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THE CLOTH AND THE MUD #47
FALL, 2011
NEWS FROM FABULOUS AFRICAN FABRICS
A 501 (c) (3) ORGANIZATION
727-946-5322,
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and www.fabulousafricanfabrics.org Laura Salazar, editor
Our Mission: To support orphans and vulnerable children in Kenya .
Planning a donation through Global Giving? Make it on October 19 12:00 A.M. through 11:59 P.M. EST. It’s a GG Bonus Day. Your donation will be matched! Give early in that day before funds run out.
www.globalgiving.org Project 6163 or Project 7377.
COMING EVENTS:
October 7: KENYAN CULTURE NIGHT 6-9 P.M.
University Christian Church, 310 N. Hagadorn Road, East Lansing, MI.
Join us and visit our table. Food and Music. $5.00 donation.
October 14: FALL GARAGE SALE, 9:00 A.M. through 4:00 P.M.
1854 Leonard St. NW, Grand Rapids
Drop off Donations on October 13, 2:00-6:00 P.M.
October 16-23: FAF DAYS AT SCHULER BOOKS AND MUSIC
THE HOLIDAYS ARE COMING.
Go to one of Schuler’s Grand Rapids stores.
Pick out gifts and books. At the checkout counter tell the clerk
that you want your purchase to go to FAF Days at Schuler Books
and Music. FAF gets 20% of your purchase!
November 11-12: JUBILEE, First Presbyterian Church, Spokane, WA.
Pass the word onto friends and relatives in the Spokane Area
November 12: PAMPERED CHEF PARTY, 4:00 P.M.
Kiri Salazar, Hostess. Details will follow. Invite your friends.
December, All Month: ANTHONY SALAZAR FUND DRIVE.
Look for announcements.
NEWS FROM AFRICA:
THE GOOD SAMARITAN CHILDREN’S HOME
The population changes rapidly, but this is the August 1, 2011 count: 189.
Babies age birth to 3 years—21
Nursery—15
Primary school—110
Secondary school—35
Waiting to join Secondary school—8
Hunger is the primary cause of children running away to the streets and the reason impoverished mothers abandon their children, GSCH reports.
FAMINE
Kenya is affected by the current famine but is able to cope because of political and agricultural practices: but Kenya is greatly impacted by famine because they opened their borders to Somali refugees—especially Dadaab Refugee Camp, the largest refugee camp in the world. Following are points I have gleaned from “The New York Times” and other publications. I give only dates if from NYT. Check with me if you want more publication details.
The United Nations warns that the famine in the Horn of Africa could kill 750,000 people in the coming months, and tens of thousands have already died. (9-18-11)
Three weeks after the UN declared a famine, and despite several aid flights arriving daily, food had yet to make it out of the airport to a camp in Somalia just 100 yards away. (Time Magazine, Sept. 5, 2011)
“There is no mood for [US] intervention,” said one American official, who was not authorized to speak publicly. “People remember what happened in the 1990’s. This famine is not just about the Shabab’s blocking food aid. It is about a broken state and the human wreckage it is causing. (9-16-11)
As Somalis stream across the border into Kenya, at a rate of about 1,000 a day, they are frequently prey to armed bandits who rob men and rape women in the 50-mile stretch before they reach Dadaab. . . . (9-25-11)
OCTOBER 1, 2011: The broken central government in Somolia complicates matters as 9000 African Union military try to keep order and Shabab rebels move toward the Kenyan border. It is becoming all but impossible for starving Somalis to reach Kenyan feeding camps. Somali pirates entered Kenyan territory on Oct 1, kidnapping a tourist a gun point. This third violent kidnapping since summer threatens Kenya’s billion-dollar tourist industry. At this date, Kenyan military moves to the border and its navy chases the kidnappers. ( facts from NYT)
WORLD HEALTH
There is some good news in world health. Since 1990 deaths of women in pregnancy and childbirth declined to about 274,000 from 409,000. The biggest single factor is the education of young women. (9-20-11)
Two new studies released recently add to the growing body of evidence that taking a daily pill containing one or two AIDS drugs can keep an uninfected person from catching the fatal human immunodeficiency virus. (7-13-11)
People with HIV who start their antiretroviral therapy as soon as they are diagnosed, instead of waiting for their immune systems to degrade, have a near-zero chance of passing the virus on to their sexual partners. This is the AIDS vaccine we’ve been waiting for—a 96 percent drop in infection rates is far better protection then any actual AIDS vaccine could provide. It has also now been shown that giving one antiretroviral pill a day to people who don’t have HIV but are at very high risk for catching it can reduce their risk by two-thirds or more.
(7-28-11)
Health workers in Kenya now treat 24% more children with Malaria than before by using cell phones to reminding those on the ground how and when to give the drugs correctly. (8-17-11)
NPR reported that there is strong evidence that men with money are more apt to spread AIDS than poorer men.
BOARD NEWS:
At the September 17 meeting, the Board voted to support to The Good Samaritan Children’s Home in Nairobi, Kenya while dropping support to Women Fighting AIDS in Kenya. This will be reflected in a coming FAF literature. After six months of study, this decision was made because of the growing need at the GSCH coupled with WOFAK’s support from large influential NGOs.
A Budget of $7150 for 2012 was passed. It supports The Good Samaritan Children’s Home at a minimum of $5430.00. The goal for the Anthony Salazar Fund is $1500. The Global Giving goal is $3000.
THE CLOTH:
Dian Zahner is hosting a booth at the international holiday sale, Jubilee, in Spokane, Washington. Dian is one of our artists and a great supporter of FAF. Over the years she has raised at least $2000 for FAF through her textile talent and expertise as well as her work at Jubilee. Thank you Dian for your faithful work and support of children in need.
TID BITS
Parents’ Magazine reports that as newborns, babies in Kenya are given a name that describes their appearance. They have to wait 40 more days for their “adult” name, which is chosen by their parents.
New research shows that human language was born in Africa.
GLOBAL GIVING ACTIVITY:
To date FAF has raised $6433.18 on its Global Giving Tuition Project
and $487.93 for School Shoes
Many donations were made by people who have found FAF on
the web through Global Giving, bringing new friends to FAF.
Global Giving is developing a Storytelling Project. It sends interviewers from the organization to talk to local people who may or may not have benefitted from NGO’s. Supported by the Rockefeller Fund, Global Giving calls this a “Yelp” for international development. The object is to help NGOs discover what community members themselves find as the most effective solutions to the challenges the community faces. To read some of these stories, go to www.globalgiving.org/stories. Click over to storytelling page and read how people react to help from workers and donors like you. Some Kenyan stories already appear on the website.
THE BOOK SHELF
Nobel Prize winner, V.S. Naipaul’s The Mask of Africa: Glimpses of African Belief (2010) takes the reader on an tour of 6 African countries in search of ancient thought and practice and how it affects life today. The book gives a personal window into the lives of modern Africans and how they reconcile the contemporary with the ancient. As always Naipaul provides a great read chocked full of side comments and human interest.
Nicholas D. Kristof, “Sewing Her Way Out of Poverty.” The New York Times, Sept. 15, 2011.
Nicholas D. Kristof, “Just Look at What You Did!” The New York Times, September 29, 2011,
MEMBER NEWS
It is with great sadness that we record the passing of two faithful members: Lora Lee Dole of East Lansing, Michigan and Joanne Obenberger of Three Rivers, Wisconsin and Indian Shores, Florida. We will miss their love for the children of the Good Samaritan Home.
Roger Ellis recently has been elected to the office of the President of the International Amateur Theatre Association. Congratulations, Rog!
MEMBERSHIP
Member fees for FAF go to our organizational expenses: office supplies, postage, and materials to make items for sale. Your dollars prevent worry about the small stuff so FAF can concentrate on our mission: to improve the lives of those at the Good Samaritan Children’s Home.
INDIVIDUAL MEMBERSHIP--$20.00, FAMILY MEMBERSHIP--$30.00
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