Dear Friends,
In her closing comments at the recent Micronutrient Forum, held in Istanbul, Turkey from April 16-18th, Dr. Meera Shekar of the World Bank, noted that the data on positive impact of micronutrient interventions is ‘so strong that failure to take action is an ethical dilemma.’ She urged a redoubling of efforts to attain universal salt iodization and Vitamin A supplementation to children under 5 years of age. Vitamin Angels’ Operation 20/20 program is taking an active role in the effort to eradicate Vitamin A deficiency on the planet by the symbolic year 2020.
IN THIS ISSUE
JONES SODA, YOU TUBE, AND VITAMIN ANGELS | Back to Top
Jones Soda is launching a new viral marketing campaign TODAY to save 1 million children from going blind this summer from Vitamin A deficiency as part of our Operation 20/20 campaign. This is the first time ever that YouTube has been used to raise money for a charity! Check out the Jones video; http://www.jonessoda.com/files/vitamin.php
XAVIER RUDD VIDEO WITH VITAMIN ANGELS | Back to Top
Canadian musician, Xavier Rudd’s new video ‘Better People’ features some amazing images of people who are working to make this world a better place. Footage from Vitamin Angels work (including the closing shots) are used throughout the video. You can view Better People on YouTube; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxZijEeTCXY
VITAMIN ANGELS AT ECRM | Back to Top
Howard B. Schiffer will be the opening speaker at the ECRM show on Tuesday, July 17th at 8 am being held at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront hotel in Jacksonville, Florida from July16th through 19th. ECRM is an incredible opportunity for vendors to be guaranteed appointments with the top retailers in the country. This ECRM show focuses on Diet and Nutrition products. For more information contact John Bennett at ECRM at jbennett@ecrm-epps.com.
NEW VITAMIN ANGELS WEBSITE! | Back to Top
Check out Vitamin Angels new website: www.VitaminAngels.org. You can view the Vitamin Angels DVD’s, see our recent press releases, and check out the latest news on our work around the world. Major applause to our Development Coordinator, Megan Starks and Samer Mina from EverZen for their excellent work the new site
VITAMIN ANGELS AT THE VILLAGE LEVEL | Back to Top
Do you want to get a good idea of how Vitamin Angels’ programs look at the village level? Contact us at (info@VitaminAngels.com) and ask for one or more of our DVD’s; Operation 20/20, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Asia, or Mississippi. We will happily drop them in the mail to you.
Thanks to everyone who supported our work this month: our amazing BOD, Tom Aarts, Barclay Hope, Yvon Bastien, Bill Sechrest, Elliott Balbert and Jeff Markel; Jeff Hilton and everyone at IMG; our new amazing interns Hava, Rachel, Ashley and Ruth.; Pitch Publicity; Sevan Matossian; Claude Good; Andrew Crawford; Ken Krzeminsky; and Save The Children.
Congratulations to InterHealth, Vitaquest International, Xango, Twinlabs, Nordic Naturals, Arizona Nutritional Supplements, New Chapter, Vitamer BI Nutraceuticals, Capsugel and Lonza for partnering with us on Celebration of Angels: Thursday, September 27, 2007 at Expo East. If you are interested in a Corporate Sponsorship, please contact Jeff@VitaminAngels.org.
WANTS & NEEDS | Back to Top
We are in need of financial contributions to help support our work. From the recent World Bank book ‘Repositioning Nutrition as Central To Development’, it is clear that our need for vitamin supplements is greater than ever before. We need planned production of children’s chewable vitamins (multiples), adult multiples, prenatals, and fish oil capsules. Please contact us at: 805 564 8400 or info@vitaminangel.org to arrange for a financial contribution or a product donation.
Thanks to our donors this month: Barleans, Tishcon, Pharmachem, Rainbow Light, Nordic Naturals, Vitaquest, and Shaklee.
As always, please forward this newsletter to all of your friends and colleagues. We rely on our supporters and friends to help get the word out and get people to our site (www.VitaminAngels.org) so they can see the scope of what we are accomplishing and make needed contributions. Your support and encouragement make all of the difference in the world!
Best,
Howard B. Schiffer
Vitamin Angels
PO Box 42029
Santa Barbara, CA 93140 USA
P: 805 564 8400
F: 805 564 8499
E: info@VitaminAngels.org
PRODUCT DISTRIBUTION REPORT (5/1/06 - 5/31/07) | Back to Top
India
Sponsored by Johnson & Johnson our campaign in India is in its forth year and is now reaching 1 million nursing mothers and children with vitamin A and deworming tablets – both the vitamin A and the deworming are given two times per year.
Tibet
In this program we work closely with Dr. Nancy Harris who is the founder of Terma. We’ve been distributing up to 2 million children’s multiples per month.
Philippines
We are doing a deworming program in partnership with Save The Children reaching 250,000 kids per year. This program began in the first quarter of 2006 and is now slated to run through the last quarter of 2007.
Honduras
This program is sponsored by Sight & Life (DSM), UNFI, Anabolic Laboratories, United Flavors, Domino Foods, George Washington University, Pan American Health Organization and Medpharm. This program is reaching 55,000 children per year for three years. Our in-country partners are Cristo Salva, Ministry of Health and PAHO. We are distributing children’s multivitamins and antiparastics (the multivitamins are given daily and the antiparastics are given twice a year).
Dominican Republic
The DR program is slated to be a three year campaign to reach 55,000 children per year. We are distributing multivitamins daily and antiparastics two times per year. Our program partners are Direct Relief International, who will handle all to-country shipping and Batey Relief International, who will handle all in-country distribution.
Mississippi
Ruleville Mississippi is a very poor rural district in the Mississippi Delta. With the support of Univera and their Serve First Program, we are now reaching 2,000 children with a daily nutrition supplement; Ageless Essentials.
Guatemala
Vitamin Angels sent children’s chewable vitamins to Chichicastenanga, Guatemala. The children had walked over one hour to get to school, many of them falling asleep once they got there not having the energy to stay awake. They are now being given breakfast along with the children’s chewables.
Guatemala - Liberty University
For the past five years, a group of 30 medical professionals from Virginia have been spending their summers in Rio Hondo, a rural town located in Southern Guatemala, where they provide free medical treatment to the poor through a local outpatient clinic. Vitamin Angels sent minerals and multivitamins to support their endeavor.
Peru - Hospital Regional de Ayacucho
The city of Ayacucho, Peru, is attempting to rebuild its shattered economy and to improve its healthcare delivery system after a long and destructive period of guerrilla warfare which centered in this rural, highland region. The 240-bed Ayacucho Regional Hospital is the largest public facility in the area, and Vitamin Angels sent multivitamins to support their work.
Hospital de Apoyo de Huancavelica
According to official Ministry of Public Health statistics, 88 percent of the people residing in the state of Huancavelica in Peru's southern highlands are living in poverty, and 74% are living in extreme poverty. The public hospital in the city of Huancavelica is a 120-bed facility to which Vitamin Angels sent nutritional supplements to aid in and support their medical work.