300,000 Are Homeless, Hungry: The 'Right' Time to Help is Right Now
FRESNO, Calif., Oct. 8, 2024 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) –– In the wake of destructive flooding in Kenya and parts of Tanzania, East Africa this spring, nonprofit organization Give A Hand has issued a call for an intensive relief effort to aid impacted families. Give A Hand executives said that while a minimal amount of aid is trickling through, hundreds of thousands of flood victims remain in need.
Photo caption: Pictured: Florence Otieno Ogundo, Founder, Orongo Widows and Orphans Group working with Give A Hand to help victims of the Kenya floods.
“Raising awareness is our goal,” said Dr. Nelson Pichardo, Executive Director of Give A Hand. “The press isn’t really covering this. Nobody knows what’s going on and how many parents and their children are still homeless and starving in Kenya.”
The floods that rocked Kenya and toppled traditionally-built homes began in April and have resulted in nearly 315 deaths, at least 188 people injured, 38 still missing and nearly 300,000 homeless, according to United Nations OCHA.
“Many of these families are single-parent households: a mother and her children,” Pichardo pointed out. “They were already struggling before the flooding. These floods literally wiped houses out. Now these families have no place to go, and with a recent cholera outbreak, they need not just food and shelter but medical supplies. There’s a serious need.”
While the United Nations has allocated funds to aid the victims, “It’s not enough,” noted Pichardo. “These people have lost everything.”
MASSIVE RELIEF EFFORT IS UNDERWAY: “WE WANTED TO GIVE BACK”
Since its initial relief efforts through its portal giveahand.site, where donors are able to pledge aid, Give A Hand has raised approximately $24,000, executives noted.
“We have huge construction trucks going into the area because nothing else can get in,” Pichardo noted. The area remains impassable by other modes of transportation, he said, and families are stranded. “People don’t know where to go.”
Give A Hand, Inc. was born through generous seed money and support from World Workforce International, an international labor union, and Positiviti Lending, an international micro-lending platform that enables Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to thrive without outside assistance.
Give A Hand was created from our belief that individuals can work hard and pull themselves out of poverty. Our motto is: “We provide the opportunity; the individual creates the outcome.”
Pichardo noted, “We are creating long-term solutions to poverty through empowering, teaching skills, and lifting barriers to private entrepreneurship.”
But right now, “The people of Kenya are truly suffering,” Pichardo said. “So we organized this relief effort and are asking for help from people worldwide.”
HOW TO DONATE
With thousands of families still in need, Give A Hand is already busy delivering much-needed necessities whenever and wherever it can, company executives said.
Give A Hand currently has a goal of raising $2 million to give shelter, food and medicine to the flood victims.
“We hope to reach our final goal by Thanksgiving,” said Pichardo. “It would be a beautiful way to say ‘thank you’ to our generous donors. But we need to start right now.”
Individuals looking to help the relief effort can visit https://www.giveahand.site/landing/. Every dollar counts, and “every day that passes is critical,” according to Give A Hand executives.
GIVING THANKS: “GIVE A HAND (IS EASING) OUR BURDEN”
As a poignant testimonial to these efforts, affected families have already begun expressing their gratitude via emails to the organization.
“Managing a household of eight, the support from Give A Hand was truly a lifeline during the flood crisis,” said Jacob Omandi. The supplies provided not only sustained us, but also provided a sense of security amidst the challenges we faced.”
“With five children to look after, the flood disaster left us without basic necessities and in a state of uncertainty,” expressed Sharon Anyango. “(Give A Hand’s) generosity brought a sense of relief and gratitude to our hearts.”
And Austine Owino wrote, “Ensuring (my six children’s) wellbeing amidst the flood crisis was my top priority. The assistance from Give A Hand greatly eased our burden.”
While it’s a great start, “Every day, people are hungry and in need of medical care,” Pichardo pointed out. “The ‘right’ time to help is right now.”
ABOUT GIVE A HAND:
Based in Fresno, California, Give A Hand’s mission and vision is to ameliorate poverty by providing individuals with knowledge and access to financial services and literacy, and to overcome basic human needs that impede access to such knowledge.
Give A Hand achieves its goals by creating and delivering initiatives in different regions or countries in the world, Kenya is their first effort. These initiatives create access to microfinance services, financial literacy and the creation of micro-businesses. It also addresses basic needs such as food, water, and education because they present a barrier to successfully implement these microfinance and financial literacy interventions.
For more information or to donate visit https://www.giveahand.site/
MULTIMEDIA:
VIDEO (Vimeo) https://vimeo.com/1016193767
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Photo caption: Pictured: Florence Otieno Ogundo, Founder, Orongo Widows and Orphans Group working with Give A Hand to help victims of the Kenya floods.
NEWS SOURCE: Give A Hand
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