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The LIFE Project is part of the humanitarian aid arm of Overland Missions. It is seeking ways to combat the devastating effects of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, malaria and other diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa. Throughout Africa there is village upon village where 40% of the population is comprised of orphans and widows, most of them living with HIV/AIDS. The disease has devastated the rural villages of Africa leaving parents living with the knowledge that they will most likely not live more than two years. The rest of their days are filled with worry about who will care for their children. Overland Missions and The LIFE Project are helping to create sustainable infrastructure for these vulnerable people. 66% of the African population lives in rural areas and The LIFE Project and Overland Missions are committed to reach them. There are free HIV/AIDS medications readily available, but are found mostly in cities. It takes 40 minutes on the paved road just outside the urban city of Livingstone, Zambia to reach the small dirt path. Down that path are countless villages, all of which require a four-wheel drive vehicle to reach them. These communities are often forgotten simply because of the difficulty to access the villages. An Overland team went to one village that was filled with thriving, healthy families. A return visit two years later found that so many people had died from HIV/AIDS that the village actually seemed empty. The team then met a young orphan boy whose stomach was distended by malnutrition and had sores that refused to heal. He couldn't reach town to receive treatment because he lacked both transportation and money. A situation this dire forces one to ask the question, "How long before villages like this disappear completely?" |
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Graphics designed © 2007 by Overland Media Team |
