March 24, 2015 | 10:38 a.m.
Working with a network of local organizations and partner churches, Convoy of Hope is distributing 4.2 million meals to aid children and families affected by the Ebola crisis in West Africa. As of March 1, the first wave of 23 containers filled with food, medical supplies, and water filtration systems have been distributed or are en route to the region.
“We are distributing food-aid in the hard-hit nations of Sierra Leone and Liberia,” says Chris Dudley, Disaster Services Response Director. “Medical supplies and water purification units have also been shipped to the area with more loads slated for the next few months.”
In Sierra Leone, the distribution of meals is taking place in six key communities, including Koindu, where most of the country’s Ebola outbreaks are thought to have originated. To date, more than 18,200 people have received food aid through our network of partners in Sierra Leone.
In neighboring Liberia, the initial phase of food aid distribution has been focused on the capital city of Monrovia, where more than 3,600 families (18,000 people) facing food insecurity have received much needed nutrition. However, the relief effort has gone beyond Monrovia.
“The relief initiative has reached into the depths of the jungle as well as the capitol city of Monrovia,” says Liberian Assemblies of God missionary Gaylord Brown. “Distributing millions of meals has given hope to the hopeless and food for the hungry. Many prayers have been answered.”
Convoy of Hope’s key medical partner in Liberia, the Christian Health Association of Liberia, is distributing food and medical supplies through affiliate hospitals, ETUs (Ebola Treatment Units), clinics, and churches. Though the interior jungle region is less populous than Monrovia, the people there are poorer and more vulnerable.
Efforts there have targeted widows, children, the elderly, and the disabled. Kwame Wumbe, Convoy of Hope’s field coordinator for the Ebola initiative in West Africa, says, “This is one of the greatest human need crises in West African history. But Convoy of Hope’s timely intervention with food, medical supplies, and best practice protocols will long be remembered by thousands of grateful Liberian and Sierra Leone recipients who received hope when it appeared there was none.” Convoy of Hope’s relief efforts in West Africa are expected to continue through mid-2015.
October 30, 2014 | 4:15 p.m.
Relief supplies are en route to West Africa and are expected to arrive in the region by the end of November as the Ebola crisis continues to take lives. Convoy of Hope’s partners and friends have been crucial in our efforts to get relief supplies to the region. Feed My Starving Children (FMSC), has committed nearly 3 million meals to support our efforts there. Mercy hospital in Springfield, Missouri, has donated much needed medical supplies.
“As the disease continues to affect so many in West Africa, an additional crisis is arising and that is the lack of food,” says Chris Dudley, Disaster Services Response Director. “So we are thankful that, through generous partners, we’re able to ship both food and supplies to the region.”
October 13, 2014 | 5:15 p.m.
In response to the Ebola crisis, Convoy of Hope has launched an intensive 9-month disaster plan to ship and distribute more than 400 tons of desperately needed food and supplies to West Africa.
Our first objective is to provide much-needed food relief for the children and families who are in the crosshairs of the Ebola virus. Our team in Africa believes that hundreds of thousands of people will die in the coming months without a swift and steady response that brings food and supplies to those in need. Convoy of Hope has already shipped two containers of lifesaving food and supplies to Liberia.
We have joined with partner organizations in West Africa that will ensure the immediate distribution of food and supplies to communities in the capital and deep in the bush, which are often overlooked. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned that, by the end of January, the Ebola virus could infect 1.5 million people.
We are determined to stand by the people of West Africa and fight this scourge through the delivery of food, supplies, medicine, and more. Along with our determination to alleviate the food crisis, we will help stop the spread of the disease by sending cleaning supplies, disinfectants, first aid kits, and other similar items.
“It will take a united effort — everyone doing what they can — to prevent more deaths and the spread of this disease,” says Hal Donaldson, President and co-founder of Convoy of Hope.
