2007.01.24: January 24, 2007: Headlines: COS - Uganda: Malaria: The Harrisburg Patriot: Marlene and Brian McPherson visited their daughter in the Peace Corps in Nambogo, Uganda and brought 882 mosquito nets
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2007.01.24: January 24, 2007: Headlines: COS - Uganda: Malaria: The Harrisburg Patriot: Marlene and Brian McPherson visited their daughter in the Peace Corps in Nambogo, Uganda and brought 882 mosquito nets
Marlene and Brian McPherson visited their daughter in the Peace Corps in Nambogo, Uganda and brought 882 mosquito nets
We wanted to take something to these women Adia likes so much, and we decided to collect money for the nets," Marlene said. "These people are living in mud huts and often can't afford the $6 for a mosquito net for their babies to sleep under." To pay for the nets, the McPhersons reached out to the community. What they found astounded them. They sent e-mail appeals, stuffed school mailboxes with fliers and asked churches for help. "I thought we're not going to have enough money for everyone to get a net," she said. "I figured we could raise about $200 -- and we ended up with $2,400, enough for five nets for each woman." The sum means that all the members of the households in Nambogo and, in some cases, members of their extended families, will be protected from malaria-carrying mosquitoes.
Marlene and Brian McPherson visited their daughter in the Peace Corps in Nambogo, Uganda and brought 882 mosquito nets
Donations allay sting of malaria ; Ugandan women benefit from family's fund drive for mosquito netting
Jan 24, 2007
The Harrisburg Patriot
Marlene McPherson stood in the kitchen of her Ickesburg home stirring milk tea and talking about mosquito netting.
McPherson learned to make the sweet, milky drink during a Christmas visit to Nambogo, Uganda, where she and her husband, Brian, visited their daughter, Adia, a Peace Corps volunteer.
It was a vacation with a purpose. They delivered enough money so that all the women with whom Adia works will have netting to protect them and their families from the mosquito that carries malaria. That means from 200 to 300 people will share 882 mosquito nets.
In 2002, malaria was the fourth-leading cause of death in children in developing countries. It causes about 11 percent of children's deaths in developing countries, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Adia went to Uganda in March 2005, where the thrust of her work is with women's health issues.
"I do lots of work with education for HIV prevention in schools and how to implement sustainable peer education programs and visiting community groups to promote programs that will get them involved with income-generating activities," Adia McPherson said. "I also visit the schools with traveling drama groups and then hold support meetings with the teachers, among other things."
Her two-year Peace Corps stint ends in May.
When her parents planned their visit, they knew they wanted more than a sightseeing trip.
"We wanted to take something to these women Adia likes so much, and we decided to collect money for the nets," Marlene said. "These people are living in mud huts and often can't afford the $6 for a mosquito net for their babies to sleep under."
To pay for the nets, the McPhersons reached out to the community. What they found astounded them. They sent e-mail appeals, stuffed school mailboxes with fliers and asked churches for help.
"I thought we're not going to have enough money for everyone to get a net," she said. "I figured we could raise about $200 -- and we ended up with $2,400, enough for five nets for each woman."
The sum means that all the members of the households in Nambogo and, in some cases, members of their extended families, will be protected from malaria-carrying mosquitoes.
Congregants in churches in Perry and Cumberland counties donated to the effort. West Perry High School Honor Society members added money to the till, as did the high school Life Skills class, which "gave $18, all the money they had in their treasury," Marlene McPherson said. Acquaintances stopped her in store aisles to offer donations.
Chris Shatto of Blain, a member of McPherson's Bluestocking Book Discussion Group, which donated to the cause, said she liked the idea of knowing to whom the money was going.
"Everyone has the capability to make a difference in the life of someone else," Shatto said. "I certainly don't have the means to practice widespread philanthropy, but I knew that with a small donation, I could possibly save the life of someone. I also get the sense that these people are truly appreciative."
Joey Shambaugh, president of the Ladies Aid Society of the Shermans Dale United Methodist Church, said group members embraced the project.
"We like to see what happens with the money we give to mission projects," she said. "When we get thank-you notes, I think we are probably more blessed than the people who get the donation."
"The local folks sent lots of love," Marlene McPherson said.
Links to Related Topics (Tags):
Headlines: January, 2007; Peace Corps Uganda; Directory of Uganda RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Uganda RPCVs; Malaria; Lariam
When this story was posted in February 2007, this was on the front page of PCOL:
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Story Source: The Harrisburg Patriot
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Uganda; Malaria
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