Carol Soelberg
Stay Alive Gains Prominent New Ally in 'GoYin'
February 28, 2007
The Stay Alive program's success continues to amaze us as it keeps attracting new and enthusiastic supporters. This week, I would like to highlight a couple of stories demonstrating this.
First, I want to share the good news that a dynamic new organization, GoYin, has selected the Stay Alive program as one of its major causes to support. GoYin is the Utah maker of a unique nutritional drink.
Secondly, we have a heartwarming story about a young woman in Kenya, Marta Malenga, who is using the Stay Alive curriculum as a way to bring hope into a community ravaged by HIV/AIDS. Michelle Stone, our Stay Alive program director, writes below about Marta's selfless commitment.
UFI
leaders recently met with Daren Hogge, founder and president of GoYin, to
form a most promising partnership. GoYin's president believes that if enough
money can be put into the hands of good people, great things will happen:
"By offering hope to children who are caught up in the devastation of the
AIDS pandemic and teaching them how to avoid the mistakes of the previous
generation, Stay Alive is laying the foundation for a much brighter future.
GoYin is proud to sponsor this fine organization. Like them, we embrace the
concept of self empowerment and are working to broaden its reach throughout
the world."
GoYin has already donated financially to Stay Alive and will continue to direct a portion of its proceeds to the UFI humanitarian project, now active in nine African nations. The GoYin organization has committed to making a difference in the lives of children around the world. We are grateful for their desire to help save lives and strengthen families in Africa through the Stay Alive program, and we look forward to our association with GoYin.
Malenga Inspired by Stay Alive Program in her Work with Kenyan Students
By Michelle Stone, Director of United Families International' s Stay Alive Program
We have known for some time that Stay Alive is an effective
program for creating change in the hearts and minds of young African children.
It is also refreshing to discover how the program impacts adult trainers and
teachers for the better.
Marta Malenga, 21, is one of the trainers from the Kivuli Center, in Nairobi, where school teachers are instructed in the Stay Alive curriculum. The Kivuli Center is a charity devoted to helping homeless boys ages 3-15 in Nairobi. In 2005, 30 adults at the Kivuli Center underwent training to become Stay Alive teachers. After the training, the center persuaded the schools where most of the children from the center attend to incorporate Stay Alive into their health programs. But the trainers went further than that. They viewed the lessons as so important that they decided to teach the classes themselves.
Miss Malenga is also a community health worker who conducts home visits to people in her community. Many of the people are living with the HIV virus, and some are the parents of the children supported by the Kivuli Center. She has seen people die of AIDS over a long period of time, and she had wished there would be a way that she could be a part of something to help prevent people from getting infected with this deadly disease.
"When the Stay Alive program came, I knew this was the answer to my prayers," Miss Malenga said. "It is wonderful to know that children have hope for living a long, loving life. I know what it means to live a short, painful and stigmatized life as, slowly, each of my patients have left this world hoping that someone came to their aid earlier."
Miss Malenga is that "someone." By the end of this year, she will have taught Stay Alive to 250 students at Satellite Primary School, one-third of the school's enrollment. She reports the teachers are very happy with the program and they say it has changed the behavior of many children.
We are inspired to read of Marta Malenga's commitment to her students and our humanitarian program. The Stay Alive trainers and teachers cannot bring hope to their ailing communities without your help. Will you please consider making a donation today to make this program available to more and more students? Thank you for your generosity.
To find out more about
Stay Alive, click here.
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