Monday, March 31, 2014

Article about BENNISON in Examiner.com!

I am grateful to Suzanne Chun for her interest in our work and her lovely article on our company, BENNISON, and our work in donating pajamas around the world.

Check it out here!

http://www.examiner.com/article/saving-lives-with-footed-pajamas

Friday, March 14, 2014

Giving in Nepal - Nyaya Health

Yesterday we brought 30 pairs of warm, footed pajamas to the New York office of Nyaya Health www.nyayahealth.org.  This organization provides medical care for rural populations in Nepal.  Started by doctors from Yale University, Nyaya is a partner of Partners in Health, one of the leading organizations in creating health systems in developing countries.

I love the way that Nyaya describes its values, starting with the word Nyaya (‘knee-eye-uh’) which means “the realization of just systems” in Nepali. 

As they say on their site: "We chose that [Nyaya] because we aren’t the type of people to sit around and talk about justice. The word implies action, and we are all about realizing the right to health by delivering transparent, data-driven health care for Nepal’s rural poor.
Our cultural DNA is really important to us. And it’s best described by imagining what would happen if you collided the care and concern of a global health doctor with the insatiable drive towards efficiency and scale of a technology entrepreneur.
I also love how they describe the values of their organization, starting with putting patients first "not our own egos - the dignity and opportunity of our patients is far more important." 
This kind of selfless action for justice and the rights of health care for all are at the heart of this organization.  I can't wait to see photos of children in this region in your donated pajamas. 

Sunday, March 9, 2014

Our newest giving partner, Mano a Mano

As our pajama donations continue to come in (we received 120 pairs of new and gently worn pajamas last week alone), we continue to expand our giving partners. I am especially excited to announce our newest partner, Mano a Mano. Founded by Joan and Segundo Valesquez, Mano a Mano serves impoverished rural areas of Bolivia. The Valesquez's began collecting medical supplies to send to Bolivia in the early 1990's, and what started as collecting grew to a highly successful non for profit offering medical care and education to people living in remote rural areas of Bolivia. I was surprised to learn that Bolivia is the most impoverished country in the world with 94% of its population living below subsistence levels. This type of extreme poverty is especially hard on women and children, and in the rural province where most of Mano a Mano's clinics are maternal and infant mortality rates are very high: 3 in 10 children in this area do not live to see their first birthday. Our of 100,000 live births, 650 children will loose their lives. This is the highest mortality rate in all of Latin America. Much of Bolivia is mountainous with extreme temperatures. There is great need in Bolivia for aid, especially when it comes to the challenges faced by women and children, and we are thrilled to be able to contribute in a small way. The sales of our garments help to fund the collection and transportation of our donated pajamas, and we look forward to seeing our pajamas on some Bolivian babies! Check out all of the amazing work that Mano a Mano is doing: www.manoamano.org