Canada and the Caribbean Campaign Connection

Eliminate progress
Worldwide fundraising total (as of 11/16) US$21,029,305 More than 11,682,947 lives impacted Eastern Canada and the Caribbean fundraising total (as of 11/16) US$ 842,395 More than 467,997 lives impacted Western Canada fundraising total (as of 11/16) US$ 498,394 More than 276,886 lives impacted Number of Model/100K Clubs Eastern Canada & Caribbean: 7 Western Canada: 15 Club coordinator recruitment progress Eastern Canada and Caribbean: 18 of 142 club coordinators (13%) Western Canada: 0 of 58 club coordinators (0%)
December 2012 | www.TheEliminateProject.org

Guinea journaldays 1-3

This is the first of a three part article from the personal journal of Kiwanis International President-elect Dr. John Button and Debbie on their visit to Guinea Conakry with UNICEF for The Eliminate Project

The thing about Guinea is that it is all avoidable. Julien Harneis, UNICEF Country Representative Day 1 Our Eliminate Project site visit to Guinea Conakry in west Africa began with an uneventful eight hour flight from Toronto to Paris. After a short layover, we departed for Conakry, Guinea. At least we were supposed to depart. Unfortunately, the baggage sorter broke down and all baggage had to be hand sorted and loaded which left us sitting on the tarmac for two and a half hours before our six hour flight. We arrived at Conakry, the capital, two hours late and were met by our driver and Michael Grudzinsky, our US Fund host. Our trip to our hotel, the Miriador Palace, led us through the citys busy markets bustling with hawkers, gawkers and squawkers, des femmes en promenade and running laughing children. To get to the shops, you first had to negotiate the mounds of garbage lining the streets. The hotel had a beautiful faade and lobby. Our room was a different matter: dirty, moldy, foul smelling, two functioning lights out of five, intermittent electricity and one worn towel. We had supper with our US Fund hosts, Michael and Karen Turney, and Kiwanian Bob Allen from Virginia. The meal was good french fries to die for! and the companionship was great. Later, we met the rest of our Kiwanis group: Dan and Cheryl Connolly and Judy Kramer, all from California. Day 2 Day two began with detailed briefings at the UNICEF National Office and the United Nations House. Both buildings were heavily guarded and barb-wired. From UNICEF we learned: 10% of the population have adequate sanitation (Guinea is currently in the middle of a cholera epidemic with over 6,000 confirmed cases and 111 deaths); 65% of the population have access to clean water however mothers may spend 6 8 hours daily getting water, leaving their children in the care of older siblings who as a result will not be in school; 96% of the female population have undergone genital mutilation at the hands of their mothers, usually occurring at a very young age; 30% of women between the ages of 12 and 19 have already had their first babies; opportunities for education and training are limited leading to anger and frustration among young people who eventually turn to anti-social behaviors; 84% of HIV positive babies do not have access to antiretroviral (ARV) drugs; 83% of HIV positive pregnant women do not have access to ARV drugs; 35% of the nations children suffer from chronic malnutrition causing stunted physical growth but more ominously stunted brain development. UNICEFs response to these serious threats to the health and lives of Guineas women and children has been campaigns that focus on the delivery of health care and health education at the community and household levels. Continued on page 2
All donations to: Kiwanis Foundation of Canada PO Box 5034 Brantford, Ontario, Canada N3T 6J7 Office telephone: 519-304-3038, Fax: 519-304-3549 E-mail: Elaine Johnson, Administratorkfcdnoffice@rogers.com

Canada and the Caribbean Campaign Connection

Notes from Guinea Conakry
cont. from page 1 We next moved on to the United Nations House where we were given a private briefing by the UNs deputy security chief on the security issues facing the country. In the spring, Conakry was shaken by violent demonstrations as its citizens vented their frustrations over the long delay in promised elections. In the neighbouring countries of Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Liberia and Cote dIvoire there have been recent violent uprisings and warfare. Islamic fundamentalist fighters have been returning home from Libya and have destabilized the countries of Mali, Niger and Mauritania. These threats, from within and without, have lead to a change of priorities for the national government and negatively impacted the delivery of health care programmes. After our briefing, we left in a three-vehicle convoy for Labe, administrative center of the middle Guinea region, 450 kilometers to the north. As we drove through Conakry, we were mindful of the very heavy police and military presence. Knots of soldiers, bristling with machine guns, patrolled the major intersections. Dan Connolly, of our group, had his camera seized by the military as it was deemed to be a little too inquisitive. It was later returned due to the intervention of the driver after the soldiers had offered to sell it back. Our route followed the major highway accessing the north of the country. I gained a new appreciation for potholes as we plunged from one crater to the next for the next eight and a half hours. Averaging approximately 50 kph, we arrived at our destination, the Galaxie Inn in Labe. We arrived shaken not stirred. All in all, the trip was a great advertisement for the Toyota Land Cruiser and a testament to the skills of our UNICEF drivers. The Galaxie Inn made the Miriador Palace look like the Beverly Hills Hilton. Our ground floor room had no towels, no toilet seat, no shower curtain, no curtain on the window that looked out from the shower onto the kitchen porch and intermittent hydro. Our supper was chicken, steak, onions and french fries all served ice cold. Day 3 In the morning, following an equally cold breakfast, we made a courtesy call to the Regional Governor. The Governor was a most gracious host. He was surprisingly well informed about maternal-neonatal tetanus and is a very strong advocate for the campaign. He told us that he would be making the four and a half hour trip to Mali to participate in the ceremony marking the kick-off of a four -day tetanus immunization blitz in the prefect of Mali. Neil Hudelson, Kiwanis International Foundation Area Director for The Eliminate Project, recovered from his visa difficulties and joined us in Labe. Afterwards, we set out in our convoy for the town of Mali, the administrative center of the prefect of Mali in the far north of Guinea. Once again, the dirt highway was studded with potholes but with a new twist wash outs. The 200-kilometer trip took four and a half hours making our total trip of 600 kilometers from Conakry to Mali in over 12 hours. Along the way, we saw small groups of young boys standing at the side of the road with their palms outstretched begging. We later learned that these boys had been recently circumcised and following the procedure begged at the roadside for 2 weeks after which time they were deemed to be sufficiently recovered and able to resume their normal little boy activities. They were a poignant picture. In Mali, we checked into our accommodation, the Residence which in turn made the Galaxie Inn in Labe look like the Beverly Hills Hilton. We were sharing a house with the Connollys and Michelle (UNICEF Guinea). The house was inside a walled and locked compound. There was no running water, no towels, no toilet paper, the toilets did not flush and the hydro was less reliable than in Labe. Our bed was the only piece of furniture in our room. It was covered by a plastic sheet, which was in turn covered by a worn, filthy woolen blanket. We bathed in the dark, standing in the bathtub pouring buckets of cold rainwater over our heads, the ultimate act of courage. To clear the toilet bowl, we poured in buckets of water, which was not always successful. Continued on page 3
All donations to: Kiwanis Foundation of Canada PO Box 5034 Brantford, Ontario, Canada N3T 6J7 Office telephone: 519-304-3038, Fax: 519-304-3549 E-mail: Elaine Johnson, Administratorkfcdnoffice@rogers.com

Canada and the Caribbean Campaign Connection

Notes from Guinea Conakry
Cont, from page 2 After settling in, we visited the local hospital which was furnished and equipped circa 1940 50. We met a 17-year-old girl who was recovering from a Caesarian section. The hospital has approximately 630 deliveries/year estimated to be a fourth of the births in the Mali prefect. In the pediatric ward, we saw three young children one recovering from a bout of malaria and two admitted that day from the same village with malnutrition. The saddest was a four-month-old baby weighing less than seven pounds. The mother had lost four previous babies presumably from malnutrition (the number one cause of pediatric deaths in Guinea). The village women had told this young mother that her breast milk was responsible and so she had stopped nursing and the downward spiral began. The baby was profoundly dehydrated, listless, and poorly responsive and did not interact spontaneously. It had been in the hospital for most of the day and did not yet have an IV running. The pediatrician was a recently graduated physician who had no post-graduate training. I had a bad feeling about this infant, which was subsequently borne out, as the baby died two days later. Afterwards, we visited a private home and met with 15 young mothers. Their knowledge and understanding of MNT was remarkable. They all received their health care and health education at the local health center. They insisted on having tetanus vaccination and access to iodized salt. They also asked for school supplies for their children. As we left, I wondered if the level of knowledge and understanding regarding MNT would be as great in the women living in the countryside.

100K CLUBS
Edmonton Kiwanis Club Northmount, Calgary Kiwanis Club Forest City London Kiwanis Club Toronto Kiwanis Club

Eastern Canada & The Caribbean

Western Canada

MODEL CLUBS Eastern Canada & The Caribbean

Brantford Kiwanis Club Cambridge, Ontario Kiwanis Club Chatham Kent Golden K Kiwanis Club Ridgetown Kiwanis Club Sarnia Lambton Golden K

Western Canada
Battlefords Kiwanis Club Brooks and District Kiwanis ClubCalgary Kiwanis Club Fort Frances Kiwanis Club Gimli and District Kiwanis Club Lloydminster Kiwanis Club Medicine Hat Kiwanis Club Moose Jaw, Sk. Kiwanis Club Queen City, Regina Kiwanis Club Regina Kiwanis Club Riversdale Kiwanis Club South Edmonton Kiwanis Club Wascana, Regina Kiwanis Club

Model Clubs are clubs that pledge $750 per member over five years

Canada and the Caribbean Campaign Connection

Countries that have eliminated MNT

Burkina Faso China East Timor Ghana

Guinea-Bissau Liberia Senegal Tanzania

How to access the Campaign Resource Center on The Eliminate Project website: Website:
www.TheEliminateProject.org

Log in: Campaign2015 Password: Elimin8MNT

Where do I send my Eliminate Project donations? Send your donations to the Kiwanis Foundation of Canada to match every $3 with $1 from the foundation.

Kiwanis Foundation of Canada P.O. Box 5034 Brantford, Ontario N3T 6J7 Make sure to write The Eliminate Project in the memo line!

Canada and The Eastern Canada and Western Canada Caribbean The Caribbean District Region Coordinator District Coordinator Coordinator
Chuck McIlravey 120 Wildwood Trail Barrie, Ontario, Canada L4N 7Z6 Home telephone: 705-252-1115 Email: mcilravey@rogers.com

British Columbia District Coordinator Patrick Ewing Phone: 250-995-1362 Email: Patrick.ewing@shaw.ca

James Garey Phone: 519-670-7088 Email: prjim@yahoo.com

Ralph Liepold Phone: 306-789-8045 Email: liepold@sasktel.net