East Africa Famine

I have been spamming Facebook's newsfeed and Twitter's timeline with updates on the famine in East Africa and appeals for donation/help so much I suspect I am now on the most annoying list of my FB friends and Twitter followers I gladly be on such list if I can help save just 1 life.

So far, 32 of my FB friends have LIKED Edesia's FB page and this translates to food for 1 day for 32 kids in East Africa (FB users go click LIKE now). And a kind soul who saw our relentless posts/updates on Edesia on FB has pledged to donate a certain sum of money :) And another kind soul, Jean has donated too after reading my blog. Hooray!

Pictures, clips and stories on the malnourished, starving and sick children whose lives are hanging by a thread are just too much for me to bear. I am beyond heartbroken. They remind me of Alexa and I absolutely cannot bear to imagine Alexa being sick and hungry. I rather die a thousand times and not let Alexa suffer. It's as clear as day just how lucky and blessed we are errrmmm having said that, I am still saving to buy a chanel 2.55

Both pictures taken off Global Giving and if you do not feel even the slightest
twinge of compassion and sadness, I am pretty sure you are cold hearted

It's amazing how internet or rather, FB and Twitter have been instrumental in raising awareness on global issues. A few years back, I may just read/watch such news on the paper/tv and not knowing how to share such reports with my peers. But with internet, sharing is so much easier, faster and efficient and especially so with the emergence of FB and Twitter. Sharing on FB and Twitter is as good as giving realtime update as most FB and Twitter users are logged on round the clock. And now helping/donating is literally at your fingertip. All you have to do is tap your finger on the mouse to click on the donate button and of course key in your credit card numbers but that will not take more than 2 minutes of your time. I remember I had to issue a cheque and mail it to Red Cross to help the victims of the earthquake in Pakistan and god knows how long it took for my money to reach Pakistan what with the effienciency of Msia postal system, and then for the cheque to be cashed But with internet, money can now be deducted from your credit card and go directly to the non-profit organization :) It's almost like passing cash to the non-profit organization face-to-face. No lag in between.

I am now officially a serial donor. Just this month alone, I have donated to International Medical Corp, UNHCR and Edesia and I have became a montly contributor to UNICEF and World Food Programme (I have donated to WFP in memory of a dear friend who has recently departed us. May her rest in peace)

Now now, I am not trying to impress on you how nice/kind/saintly I am. Instead I am trying to impress on you what YOU can do to help. I am just an ordinary working/nursing mum who has the cutest daughter ever trying to help make the world a better place. I list out the names of the organizations I have donated becoz I do not want you to think I am just all talk and no action.

How you can help :)
https://www.wfp.org/donate/hoa_banners
http://www.supportunicef.org/site/pp.asp?c=9fLEJSOALpE&b=7542627
http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/somalia/