Come Together . ..

I apologize for the lack of activity but I have been away for the past eight days and the internet is very spotty over here in The Gambia. For those of you who were wondering yes Ivan Basso won the Giro D'Italia. Michael Ballack also signed with the English football club Chelsea. I think he would look better playing in Old Trafford but thats just my opinion. This is the sports news you hear about when you listen to the BBC World news like I do every night! Two weeks ago I traveled around the country speaking to different organizations about helping NSGA with there mass bed net distribution campaign. The first person I met was the mayor of Kanifing. This is the province where I live. We thought that working through the municipal council would be a great way to mobilize a large group of people. The mayor was most gracious and said that he would do whatever he could to help us. The next two stops along the road were The Supreme Islamic Council of The Gambia and The Christian Council of The Gambia. We approched these two groups because they have a great influence over their congregation. If they could make announcements at Mass or the Call to Prayer about using bed nets it would dramaticaly increase the credibility of the bed nets. The two groups also agreed to hold special work shops to educate there parishoners about the importance of using ITN's to prevent Malaria. The head of The Supreme Islamic Council said something very interesting during our meeting. He mentioned that it is in his best interest to keep his people healthy because when you are sick it is much harder to properly worship God. In his eyes using bed nets to prevent people from getting Malaria will also help people in properly worshiping God. Our final stop was at the Poly Clinic of Banjul. We spoke with nurses about making announcements to their patients about the bed net Campaign that NSGA was hosting. I think bringing the community together is the best way to educate peopel about their health. Speaking with people I also learned about the stigmas attached to bed nets I.E. - Only poor people use bed nets, bed nets are for the elderly, and bed nets are not fashionable among young people. When I tell kids that I sleep under a bed net they are shocked. Why would a rich,young, white man sleep under a bed net? I tell them that diseases like Malaria and HIV/AIDS do not discriminate. Young or old, rich or poor, these disease can affect anyone. I think it's pretty cool to sleep under a bed net, how about you? The kids then see that maybe sleeping under a bed net is not all that bad. CIAO