IT'S NOT JUST US!

Well who knew Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Julia Roberts were such huge fans of the AHMEN-SIFAT Initiative?!!

Clinton Global Initiative meets AHMEN-SIFAT Initiative 

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Academy Award-winning actress Julia Roberts want to help improve the living conditions for millions of women through programs like the AHMEN-SIFAT Initiative! 

Speaking of the reason for the new United Nations push to help introduce cleaner cooking stove technology to 100 million women worldwide Roberts said "nearly two million people around the world -- mostly women and children -- die each year from an activity that many of us take for granted: cooking for our families." Because these deaths are largely preventable, let's join these powerful women to help train women and children in more beneficial cook stove technology!

At the September 2010 Clinton Global Initiative meeting, Secretary Clinton spoke of the immensely positive effects simple “tweaks” in technology can have on whole communities.

In addition to the effects on global climate change Secretary Clinton says “the journeys women must take to find scarce fuel puts them at increased risk of violent and sexual assault. Every hour spent collecting fuel is an hour not spent in school or tending crops or running a business. People have cooked over open fires and dirty stoves for all of human history, but the simple fact is they are slowly killing millions of people and polluting the environment."

The technology the AHMEN-SIFAT Initiative is bringing to Honduras reduces communities' fuel consumption by a third while maximizing that fuel's efficiency.  If you think about it, this one change Byron Morales is helping bring to Honduras will have a domino-winning effect. Every AHMEN mission project stands to benefit from the types of technologies the AHMEN-SIFAT Initiative is bringing to Honduras. The Advanced Eye Care program will see fewer patients complaining of problems related to smoke exposure; deaf students will worry less about damage to their precious sight! Medical teams will see fewer patients complaining of asthma, bronchitis, or other pulmonary diseases. More women in the classroom means less vulnerability and at some point in the future possibly less need for Shalom intervention. Teachers and students gathering 30% less cooking fuel can quite possibly spend 30% more of their time creating lesson plans and doing homework. More fully educated women raise children with greater self-esteems and more potential to transform communities for the better.

If helping women and children live healthier, more secure lives is a cause you can get behind, this is your project! Join the AHMEN-SIFAT Initiative and help us bring lasting, beneficial change to Honduras. The following folks are committed to help sponsor monetarily and through in-country relationships 2011 SIFAT Practicum training in Lineville, Al:

General Support: Michael Franklin, Benny Rowe, Tom Camp, Byron Morales, Debora Arnold

Marianna: Lela Aaron-Vicente, Linda Norris, Methodist Women's Group of Walker County, Randy Lee, Lou Altman, Byron Morales

Suyapa: Jerry and Jean Boshell, Byron Morales, Tom Arnold, Dale and Anna Capron

Mario: Mary and Hugh Guffey, Bruce McFadden, Bud McKinney, Lou Altman, Byron Morales, Dan Isbell

We need you to donate your time and/or money to help make this possible. Consult Dr. Camp's, Bruce McFadden's, or my blog for more info!

Did Jesus prefer to just give a man a fish? Did Horace Mann prefer self-reliance to educational structure? Has Sister Eleanor ever said the people of Honduras are living well enough? The answer is plain and clear across two languages – NO!!

Now let's make it happen. Contact Michael Franklin, Tom Camp, or Hugh Guffey about how to support the AHMEN-SIFAT Initiative today!