2006 Newsletter Articles

Summer/Fall 2006: New Arthur O. Kane Fund for International Health Development Established

The Board of Directors of Health for Humanity is pleased to introduce the Arthur Kane Fund for International Health Development, funded through a planned gift by Arthur Kane, a Chicago attorney who learned about HH through Dr. May Khadem. Blindness has been a particular interest for Mr. Kane, who has also funded the Arthur and Esther Kane Legal Clinic of The Chicago Lighthouse for People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired and the Esther and Arthur Kane Lectures on macular and retinal diseases at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Through the Fund for International Health Development, Mr. Kane will expand his support for access to quality health services not only for blindness prevention but also for maternal and child health, and international continuing medical education. 

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As we pass customs and leave the terminal, a mass of voices greets us with shouts of, “Taxi, Taxi!” I can remember exiting those doors more than a dozen times in the past 14 years. In the early years, I recall pangs of anxiety each time, wondering will there be someone to meet me? What if no one comes? How will I find my way to town and where will I go? How will I communicate?  

“Mire dita, Zotri. Ne deshirojme te shkojme ne Hotel Kruja, shume afer ne qendra e Tiranes.” “Po,” responds the cab driver fully understanding my message that we want to go to Hotel Kruja, near the center of Tirana. I’m never sure before I arrive if I can really speak the language, but somehow once I start, the momentum of the need to communicate takes over and the words flow, not always smoothly, but somehow the message finds a hearing ear, as grammatically  incorrect as it may be. Once the barrier of attempting speech in a foreign language is breeched, it seems to get easier with each successive encounter.

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As my second year of college comes to an end, I am becoming increasingly aware that in two short years, I will have to become an independent woman: able to handle my finances, matriculating into medical school, and ready to take on the world. While I trust my friends and family will be ready to assist when necessary, I will nonetheless be expected to take full care of myself without relying on others, and this thought is somewhat intimidating. However, the notion of independence remains enticing: I will be living my life according to my beliefs, my desires, and my own agenda. This is something I value greatly, and it is something I know I can achieve. I am able to dream these dreams and believe they will come true.

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One of the strongest allies of HH for a literacy project is a local Rotary Club. Rotary International has a US campaign to support literacy. John Dyrud, a member of the Literacy Committee of the Rotary Club of Wilmette, collects used books that students donate into collection boxes in the Wilmette Public Schools. John then recirculates the books to schools and literacy organizations around Chicago. For the past six years, Prescribe-a-Book (RxABC) has significantly benefited from books generously donated by Wilmette Rotary.

Each year, John delivers more than 1,500 beautiful, used picture books for the Prescribe A Book program at West Town Health Center in Chicago. These books allow the Prescribe A Book Coordinator, Miraslava Esparza, to read books to children as they wait for their doctor's visit and to give them a book to take home. A survey of the West Town families found that children who are given a book to keep will be read to at home. Each month Miraslava reads with 275 children in the West Town waiting room and she gives books to 160 children to take home. That means lots of children are being read to at home because of the used picture books donated by Wilmette Rotary.

To learn more about Health for Humanity’s Youth Wellness Efforts in the United States, please visit the HH website.

In the past year, Health for Humanity has experienced marked growth in the number and complexity of its development projects, in the expanding role for HH Networks, in the interest of HH members for service opportunities, and in its visibility to other public health institutions. The HH office, Board of Directors, Taskforces, and members, have been consulting to create guidelines in order to more effectively support these areas of growth.

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In February, Health for Humanity members, supporters and friends gathered in Tucson, Arizona, to attend the Annual HH Conference. The theme this year was “Uniting People in Service: Transforming Reflection into Action.” The presentations and conversations covered a wide breadth of topics under this central tenet of HH’s principles and activity.

The conference began Friday night with an inspiring warm-up by Mr. Carl Youngberg, who led the group through exercises in effective communication and group dynamics, which are central to the positive spirit of collaboration found in HH projects and service activities. On Saturday, conference attendees participated in a fascinating presentation by
Dr. Elena Mustakova-Possardt on the Process of Optimal Human Functioning – those moments when we are most unified and connected. There were also workshops on skill building for consultation, and models of current and possible HH projects, such as the model of Parent University used by Mr. Michael O’Neal in Georgia. Dr. William Roberts, representing the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States, shared moving stories about the impact of mentoring youth, commended HH’s   achievements, and shared a letter from the NSA congratulating HH on 14 years of service to the human family. Saturday night offered a celebration dinner honoring Dr. James Klein for his service with the Pima County Medical Society, and featured an enlightening presentation on the Challenge of Health for All Humanity in the 21st Century by keynote presenter Dr. Robert Kim-Farley of UCLA.  Sunday morning wrapped up the conference with an engaging talk by Dr. John Woodall on connecting HH’s principles with the lived experience of our members, supporters, and partners, so that all are fully invested in promoting and living these principles in the context of their projects and communities.

The weekend was hosted by the Arizona Network, which worked hard to find a location for the conference, select an honoree for the dinner Saturday night, and recruit area health workers and others to participate in the conference. Highlights of the conference included a rousing “Wacky Auction,” raising $6000 to support the cost of the conference (thanks to HH Board member Dave Czerniejewski for being an entertaining auctioneer), letters from Arizona congressmen congratulating HH for its services, and a plaque from the Mayor of Tucson honoring HH.

Check the Health for Humanity website for updates about future conferences.

Read letter from Congressman Grijalva

Read letter from Congressman Kolbe

Read letter from the National Sprititual Assembly

Health for Humanity hosted the 2006 Annual Opera Gala, an “Evening of the Arts,” on Saturday, April 8. The VOICExperience Foundation provided a magical evening of inspiring vocal performances by rising opera stars under the direction of world renowned singers Sherrill Milnes and Maria Zouves. Also featured were displays of visual arts by a number of Chicago’s young artists. Dr. James Hill, prominent orthopedic surgeon at Northwestern University was honored for his dedication to providing leadership in  cultural competency within the medical profession and for his commitment to improving health both locally and internationally.

The Moral Leadership Training Course from Nur University, Bolivia, hosted in Illinois, U.S.A. by Health for Humanity and conducted in two phases by Dr. John Kepner, is geared toward raising participants’ consciousness of the limitations in dominant forms of leadership, and facilitating their articulation of a new conceptual framework based on a commitment to service-oriented leadership. This type of leadership embodies the investigation and application of truth, conviction to the essential nobility of all human beings and recognition of their inherent ability to transcend circumstances and develop capabilities. Such transcendence ultimately results in personal as well as social transformation and the betterment of our global society. The content is such that it motivates individuals to show up with—or to acquire—an open mind and to think beyond the surface about each situation they confront. As such, it addresses each person’s cultural, educational, and socio-economic perspective and idiosyncrasies (i.e. baggage) and facilitates the acquisition of insights that are not usually achieved by a cursory examination of a problem. It creates “ah-ha!” moments that lead to even greater “AH-HA!!” moments, turning-points and accomplishments. When applied to any facet of life or service, the knowledge gleaned from this training cannot but enhance the outcome of all endeavors. Toward this end, I wholeheartedly recommend that the Moral Leadership Training be offered not just to adults, but also be adapted to augment the latent capabilities of children and youth, our future leaders.

The 8th Annual Health for Humanity Fundraiser Garage Sale was held on May 20th. To merely say it was a success would not do it justice.  This year we had over 30 homes contribute their furniture, clothes, appliances and whatever else was worth donating. There were 10-15 volunteers organizing and setting up on Friday.

The event is great fun but also hectic. The “Where Were You Born?” map that greeted shoppers as they entered and instructed them to put in colorful push-pins for their home towns revealed that all continents were represented. The most valuable players for this year’s event were Jerry and Marguerite Woodall and Beliz Cims. Two weeks before the sale, Marguerite and Jerry closed their lamp store and donated 80 beautiful new lamps complete with matching shades. We sold every lamp! Beliz donated 25 hand-knitted scarves that she had been knitting since Christmas.

Besides creating a bonding experience for our neighborhood and community, we set an all-time financial record as well. Last year we raised $6,100. This year’s total, so far, is $9,700.  Expenses were approximately $650. We would like to thank all of our workers and contributors for helping make this such a successful fundraiser. It is, however, still my dream that we have a Health for Humanity National Garage Sale Day. I am convinced that if there were 50 garage sales around the country on a given Saturday in May, we   could raise $100,000 for HH. This requires very little overhead, with no risk of loss. All it requires is people working together to gather items that they don’t want, and getting these items to folks who are happy to receive them. With a little effort and planning, we could make this a reality.