A Charity We Believe in and Support: America is one of the most charitable nations on the planet. People living in the US tend to give more than people in most other countries. Very recently we flew to Western Ethiopia at the invitation of the president of the Tropical Health Alliance Foundation (http://www.thaf.org) Dr Larry Thomas. Dr Thomas, an ER doctor located in Southern California has an interest in helping people live better lives in Western Ethiopia. He does this through his foundation in which 100% of the funds given go to support treatment of poor rural farmers and their families in three areas:
Education--get kids off the street
Women and child health issues
Protecting springs--1 in 6 children born throughout the world suffer from water born diseases that's about one every 15 seconds! Protecting springs turns them from a mud hole to a clean water source using pipes and even faucets!
Treatment of podo (podoconiosis-a form of elephantitis) a painful and debilitating foot disease caused by living barefoot in volcanic soil
I'd like to focus on foot treatment. Everything is in place to help using various village resources including Churches and village clinics. Details What we saw is stunning. Podo can result in massive swelling and disfiguring of the feet and legs, and sufferers have difficulty working or even walking. Poor residents who cannot afford shoes are consistently exposed to the region's irritating soil while working as subsistence farmers. As a result, as much as 8% of the local population in Western Ethiopia suffer from the disease, and if a parent is diagnosed with this disorder, their children have a 27%+ chance of contacting it.
Sadly, the stigma associated with podo is so severe that many who have it remain hidden in their homes for years, allowing the disease to progress and become more disabling. (Owning a pair of shoes means you are middle class in this environment!) We saw people whose feet were so swollen and full of nodgels that they could no longer walk on them, and yet for about $1.00 per month (one dollar!) they could receive clinic based treatment so that the growths on their feet could be managed with compression bandages and hygiene to the extent their feet would once again appear normal and they could start wearing shoes (they need to protect their feet.) TOMS shoes--an origination selling shoes (http://www.tomsshoes.com) so far has given away over 300,000 pairs of shoes-- you can see the owner on various u-tube videos talking about how for every pair they sell, they give another pair away to disadvantaged children.)
If you are interested in finding out how so little money can help a lot of people click on www.thaf.org.While we have no connection with this organization we have checked it out and are willing to recommend it.
