The U.N. has declared famine in parts of southern Somalia. This is the worst starvation seen in Africa in 20 years. Thousands of children have died. More than two million children are desperate for food – many have just days to live.
Children 3 or 4 years old with bodies the size of 9 month old babies, wrinkled skin, sunken eyes. Unspeakable suffering borne by the most innocent and vulnerable among us.
Children in Africa need your help RIGHT NOW.Please STOP... take out your card... and donate to the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. You will save lives. Your gift will immediately be rushed to support UNICEF's relief efforts in the Horn of Africa.
As dire the news – know that this is not a lost cause.
UNICEF is in the midst of a massive mobilization. Late last week, UNICEF airlifted 5 metric tons of therapeutic food and emergency supplies to the region. More flights are leaving imminently. Hundreds of additional tons of food, clean water and medical supplies are on their way.
It doesn't matter where they are... Huge numbers of women and children are fleeing violence in Somalia. They travel under the scorching sun by foot, only to collapse and die on the side of dirt roads. UNICEF is doubling the capacity of mobile feeding centers to find, feed and treat these children.
Miracle food for just a few dollars... For the child staring death in the face, UNICEF is distributing therapeutic foods like PlumpyNut™. This is a fortified nut paste that with even just one feeding can pull a child back from the brink. Already, UNICEF has shipped more than 10,000 cartons of PlumpyNut™ to Mogadishu. Just $10 can feed a child for 10 days.
This isn't just about being hungry... Severely malnourished children are highly susceptible to disease. And a thirsty child doesn't care if water is contaminated – she'll drink it. Already, UNICEF is providing 1.2 million people with clean water, and more water is being delivered – enough to reach 60,000 additional families.
A final thought... read this not just as an email. Read this and see it for it what it is: a cry for help from the world's most vulnerable children. Please don't turn away, don't ignore their plea for help.
We do not know the child we will save together. But we respond anyway, out of love, out of compassion and out of a belief that we have an obligation to help these children. Together, we can rescue them and give them hope for a better tomorrow.
With my deepest thanks,
Caryl M. Stern
President & CEO
U.S. Fund for UNICEF
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