FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Following the recent crisis in Myanmar (Burma) you will be pleased to note that a number of local newspapers have taken up ADRA stories either submitted by the BUC Communication Department or by local churches adapting the story the communication department sent to all ministers and those elders and communication secretaries who are on email. Here are a small selection of reports:
The enthusiastic reporter from the Watford Observer not only managed to get the ADRA story as #2 in his paper this week but has also shared it with the "This is London" network of newspapers meaning that the story has been published in several other local papers including the Richmond and Twickenham Times and the Harrow Times. It is also the editors choice as the top story for this week.
http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.2275879.0.burma_cyclone_relief.phpThe Middlesbrough Gazette took an innovative approach reflecting on the ADRA story through the eyes of local resident, Carolyn Pace -- who also happens to be the girlfriend of ADRA programmes officer, Mark Castellino.
http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teessi...84229-20923080/Similar stories are found in the Leamington Spa Courier and Kennilworth Weekly news
http://www.leamingtoncourier.co.uk/news/Aid-worker-flies--to.4088239.jp and two local newspapers in the Bracknell/Wokingham area.
http://www.bracknellnews.co.uk/articles/1/2755 Wokingham Midweek had it as front page news.
All of these papers have put donation links to the ADRA-UK website:
www.adra.org.uk and many have put links for postal donations as well. We know that this will help the £25,000 + appeal that ADRA-UK has launched and more importantly make a significant difference to the lives of those affected by the tragedy in Burma.
The BUC Communication Department will be submitting updated news stories and reports to the media early next week and hope to continue this level of coverage. A number of stories in papers around the country are the result of local churches taking our national press release and adapting it to give it a local flavour. This is what local media like -- and as a follow-up to the local collections for ADRA this is a great opportunity to get the name of ADRA and the Seventh-day Adventist church highlighted and profiled in the local media for free. People complain that the name of ADRA is not prominent enough in the media. This is your opportunity to share the ADRA stories you have received in BUC news with your local media. Below my signature on this email I am including the latest Media Release from ADRA head-office. This should both encourage you with what is happening and give you opportunity to share the story with a wider audience. If you need photos to support your story do not hesitate to get in contact.
All the best
Victor Hulbert
Communication Director
British Union Conference of
Seventh-day Adventists
Stanborough Park
Watford
Herts WD25 9JZ
Phone: 01923 672251
Fax: 01923 893212
Email: vhulbert@adventist.org.uk
Web:
http://www.adventist.org.ukPersonal Web:
http://hulbert.org.ukRecommended link:
http://www.lifedevelopment.infoSubscribe to the free weekly BUC Electronic Newsletter by sending a blank email to bucnews_pdf-subscribe@adventist.org.uk
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[alert] May 16 - ADRA Delivers Increased Aid in Southern Myanmar
Silver Spring, Maryland-The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is continuing its response in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, partnering with the World Food Programme (WFP) and other non-governmental organizations to distribute food, clothing, medicine, and non-food items to survivors in the affected regions, including the devastated towns of Myaungmya and Labutta, and more remote villages such as Kya Kyawn, Paine Kone, Amakalay, and Amak Gyi located in the devastated Irrawaddy Delta in southern Myanmar.
On May 14, ADRA finalized a cooperative agreement with the WPF to assist survivors of Cyclone Nargis through food distribution in and around Labutta, a town that has become a focal point for thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs) seeking refuge in dozens of make-shift camps, and where ADRA has already provided at least 25 metric tons of rice to survivors.
Working with Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC), ADRA received a shipment of shelter materials, which will be distributed shortly. Items include 20 large multi-purpose tents, 10 family tents, 2,742 plastic sheets of various sizes, and 1,500 family kitchen sets for five persons each.
In the town of Myaungmya, ADRA has partnered with World Vision and Metta, a local non-governmental organization, to distribute 10,000 blankets, clothing (longyi, slippers, and underwear), and medicine among the displaced in 28 IDP camps. ADRA is also providing hot food for 187 displaced persons who are staying at an IDP camp in the Myaungmya Union Adventist Seminary, and preparing to distribute 250 medical kits in the immediate region.
Additionally, ADRA has accessed remote villages in the delta to distribute rice and transport survivors to Labutta, for improved care. The rice is being provided to 14 camps in the area, where cooking equipment has also been provided to survivors to assist them in meal preparation.
In the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, ADRA has been working to provide for the needs of survivors, committing at least $265,500 in emergency funding, and distributing much-needed food, medicine, and other essential items for survivors. ADRA has distributed 25 metric tons of rice and power biscuits for an estimated 50,000 IDPs in Labutta. ADRA has also distributed nearly 5,000 lbs. of rice as well as a supply of clean drinking water to affected villages in the Piensalu islands, south of Labutta.
In recent days, ADRA has shipped 20 medicine packs and 150 lbs. of medical supplies, one million water purification tablets, and water purification and filtration systems that will benefit approximately 48,000 people a day. ADRA has also distributed 10,000 sets of plates, spoons, cups, and other kitchen equipment for cooking rice to 10,000 IDPs in various camps in Labutta.
The shipping and distribution of ADRA emergency supplies and food in Myanmar has not been hampered, despite heavy rains in the last 48 hours and reports that relief aid has been diverted. All ADRA aid intended for survivors is reaching the target communities in the Irrawaddy Delta as expected.
In Yangon, ADRA staff are working with emergency response teams in the delta to expand the flow of aid into affected areas. Marcel Wagner, currently director in Myanmar, has been called to the Regional Coordinating office in Bangkok, Thailand, to evaluate the overall response.
ADRA's emergency response is centered in the devastated Irrawaddy Delta region, which suffered the most damage as a result of cyclonic winds that reached more than 120 mph (193 km/h). Although officially at least 38,000 people have died and 27,000 remain missing, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimates, as of May 13, that between 63,000 to 101,000 people have died, while some 220,000 remain missing, and between 1.6 to 2.5 million have been severely affected.
On Sunday, May 4, a state of emergency was declared across five regions, including Yangon, Irrawaddy, Pegu, Karen and Mon, in which 24 million people live.
The most urgently needed items include food, water purification supplies, plastic sheeting, cooking sets, mosquito nets, fuel, and emergency health kits.
Updates will be released as ADRA's response efforts expand.
To send your contribution to ADRA's emergency response effort, please contact ADRA at 1.800.424.ADRA (2372) or give to the Myanmar Cyclone Fund at
www.adra.orgADRA is present in 125 countries, providing community development and emergency management without regard to political or religious association, age, gender, race, or ethnicity.
Additional information about ADRA can be found at
www.adra.org.-END-
Author: Hearly Mayr/Nadia McGill
Media Contact:
Hearly Mayr
ADRA International
12501 Old Columbia Pike
Silver Spring, MD 20904
Phone: 301.680.6376
E-mail: Media.Inquiries@adra.org
List address: bucnews_txt@adventist.org.uk
Subscribe: bucnews_txt-subscribe@adventist.org.uk
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