The Black Friday Alternative {an email that messed up everything for me today}

This email arrived today while I was browsing amazon.com looking for gifts for my family. Actually, I accidentally ended up looking at cool camera lenses for myself. (grovelling and sick confession) See, Amazon and everyone else in the consumer culture world are having these irresistible sales to kick off the shopping season. It’s Black Friday (Reminds me just now of the 80’s The Cure anthem: It’s Friday, I’m in love).

Then into my inbox came this disturbing email. Please read it and consider being a part of the Black Friday Alternative with me and the team of all stars at Partners Relief and Development.

“He had tears in his eyes as he told us about the lack of food for his people and the Rohingya community that hadn’t received any aid in the past three months. A few hours later we delivered 17,500 kg of rice to 1,015 families.” – Partners Relief Team Leader

Our team went to help the displaced Rohingya community near Sittwe that we had supported with goats and vegetables earlier in the year. Our relief partners living in the area were frightened to go as the last time they visited, the police had threatened them, simply because they were providing food to starving families. It had been so long since they had received help that some had even been forced to sell the goats we had given them in order to have rice for their children to eat.

Despite security concerns, our relief team went to the community last week and confirmed there had been no food delivered to these isolated people in three months. One elderly man sobbed as he told us of his 4 children who were starving. We made the decision to bring them rice no matter the risk and a few hours later delivered 17,500kg of rice to two communities totaling 1,015 families.

This is the sort of action that your support empowers. Rice is more than food. It represents life for impoverished communities and for these Rohingya refugee families. The rice they received made the difference between life and death.

This Christmas, be a life saver and give a friend or family member the gift of #RICE4LIFE to help a family of 5 have enough rice to eat for a week and support training communities in sustainable rice production.
Your partner in Burma,