Disaster Relief

For years, I have worked with the NGO Rwenzori Economic Development Unit https://www.reducomdev.com/ and have come to know its founder, Mr. Mumbre Samson. He has dedicated his life to helping women and children while protecting the environment. I learned about him and his organization through the International mountaineering and climbing community. Many of my fellow climbers have taken one of his Eco tours or volunteered for his organization.

The Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda are a World Heritage Site, and recently, a mudslide killed 15 people in the village located in this area. Mr. Samson and his team are reaching out to everyone they know to ask for help. You see, among the 15 people, most were women and children. The very people he helps through his NGO's mandate. While his heart is broken, he is scrambling to raise funds to help rebuild the community on safer ground, care for the injured and house orphans who lost their mothers.

CNN NEWS REPORT https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/08/africa/uganda-heavy-rain-climate-intl/index.html

Due to international banking restrictions, he can not create his own GoFundMe page, so I have volunteered to help him with his campaign. All money raised here will go directly to the Rwenzori Economic Development Unit for disaster relief.

I want to take a minute to tell you why this is so important to me. A few years ago, I built a website for them, and I got to know the impact that Mr. Samson and all the volunteers are making firsthand through pictures, stories and emails. They are changing not only a community on a local level by empowering women and girls by providing education, business development, medical and microfinancing; They are changing the world by inviting doctors, scientists and environmentalists to study and be a part of their community.

They are a community committed to their success and recognize their vital role in protecting their world heritage site for future generations. These great people need our help more than ever as they struggle to heal from their losses and rebuild their communities. You may not know them personally, but I can tell you that they deserve our help because they want nothing more than to build a fantastic place in Uganda that welcomes everyone to enjoy the beauty and wonder of the Rwenzori Mountains. The mother of the mighty Nile River. They are real people like you and me, and their lives just got much harder.

Your support does so much more than give them money to rebuild, it also sends a message of hope and love. It is a message of togetherness and compassion from strangers that needs nothing in return. Anyone who has ever grieved the loss of a loved one knows that sometimes it is a stranger that does not know us who can offer us the most comfort with a simple kind gesture of understanding. I am asking you to be that kind of stranger today. To be a person who can give with an open heart. Every little bit helps. Thank you for your time, your prayers and your encouragement.