Disaster ResponseWorld Concern and Medical Teams International are working together in Myanmar facilitating the support of medical teams, essential drug supply, dead body disposal and plans for trauma recovery support. Together, the agencies are taking a lead role in providing training, technical assistance and resources to more than 50 in-country non-governmental and volunteer organizations. "One of the most urgent and heart-rending needs is to care for the dead," said World Concern Relief Director Merry Fitzpatrick. "While our need to focus on the living is urgent, survivors are immensely stressed by the daily sight of the uncollected dead. Members on our team have experience with collecting and properly disposing of large numbers of human bodies with dignity. It is a sad and gruesome job, but one the survivors themselves have given a priority, so we are respecting that desire." The removal of dead bodies in some areas is impeding mental health recovery. In addition to providing immediate relief supplies and health care, World Concern and Medical Teams International are working with families to rebuild their lives and livelihoods. Many farmers and fishermen lost nearly everything in the cyclone. World Concern and Medical Teams International plan to assist families by providing irrigation systems, livestock, clean water, boats, nets and other needed training and supplies that will help families rebuild through the years to come.
The people of Myanmar still need your help! Your donation today will bring hope to families and children by providing them with both immediate post-cyclone assistance and long-term sustainable programs.
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Responding To Those Who Need HelpWorld Concern and Operation Blessing have shipped two 40-foot containers of soy-enriched rice to Haiti in May. The food will provide over one million meals and is being distributed through the partners of the Association of HIV/AIDS (AHA) in Haiti to those who are most at risk in the current food shortage. “For those affected by HIV/AIDS, a lack of adequate nutrition interferes with the body's ability to fight off infection and respond to medication. Nutrition deficits lead to a faster disease progression and deterioration,” says Alison Lindner, MPH, World Concern's HIV/AIDS manager. Even though Haitian President Rene Preval promised a decrease in the cost of rice, market prices for the commodity have remained at all-time highs and prices for other foods continue to rise, according to Christon Domond, World Concern's country director in Haiti. He reports that at Cite Soleil, the largest and poorest community in Port-au-Prince, people go to bed without eating. Haitian radio is reporting that some resort to eating argile (earth) mixed with some salt made into a "pizza." "The country seems calm," Domond says, "however, there is evidence that something could happen anytime again because the living condition of the population continues to deteriorate." The people of Haiti are still in desperate need of our help. Your gift can make a difference. Real Life Stories Hawai, a twenty-seven-year-old widow and mother of four, is one of thousands of people from Sudan displaced by violence and war. Like other displaced people, when she arrived in Chad’s Goz Beida region with nothing but the clothes she was wearing, she struggled to feed her children. Since then, World Concern has helped her find food, safety and hope for her family. Help people like Hawai and give to general food security today.
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