Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa And Medshare Send Urgent Medicalsupplies To Liberian Health Care Workers

On August 27th, 2014, the Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa (GPFA) and MedShare dispatched

urgent medical supplies to health care workers fighting Ebola in Liberia. GPFA has sent 400 boxes (approximately 6000 lbs.) of medical supplies from MedShare valued at approximately $55,000 USD to community clinics in Monrovia, Liberia, including Star of the Sea Clinic and Hope for Women International Clinic (http://medshare.org/media/press-releases/61).

As a component of the ongoing rallying of support for the eradication of the deadly Ebola virus from Liberia, GPFA with support from its international partners, continues its sustained humanitarian efforts in identifying tangible goals and finding a well-driven solution to the Ebola scourge that seems unending, with death tolls spiraling unprecedentedly in the history of the virus.

"As supplies and resources go to the treatment of Ebola, small clinics are not able to provide basic obstetric services and treatment for ailments like malaria, cholera and diarrhea," explained Madam Leymah Gbowee, 2011 Nobel Peace Laureate and President/Founder of the Foundation. "Thanks to our local partners who helped with distribution, the MedShare shipment helps local community clinics keep their doors open, workers safe and communities healthy."

The MedShare supplies, which arrived in Monrovia on August 27, 2014, were airlifted with support from several other non-profit organizations through Airlink by ATX Air Services. With many carriers deciding not to fly into West Africa at this time, Airlink is one of the only means through which non-profit organizations can urgently deliver needed humanitarian aid.

"MedShare is honored to partner with Madame Leymah Gbowee and Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa to help combat the spread of the Ebola virus in Liberia," said MedShare CEO and President Charles Redding. "We applaud Madam Gbowee and the Foundation's efforts to increase education and awareness about the virus, and provide critical medical supplies to Liberian community health workers trying to contain the spread of this devastating disease."

According to GPFA's Executive Director, W. E. Saydee-Tarr, the Foundation is troubled by the alarming wave of hundreds if not thousands of new cases emerging all over the country with a total lack of coordination on the part of state actors that shows the real inability of the government of Liberia to control and contain the situation without outsourcing assistance. The Foundation deems the crisis the biggest and greatest healthcare debacle, one that has placed the populace in seclusion and brought the entire country to its knees, since the end of the civil war and, in the country's 167 years of existence.

The goal of GPFA's Ebola Outreach Awareness Initiative is to help eradicate the spread of the Ebola Virus amongst the population of Liberia with its core purpose of engaging Community- Based Organizations (CBOs), including rural media institutions, women and youth groups to implement outreach activities by creating awareness on prevention of the Ebola Pandemic in, communities in Liberia.

To this end the Foundation began implementing its' goal on July 31st 2014, by disbursing USD $5,000 in Mini-Grants to 12 CBOs in Monrovia. The disbursement was done only after having provided training to the CBOs through an awareness partnership up the Department of Disease Control and Prevention of the Ministry of Health. Within less than a week of that 1st disbursement, a 2nd disbursement of USD $10,000 in Mini-Grants was disbursed

on August 4th, 2014; this time around the beneficiaries included 23 CBOs from Rural Liberia, and Rural Radio Stations.

To date, GPFA's community-based outreach has covered parts of Montserrado County (including but not limited to CBOs in New Kru Town, Paynesville, PHP, Lakpazee, Slipway, Brewerville, Sinkor, Jallah's Town, Rockhill, GSA Road, etc.), Radio Stations, Women and Youth Groups (WIPNET, FaceAfrica, WIPSEN, Tienii Youth, Nimba Rural Women, etc.) in Grand Capemount, Rivercess, Bong, Margibi, Bomi, and Nimba Counties.

The GPFA Ebola Outreach and Awareness Initiative provides sanitary and hygienic materials, and, promote their usage amongst rural dwellers in accessible cities within the fifteen subdivisions of Liberia. Coupled with that, providing airtime for Ebola Awareness, Prevention and Containment messages to be aired in the sixteen vernaculars in Liberia and in simple Liberian English is also an important goal, hence the support of the Rural Radio Stations.

The Gbowee Peace Foundation Africa appreciates the Diaspora Liberia Emergency Response Task Force's help in the distribution of the urgently needed Medical Supplies from the Foundation's partner MedShare that were airlifted into Liberia. It is hoped that the apportioned donations to disadvantaged Community Health Care Centers will help to alleviate pressing medical needs within those targeted communities.

The Foundation resolved in early July to be a substantial part of every effort by local and international humanitarian organizations to help and contribute resources to the ongoing crisis. Thus, through the continued support of its international partners, GPFA shall continue reaching out to local and rural communities to help eradicate EBOLA. GPFA is especially interested in providing awareness to females - the highest # of EBOLA victims - inarguably the real first responders as they tend to be the initial caregivers once a family member gets ill. The Foundation will also provide food aid to needy communities, and support to burial teams who are tasked with the proper disposal of remains of victims.

GPFA's Executive Director states that as a Foundation, they are in the fight with the people of Liberia to put an end to this virus. It should be understood that the situation is about more than just the Ebola scourge which is beyond the control of everyone and particularly the government.

This is obviously not just a simple outbreak or a public health crisis. It is a social crisis, a humanitarian crisis, a crisis so serious, it threatens to rip apart the very fabric of hope for Liberia's forward march. This crisis is of epidemic proportions and is way beyond the health care delivery system of the country, a system that has proven hugely incapable - beyond the Ebola virus itself - in handling the crisis which is now a nightmare.

GPFA's top Executives expressed that while it true that the virus is unprecedented in the country, they are of the strong belief that with the increase in concentrated international goodwill,

especially with the United States' direct bolstering of the efforts of international humanitarian

organizations already working in Liberia, especially the World Health Organization and, its' own Center for Disease Control, the virus will be contained. But due to the enormity of what we are faced with - and to get to the end of this tunnel - it is incumbent on everyone, and in particular the government of Liberia, to put our house in order and work with our regional and international partners - especially the humanitarian ones, to coordinate a concerted effort and approach to successfully eradicate this disease.

ABOUT GBOWEE PEACE FOUNDATION AFRICA (GPFA) - Founded in 2012 by Nobel Peace Laureate Leymah R. Gbowee with headquarters in Liberia, GPFA's mission is to mobilize resources to

facilitate equal access to quality education and leadership development for youths, girls and

underprivileged women in Africa. Visit GPFA at www.facebook.com/GboweePeaceFoundationAfrica

ABOUT MEDSHARE Founded in Atlanta in 1998, MedShare collects essential, unused medical

supplies and equipment and delivers them directly to underserved populations worldwide while lessening the impact on landfills in the U.S. With offices in the Atlanta, New York, and San Francisco metropolitan

areas, our ultimate goal is to bridge the gap between surplus and need. For more information, visit www.medshare.org.

ABOUT AIRLINK Airlink is a 24/7 disaster response organization that links pre-vetted

nongovernmental organizations with airlines for air and cargo transportation. Founded in 2010, Airlink's airline partners have supported humanitarian initiatives on every continent, having flown approximately 3,000 passengers and transported 800,000 lbs. of cargo.