Amway Europe IBO visit, Kenya

Along the eastern coastal region of Kenya, in the district known as Kilifi, a woman named Kadzo waits with her infant son to see a doctor. She has brought him to the health center for a measles vaccination. And although she has been waiting for more than two hours, it is not, at least for her, a hardship. Not if it means keeping her child healthy.

Kadzo knows many mothers in the Kilifi district who know true hardship. Mothers who have lost children. To malaria. To malnutrition. Even to measles.

So, with a fierce determination that says “I will be here the entire day if I have to,” Kadzo sits patiently with her son. And waits.

Quality medical care in the Kilifi district is something that, until recently, was unheard of. As a result, infant mortality rates here have historically been high.

But with the involvement of UNICEF, and a specific focus on the inoculation of women and children, progress is being made. To help speed up that progress, Amway Europe, through the One by One Campaign for Children, is partnering with UNICEF to help supply essential health services in the Kilifi district.

The strength of Amway Europe’s commitment to the UNICEF partnership is evident in  the long-term pledge they have made: one million Euros by the year 2010—with 270,000 Euros earmarked for programs in the Kilifi district.

With these funds, immunization services will increase. There will be greater focus on preventing the transmission of HIV/AIDS to children, on Vitamin A supplementation and on insecticide treated net distribution—a necessity in a region with a high incidence of malaria.

To see for themselves what is taking place in the Kilifi district, a delegation of Independent Business Owners (IBOs) from throughout Europe visited Kenya in November of 2006. They came to understand the challenges of disease and poverty, to meet the women and children who struggle daily, and to see how UNICEF programs are making a difference.

Maria Schleipfer holds the prestigious Crown Ambassador level of achievement in Germany. Anja Schwarz-Viereck is a Crown level business owner in Austria. Rosemarie Steiner-Lang is Double Diamond in Switzerland. And Sissy Petra Szuchar and Rachel Demeter both hold the Executive Diamond level in Hungary.

Each is an Amway/UNICEF ambassador in their country and each received a special invitation to see the progress made and the challenges faced as Amway focuses its support on the Kilifi district. They were joined by Karin Schmid from the Amway Corporation in Germany, who coordinates the UNICEF partnership and One by One programs in Europe, as well as Dana Boals and Jesse Hertstein, from Ada’s corporate citizenship department. What they saw both inspired them and, at the same time, painted a vivid picture of the dramatic difference they, and all of Amway’s employees and IBOs, can make.

They visited health centers. Schools. Homes. And while they spoke different languages, and could hardly converse in the native dialect, there was no interpreter needed to convey what was in their hearts.

Their compassion, concern, and generosity of spirit came through loud and clear. And when it was time to leave, they took with them an amazing gift. The looks of gratitude from mothers, like Kadzo, that conveyed a simple, powerful message: thank you for caring.

This small group of very successful IBOs were, in a sense, like all the Amway employees and IBOs whose generosity enables progress. They came to see how their efforts could help uplift a community. And in the end, found that they were uplifted themselves.