in Mekelle. As you recall last May at Lights of Hope in Portland we auctioned off a Chicken Coop. The proceeds from that coop went to Lola to purchase a chicken coop + chickens for the HIV affected children.

Yesterday we received these adorable photos of the chickens and their offspring. So glad to see our donation multiplying. 

Kim, Lauren, JoAnna & Sara

 

 

Doro Wat, Atakilt Wat, and Injera Oh My!

To celebrate the Easter holiday I decided to make Ethiopian food. I was so proud to see my son eating it.   This will be an Easter tradition in our house.  I am not much of a cook!  So, if I can do it–so can you.  I am blessed to live within minutes of several Ethiopian grocery stores, but even if you are not, you can still find some great Berbere & Injera online.

Here is the great recipe for Doro Wat that I found on whats4eats.com

Doro wat is perhaps the best known food from Ethiopia and is often referred to as the country’s national dish. This recipe makes a very tasty version with a deep, rich flavor and tender chicken pieces.

DORO WAT 

• Chicken legs and thighs, skinless — 2 pounds
• Lemon, juice only — 1
• Salt — 2 teaspoons
• Onions, chopped — 2
• Garlic, crushed — 3 cloves
• Gingerroot, peeled and chopped — 1 tablespoon
• Oil, butter or niter kibbeh — 1/4 cup
• Paprika — 2 tablespoons

• Berberé paste — 1/4 to 1/2 cup

• Water or stock — 3/4 cup
• Red wine — 1/4 cup
• Cayenne pepper — from 1 teaspoon
• Salt and pepper — to taste
• Hard-boiled eggs (optional) — 4

Method

1. Mix together the chicken pieces, lemon juice and salt and in a large, non-reactive bowl and set aside to marinate for about 30 minutes.
2. While the chicken is marinating, puree the onions, garlic and ginger in a food processor or blender. Add a little water if necessary.
3. Heat the oil, butter or niter kibbeh in a large pot over medium flame. Add the paprika and stir in to color the oil and cook the spice through, about 1 minute. Do not burn. Stir in the berberé paste and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Add the onion-garlic-ginger puree and sauté until most of the moisture evaporates and the onion cooks down and loses its raw aroma, about 5 to 10 minutes. Do not allow the mixture to burn.
5. Pour in the water or stock and wine and stir in the chicken pieces, cayenne to taste, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. Add water as necessary to maintain a sauce-like consistency.
6. Add the whole hard boiled eggs and continue to cook for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and very tender.
7. Adjust seasoning and serve hot with injera bread or rice. 
   

Lights of Hope

Each spring in Portland, Oregon friends and family gather together to bring hope to the orphan and vulnerable children in Ethiopia.

On May 18th we will be celebrating the 5th annual Lights of Hope Auction. Guests will enjoy an evening of dinner, drinks, silent and live auctions. We hope you can join us!

To purchase tickets please click here.

As we join together, we truly do form “lights of hope” in so many children’s lives.