For Those Struggling With Diabetes In Ethiopia.
Donation protected
Dear friends/family/colleagues,
As most of you know, earlier this year, I travelled to Ethiopia for my sister’s wedding. We spent five beautiful weeks in the capital Addis Ababa, where I was born and raised and where my sister got married. The wedding was a success and it was wonderful for my 6-month-old at the time to meet his great grant mother in person.
While in Addis, I also took the opportunity to visit the Ethiopian Diabetes Association and the biggest Diabetes Clinic in the country at the Black Lion Hospital. I gave a seminar entitled “Genetics of Type 2 Diabetes” to the physicians and Medical Students at the Hospital. After my seminar the president of the Ethiopian Diabetes Association, Professor Ahmed Reja, gave me a tour of his hospital and the Diabetes Clinic. To the sum up my experience of the tour in one sentence I would simply say that I was numb by the end of it. The number of patients waiting for hours just to have their blood glucose levels checked using a simple hand-held glucometer (after waiting 3 to 6 months for that appointment), the lack of resources the Drs experience and the number of desperate patients who are waiting for dialysis were astonishing. I am usually good at controlling my emotions (at least I have been told that I am) but it was very hard for me to contain that, so I broke down and sobbed like a child. That evening I left with determination that I am going to have do something and somehow better the lives of those struggling with diabetes in Ethiopia.
I promised them that I would share their struggle with my colleagues around the world and will do my best to change something for them. I have been super overwhelmed with where to start and that is the reason why this is the first time you are hearing from you about this. But this morning I woke you with some sense of humility that I have let so much time goes by without doing anything about it and I just need to start somewhere. If I can provide glucometers and some strips to 10 patients so they don’t have to wait 3 to 6 months and get that done at a hospital, I think that would be a wonderful start. So here I am asking your help to allow me to keep my promise in bettering the lives of those struggling with diabetes in Ethiopia. Any amount you can contribute would be wonderful and I will keep this page going for one month. Whatever I can raise in 30 days will go into helping me to decide what I am going to do with the money. I will keep you posted of my journey with this and I will make sure your support goes to those who need it most.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your support.
Melkam
As most of you know, earlier this year, I travelled to Ethiopia for my sister’s wedding. We spent five beautiful weeks in the capital Addis Ababa, where I was born and raised and where my sister got married. The wedding was a success and it was wonderful for my 6-month-old at the time to meet his great grant mother in person.
While in Addis, I also took the opportunity to visit the Ethiopian Diabetes Association and the biggest Diabetes Clinic in the country at the Black Lion Hospital. I gave a seminar entitled “Genetics of Type 2 Diabetes” to the physicians and Medical Students at the Hospital. After my seminar the president of the Ethiopian Diabetes Association, Professor Ahmed Reja, gave me a tour of his hospital and the Diabetes Clinic. To the sum up my experience of the tour in one sentence I would simply say that I was numb by the end of it. The number of patients waiting for hours just to have their blood glucose levels checked using a simple hand-held glucometer (after waiting 3 to 6 months for that appointment), the lack of resources the Drs experience and the number of desperate patients who are waiting for dialysis were astonishing. I am usually good at controlling my emotions (at least I have been told that I am) but it was very hard for me to contain that, so I broke down and sobbed like a child. That evening I left with determination that I am going to have do something and somehow better the lives of those struggling with diabetes in Ethiopia.
I promised them that I would share their struggle with my colleagues around the world and will do my best to change something for them. I have been super overwhelmed with where to start and that is the reason why this is the first time you are hearing from you about this. But this morning I woke you with some sense of humility that I have let so much time goes by without doing anything about it and I just need to start somewhere. If I can provide glucometers and some strips to 10 patients so they don’t have to wait 3 to 6 months and get that done at a hospital, I think that would be a wonderful start. So here I am asking your help to allow me to keep my promise in bettering the lives of those struggling with diabetes in Ethiopia. Any amount you can contribute would be wonderful and I will keep this page going for one month. Whatever I can raise in 30 days will go into helping me to decide what I am going to do with the money. I will keep you posted of my journey with this and I will make sure your support goes to those who need it most.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your support.
Melkam
Organizer
Melkam Kebede
Organizer
Mascot NSW
