Fifth-Annual Fundraiser will Raise Awareness of Global Healthcare Needs and Support Delivery of Much-Needed Medical Relief to the People of Panama

This year’s luncheon, sponsored by MillerCoors, will honor and welcome Mrs. Marta Martinelli, the first lady of Panama. The annual fundraising event raises awareness of global healthcare needs and supports the delivery of life-saving medical supplies and equipment to medical professionals, and patients under their care, in Panama.

Mrs. Marta Martinelli will work with Project C.U.R.E to select healthcare facilities where the supplies and equipment are most needed. Joining Mrs. Marta Martinelli in raising awareness about healthcare needs in Panama are honorary co-chairs first lady of Colorado Jeannie Ritter, Susan Kiely of MillerCoors and former first lady of Colorado Frances Owens.. Anne Trujillo, ABC news anchor for Denver’s Channel 7, will emcee the event.

“We look forward to welcoming the first lady of Panama to Denver, and to join her in her efforts to help the people of Panama. The fact that we can do this during the Biennial of the Americas is terrific,” said Dr. Douglas Jackson, president and CEO of Project C.U.R.E. “The funds raised through the Luncheon will be multiplied nearly 20 times to improve health and save lives in Panama through the delivery of medical supplies and equipment. Together, we’re changing the world."

Project C.U.R.E. expects approximately 1,800 of the city and state’s business and community leaders to attend this invitation-only luncheon. The goal for the 2010 First Ladies’ Luncheon is to raise enough money to deliver more than $3 million in medical supplies and equipment to hospitals and clinics in Panama.

The Project C.U.R.E. First Ladies’ Luncheon is an annual fundraising event featuring first ladies from around the world. Project C.U.R.E. welcomed Señora Ana Ligia de Saca, the first lady of El Salvador, for the inaugural First Ladies’ Luncheon in Denver in 2006, during which more than $70,000 was raised to deliver medical relief to El Salvador.

In 2008, Mrs. Margarita Zavala, the first lady of Mexico, was the keynote speaker at the second-annual First Ladies’ Luncheon in Denver, where she helped to raise $150,000 to deliver more than $2.5 million in medical relief to the Mexican states of Chiapas and Tabasco.

Project C.U.R.E. also hosted first lady of Belize Ms. Kim Simplis for the inaugural First Ladies’ Luncheon in Phoenix, Ariz. Nearly 900 people attended the event in November of 2008, at which enough money was raised to deliver nearly $2 million in medical relief to people in need in Belize.

In 2009, Mrs. Ernestina Naadu Mills, the first lady of Ghana, was the keynote speaker, where she helped to raise enough money to deliver more than $2 million in life-saving medical supplies and equipment to Ghana.

For more information, please contact: bridgetboyd@projectcure.org

As part of the ongoing "Making a Difference" series, NBC Nightly News featured PROJECT C.U.R.E. on its Dec. 4, 2009 broadcast. Profiled in the news story was a young Ethiopian girl, who, thanks to the delivery of a cardiac catheterization lab, received life-saving treatment. Watch the story here or on MSNBC.

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PROJECT C.U.R.E. received the cath lab as a donation from Boulder Community Hospital (Boulder, CO). After conducting a needs assessment at the Children's Heart Fund of Ethiopia in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, PROJECT C.U.R.E. delivered the equipment and worked with volunteers from Boulder to install it and provide training to local medical professionals.

PROJECT C.U.R.E. thanks Rose Medical Center (Denver, CO) staff and volunteers in its Colorado C.U.R.E. Community for their assistance with the story for NBC Nightly News.

PROJECT C.U.R.E. President/CEO Dr. Douglas Jackson has been selected as a finalist for PEOPLE magazine and Major League Baseball's "All-Stars Among Us" contest, which allows for public recognition of individuals who have gone above and beyond to serve their community.

"It's very rare that you actually see and speak with beneficiaries of charitable programs, but with this trip, you saw both the impacts and the potential for continuing work."

Linda Kanamine, vice president of public affairs, marketing and government affairs for HealthONE, had this to say about her recent trip to Cuba through PROJECT C.U.R.E.'s PhilanthroTravel Division.

The group's trip, recently chronicled by Denver Preschool Program CEO James Mejia in The Denver Post. While there, the group confirmed the arrival of PROJECT C.U.R.E. deliveries to hospitals in Baracoa, a tiny coastal town hit hard by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008. They also visited with doctors and nurses using the supplies and equipment provided by PROJECT C.U.R.E. in Guantanamo and Santiago.

		In this picture are participants in PROJECT C.U.R.E.'s recent humanitarian trip to Cuba. Left to right, back row: Héctor González Pérez, Dr. Julio Pita, Jamie Van Leeuwen, Dr. Lisa Latts, Jeremy Anderson, James Mejía, and Dr. Doug Jackson. Left to right, front row: Linda Kanamine, Christine Benero, Yvette Pita Frampton, Caz Matthews, and Leanna Clark. Send an e-mail to learn more about PROJECT C.U.R.E.'s PhilanthroTravel Division.

PROJECT C.U.R.E.'s work in Cuba began in 1997 with deliveries of medical supplies to hospitals in Havana, Matanzas and Pinar del Rio. Since reviving its work in Cuba in 2006, PROJECT C.U.R.E. has delivered five containers of medical supplies, each valued at $400,000 wholesale, to various hospitals and clinics in Cuba. Three more are planned for delivery later this year.

Read the full story in The Denver Post.

		PROJECT C.U.R.E. is one of several nonprofit organizations featured in the new book, The Give-Back Solution, by Susan Skog. In the book, Skog tells amazing stories of everyday volunteers and the organizations they support. The author encourages individuals and groups to venture into their communities to reach out and support others. Volunteering with PROJECT C.U.R.E. allows groups and individuals to serve locally while making an impact globally. We can find the right volunteer opportunity for any individual or group! Visit this link for more information on PROJECT C.U.R.E. volunteer opportunities, or find a C.U.R.E. Community near you.

In December 2008, PROJECT C.U.R.E. and Margarita Zavala, the wife of the President of Mexico Felipe Calderon, celebrated together the delivery of two 53-foot semi-truck trailers filled with donated medical supplies and equipment. The contents of the two truck loads were valued at more than $1 million (wholesale.) The medical equipment included birthing beds, exam tables, infant warmers, fetal monitors and many other needed items. In addition, PROJECT C.U.R.E. delivered thousands of dollars in medical supplies, including needles and syringes, maternal delivery supplies and other consumables.

In March 2008, Zavala traveled to Denver, Colorado, to present the keynote speech at PROJECT C.U.R.E.’s annual First Ladyies' Luncheon to 1,800 of Colorado’s most influential business, community and social leaders. During that address, Zavala requested support to help the people who were impacted in the flood ravaged states of Tabasco and Chiapas, Mexico. Generous donations from corporate sponsors Molson Coors Brewing Company and ProLogis were used to underwrite the costs of the luncheon and provided support for the delivery of the containers.

In addition to their financial contribution, employees from both companies volunteered with PROJECT C.U.R.E. to collect, pack and deliver the supplies to Mexico. Representatives of Molson Coors and ProLogis attended the dedication event in Tabasco on December 10.

The next delivery in PROJECT C.U.R.E.’s  efforts with the First Lady of Mexico is scheduled for March 2009 into Chiapas, Mexcio. This next donation will focus on equipment for physical therapy, in addition to surgical, pediatric and orthopedic supplies.  The continuing donations will positively impact thousands of lives and bring medical relief to  people in their time of need.

 

 

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, one of the poorest nations in the world, years of civil unrest have caused severe damage to the healthcare infrastructure and the health of this nation.  In the city of Mbujimyi alone, three million children, women and men have few opportunities to access healthcare.  One of their few opportunities for hope is Our Lady of Hope Hospital.

In October 2007, PROJECT C.U.R.E. conducted an assessment of Our Lady of Hope.  Working with our in-country partner, Congo Relief Mission, we were able to identify site specific medical supplies and technologically appropriate equipment needed for Our Lady of Hope and several clinics in the Kasai region.  Congo Relief Mission, founded by Father Gaston was established to be a humanitarian organization which supplies food, medical equipment and computers to the needy in the local area.  It was Father Gaston’s vision to build a hospital in the Kasai region to treat the victims of the recent civil wars, and provide healthcare to those suffering with undiagnosed illnesses and disease.

In 2008, PROJECT C.U.R.E. shipped three containers to Congo Relief Mission and Our Lady of Hope worth over $1.2 million in medical supplies and equipment.  The goods in these three containers have provided critically needed medical supplies to a desperately needy area.  Because of PROJECT C.U.R.E.’s support, Our Lady of Hope hospital has the potential to become the best surgical hospital in the country, potentially serving 6-8 million people. However, there remains much more work to be done in the Kasai region and for Our Lady of Hope hospital.  The poverty in the region is devastating and their need for support is desperate.  If you are interested in helping please visit our donation page.