Nurses focus of giving campaign

By Edward Enoka 09 December 2019, 5:00PM

A young feminist activist charity, Brown Girl Woke, has launched a new campaign to provide supplies to Samoa's ongoing battle to contain the measles epidemic and give something back to the nurses leading its charge. 

The non-profit is collecting donations directly from donors across America, Australia and American Samoa. 

Samoa Airways and Fiji Airways will help transport cargo such as face masks, hand sanitiser, towels, medical tape, canulas, nutritional supplements and other medical care equipment. 

Brown Girl Woke (B.G.W.) they have also unveiled a new campaign enabling people to provide a small token of thanks to the overworked nurses in the nation's hospitals who have worked ceaselessly throughout the measles epidemic: an 'Adopt a Nurse Campaign'. 

Donors spend a minimum of $20 - with no maximum - to provide a token of appreciation or gift to one of the nurses in Samoa's hospital system. 

“Nurses are teachers, advocates, caregivers, critical thinkers and innovators. Nursing is an honorable profession, and nurses are the heart and soul of the healthcare system,” said Felicia Tapia who has partnered with B.G.W. founder Doris Tulifau for this campaign.

Doris Tulifau told the Samoa Observer that she was put in contact with Felicia Tapia by a friend in California who wanted to give back to nurses in the Bay Area, but caught wind of the work of nurses in Samoa.

“At the same time, I have friends who are nurses volunteering so I have seen how many hours they have put in and asked them how can I give gifts to them. We also want more humanitarian stories for these nurses that allows people to tell us about their hero/shero[es] stories," she said. 

B.G.W. aims to have adopted 150 nurses by January with gift baskets and vouchers prepared to be presented to them soon.

Ms. Tulifau says, as an American, a lot of people had heard of Samoa's growing crisis wanted to know how they could contribute. 

Starting from the first crate her family sent through to Samoa, everyone began messaging how they could donate from their own cities. 

Donations came from around 20 different locations with the freight costs for these being covered by B.G.W. 

Samoa Airways and Fiji Airways have aided in the costs of flights used to get donations to Samoa and B.G.W. wishes to thank these two airlines for their continuous support and help.

They will also be facilitating purchases for donors from Amazon.com, direct monetary donations and benefit concerts. So far they have received USD$4000. 

A final benefit concert will be held in Huntington Beach, California on December 8 for more funds and donations, but Brown Girl Woke say they will continue to help for as long as they can. 




By Edward Enoka 09 December 2019, 5:00PM
Samoa Observer

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