MAMA Project, Inc.

I am appealing to you today with a bit of urgency. On March 15, in Juba, South Sudan, there will be an auction of United Nations-owned Land Cruisers and ambulances. We are hoping to purchase an ambulance. As of right now, $18,500 is pledged.

I am writing to you on behalf of MAMA Project, Intl. The name stands for Mujeres Amigas Miles Apart, which means Women Friends Miles Apart. The organization's founder is Dr. Priscilla Benner of Pennsburg, PA. In 1987, it began as a cooperative effort between women in the US and in Honduras to help the children in the villages. Dr. Benner works as a volunteer. Since then, MAMA has grown to include efforts in maternal and child wellness in Central America, Kenya, South Sudan, and India. The work is able to go forward because of the generous and loving support of good people in the US and Europe.

In the last two years, MAMA Project has partnered with Transformation of the World in Christ (TWIC). TWIC is working in the displaced persons camps in northern South Sudan. As a result of 35 years of war, the people are devastated. Thousands of women and children face the most brutal conditions of malnutrition, poor health, starvation, and thirst. TWIC, with MAMA's support, has created 5 health care clinics, purchased an ambulance, and provided food for those in the camps.

When a mother-to-be faces a crisis in childbirth, sometimes the only transportation to the hospital is by oxcart. Currently, MAMA Project is working on a plan to purchase several 3-wheel ambulances, which cost $7,000 each. Though inexpensive, they are not very suitable during the rainy season when many roads become impassable due to mud and flood conditions.

MAMA Project has also been working on fundraising to help in this effort for emergency transport. They have hoped to purchase a new Toyota Land Cruiser. Without ambulance fittings and with the discounted price for the non-profit, the cost is approximately $50K.

In the last couple of weeks, MAMA Project became aware of this auction through someone who works in the UN. A contingent of TWIC from Wau, South Sudan, including the director and a mechanic, will fly to Juba to hope to successfully bid on a suitable vehicle. Our understanding is that the cost of a Toyota Land Cruiser is likely to be approximately $20K.

The work of TWIC is carried out under the leadership of Rev. Abuna Paul Leuth Kat. The work of this amazing man can be followed on Facebook.

We hope and pray that you may be moved to care for these most destitute people. In spite of their most abysmal circumstances, they are a people full of joy. They express with overwhelming exuberance their appreciation for everything done on their behalf. We welcome you to join with us in caring and sharing with these loving people. Blessings.

People are fleeing from war in South Sudan and Sudan, and running for days or even weeks to escape violence! But, they arrive in places with no water, food, shelter, or medical care!

The United Nations High Commission On Refugees has declared South Sudan the largest refugee crisis in Africa, but it has not attracted the attention of the big International Organizations and Governments that usually step in to supply the basic humanitarian needs that refugees face.

A husband and wife team of Reverend Paul Lueth and Regina Ateny Ayuel started trying to find help for the 17 camps in their region. Paul and Regina had experienced suffering as children because of the war. They were able to obtain training in community development and started a small nonprofit. They became involved in trying to find help for the refugees, reaching out to many large international organizations and agencies, without success.

Then, in their search for partners in the world, they met us online. We, MAMA Project, are also a small nonprofit, with a focus on Child Survival and Community Development. In the past year, working together, MAMA Project in the United States have raised funds and they in South Sudan have carried out the work . We are in 15 of the 17 refugee camps. Together, we have been able to drill 11 wells and repair 9, train 26 well technicians, start 5 small clinics and nutrition program, train 35 health workers, repair an ambulance, and provide seeds and training to people to plant crops and moringa trees. We have also been able to provide basic food essentials - millet flour, peanut oil, sugar, and milk powder - to 5 of the camps.

We are happy that we have been able to help thousands of people in need. But the refugees keep coming, and there is still a desperate need for FOOD! People are literally starving.

GOALS- We have many plans and goals - for better care of pregnant women, more medical clinics and nutrition rehab for children, more ambulances and training of EMTs, and we are working hard on promoting PEACE!

Right now, this appeal is for funding for mass food distribution to keep people alive until more help can arrive.

Current Situation:

Twic County South Sudan (near the Sudan border) has been experiencing a high influx of refugees from Sudan and the internally displaced.

Currently, there are 17 IDP/Refugee Camps where we work in Twic County, with thousands in each camp surviving on what they can collect from the bush, mainly roots and leaves. The vast majority of the people are sheltering under trees or stick shelters often with no cover.

The MAMA Project & our Sudanese nonprofit partner The Transformation of the World in Christ have been scrambling to provide emergency support to the most malnourished children and address sustainable solutions, but the needs are vast. Without immediate intervention, many more will perish.

The woman in green in the photo below, whose sister tragically died during the thousand kilometer or more walk from the capital of Sudan to the camp in South Sudan, now has her sister's young children to care for, and many in the camps have similar stories.

The population of refugees in the camps keeps increasing.

On 15 April 2023, an armed conflict between rival factions of the military government of Sudan erupted in the capital Khartoum, leading to the displacement of thousands of people who were previously living in different parts of Sudan, including thousands of South Sudanese who were living there as refugees. Following the outbreak of the conflict, many have been forced to flee to neighboring countries in search of protection and assistance, and South Sudan is one of the countries receiving the highest number of refugees and returnees. Many of the returnees do not have relatives within the host communities and will need greater support to enable them to cope with these challenges. Over 83 percent of the refugee population are women and children with 65% under 18 years of age.

Please, help us support the most basic of needs - FOOD - for the IDP & Refugees who need it most. Donate today.