News Briefs: August 17, 2006
CLWR welcomes 1,200 youth to Winnipeg
CLWR will be attending the 2006 Canadian Lutheran Youth Gathering (CLYG) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC) in Winnipeg. CLWR participation at the gathering, August 17-20, will provide youth with the opportunity to explore the work CLWR performs around the world. CLWR will focus attention on its Hunger Watch program, which gives participants a better understanding of what chronic hunger is all about and what the response as Lutherans might be.
The 2006 CLYG theme is Full Serve, and will focus on the idea of faith-based service to others. CLWR is participating by opening its doors on Saturday, August 19, to 27 youth and leaders who will serve as volunteers for the day and learn about the work of the agency.
Over 1,200 Lutheran and Anglican youth from across Canada are expected to converge in Winnipeg for the gathering. According to event organizers, “Acts of service, advocacy and prayer will spark hope and bring life as youth return home to be the light of Christ in their congregations and communities across the nation. At Full Serve youth will discover that service is not an event, but a lifestyle.”
- CLWR News Service
Special shipment to Cameroon
A pastor and his wife from Pinawa, Manitoba, are packing their bags on the heavy side as they leave for a half-year mission to Cameroon. Rev. Jack and Valerie Frederick saw the need for clothing and supplies the last time they lived in Cameroon, from 1999 to 2003. CLWR has provided the couple with 129 standardized kits plus assorted quilts and clothing for their latest trip to western Africa.
Rev. Frederick and his wife have lived in Gaya and Cameroon previously, working in the health sector. The couple produced HIV/AIDS awareness programming at a local radio recording studio for the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Cameroon, as well as brochures in local languages. Rev. Frederick also served as a health chaplain and pastor for five villages near Ngaoundéré, Cameroon.
Rev. Frederick’s congregation, Pinawa Lutheran Church, raised $1,500 to build a roof for the church in Cameroon. Buildings may have no floors or walls, according to Ms. Frederick, and church pews are roughly constructed.
-CLWR News Service
International AIDS Conference
The XVI International AIDS Conference in Toronto wraps up this week on Friday, with over 24,000 having participated from more than 170 countries. As part of its involvement in HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment programs, CLWR has supported a delegation.
In his hour-long address on Tuesday, former U.S. President Bill Clinton emphasized the importance for governments and not-for-profit organizations to battle HIV/AIDS. Clinton suggested that the global challenge to overcome the pandemic was a gift from God, and that success on the HIV/AIDS front would create a “burst of energy” in resolving other international health crises.
CLWR focuses its HIV/AIDS programs in three of its five project countries. Of the 7.4 million people living with HIV/AIDS in project countries, India represents 5.1 million, Mozambique 1.3 million and Zambia 920,000 cases. As a percent of national population, Zambia has the highest rate of incidence at 16.5 percent.
CLWR supports HIV/AIDS education and awareness programs, and empowers women to take better precautions against the disease. Worldwide, an estimated 38.6 million people are infected with HIV/AIDS and women between 16 and 24 years old are most at risk of infection. In India, CLWR also provides counselling, treatment and palliative care services.
HIV/AIDS connects directly to poverty and hunger. In hard-hit Zambia for instance, families lose their income earners to the disease, resulting in over half the children under the age of six in the eastern province being severely malnourished. At the International AIDS Conference, Professor Ruth Nduati (Kenya) of the College of Health Sciences at the University of Nairobi called for a greater commitment to comprehensive care for HIV-exposed and infected children. Barriers to paediatric diagnosis include limited access to laboratories, lack of testing policies for children, and the challenges of HIV disclosure.
- CLWR News Service with information from www.aids2006.org, The Globe and Mail, CIDA, and CIA World Factbook.
|
|
|
Resources
