Hi,
You might be interested in an interview I participated in with my wife Nicole Warren on WBEZ's (PBS) Worldview program regarding a project that we have launched called Mali Midwives, which some of you already know about. The purpose of the project is to facilitate continuing education for rural auxiliary midwives in Mali, where we both conduct research. The ultimate goal is to help strengthen health care delivery to rural areas of Mali and, in particular, to help reduce maternal mortality which kills about 1 in 15 Malian women.
The interview was this morning and it first aired at noon today (2/26/09). It will rebroadcast tonight at 9 pm on 91.5 FM and it can be found streaming on the web at http://www.wbez.org/content.aspx?audioID=32386. Our marketing at this point consists of a page on Facebook, a video slideshow on YouTube, and a fundraising page on ChipIn. I can provide more info if you're interested.
Best,
Craig
In the interview, Nicole mentioned the book Monique and the Mango Rains by Kris Holloway which I'd read a couple of years ago about a midwife in Mali. It is absolutely incredible. This is a program where a woman in a village who is literate (there aren't all that many) is hired and given between 12 - 18 months of obstetric training. She then returns to her village to help the women in her area. Often, she is delivering 40 babies a month and giving pre-natal care all the while still being required to care for her own family. They have no days off and some times aren't paid for months. Still, their greatest pain and frustration is not knowing enough to save the lives of many of the mothers and babies in their care. Craig and his wife are embarking on providing some additional training for these women. Nicole is an assistant professor in the School of Nursing at Loyola, a certified nurse-midwife, has her master's in public health, and her PhD in nursing and therefore highly qualified to lead a program to aid these dedicated Midwives.
We e-mailed Craig and told him we wanted to send a donation toward the cause and received the following e-mail back.
Hello Kay and Art,
Thank you very much for your encouragement; we were quite nervous but I think it turned out well. It was a great opportunity for us! I didn't mention it in the interview but I actually have not been able to bring myself to read Monique and the Mango Rains. I have read parts, and it hits very very close to home, because I knew Monique personally and Kris evokes the area and people so beautifully.
We also forgot to mention that while we don't have 501(c)3 status, donations are tax-deductible because we have a registered non-profit as "fiscal sponsor." It's important because checks should be made out to "The Village Project" with "Mali Midwives" in the memo line. The address would be:
Mali Midwives
c/o Nicole Warren
1355 W. Hood Ave. #3E
Chicago, IL 60660
Thanks again, and I hope you're both well, and Jon too.
Craig
I'll be sending out my check tomorrow and I'm feeling darn good about it. I have felt a connection to Mali since Jon lived in Koro Bada, a remote village near Koutiala. Art visited him and enjoyed meeting the friendly, caring people of his village. Jon's Malian teacher friend, Sadio actually ended up coming to my classroom in Illinois to tell my class and several others about his country. Sadio gave many of the students at our school the gift of knowledge about the world outside a suburb of Chicago. I love knowing that Craig and Nicole are working to give something more back.
