Vitamin Angel: A Resource for Community Health Programs

PASSIONATE PARTNERS - HEALTHY CHILDREN, APRIL 6, 2009

(SEE LINK UNDER "HEALTH TEAM SUPPLIES IN LEFT COLUMN)

Three hours from Santo Domingo on a fairly decent road is Maria Montez, a Batey in the Barahona District of the Dominican Republic. When we arrived, there were over one hundred children and moms waiting - most had been here for about 3 hours. Dr. Ana Celia Carrero, the Medical Director for Batey Relief Alliance (BRA) accompanied us; we traveled with her last year as well - she's terrific and knows all of the village health promoters.

To accomplish our work at the village level we rely completely on these local women - they really know the children (complete lists had been prepared before we arrived so we can track the children and make sure they are getting their vitamins daily and their antiparasitics twice a year.) I told the health promoters that we had brought along some prenatal vitamins (thank you Procaps Labs!) and some extra children's multiples (many thanks Rainbow Light!) and they immediately led me to every pregnant woman and child who needed extra help in the village.

Some of the chronic malnutrition here is startling; we met a fifteen year old boy that I could have sworn was not a day over ten years old, and an eight year old boy who you might have guessed was four or five. Tom Tolworthy from Vitamin Shoppe, andMichael Funk and Tom Dziki from UNFI, have joined me on this trip. Bringing our major donors here is so rewarding - Tom Tolworthy immediately wanted to know what else he can do for the children, and Michael and Tom Dziki are exploring other ways UNFI can help these communities. Michael's daughter, Anabella Funk (10 years) is our staff videographer and hopefully we'll have something to post from her later this week. After the distribution we traveled another two hours to Pedernales, a small town on the western border of Haiti - literally 5 minutes from the Haitian / Dominican border. The communities here represent an 'invisible people,' hardly recognized by either government. We're looking forward to meeting them tomorrow.