FOUNDATION HOSTS ANNUAL GALA

EMPOWERING THE PEOPLE OF RURAL NIGERIA

J U L Y 2 0 1 2 ISSUE #9

SEOFOUNDATION.ORG

S.E. Onukogu Foundation

On June 9, our annual gala took place at St. Lucy’s Church Hall in Newark, New Jersey, with about 200 guests, dancers, beneficiaries, and dignitaries in attendance. The Owerri North Local Government Chairman, Engr. Chuks Ololo, flew from Nigeria to chair the occasion. The Enugu State Cultural Dance Troup again electrified the audience with their masquerade performance. And many of the guests who have benefited from medical missions held in their communities gave testament. Throughout the evening, pictures of last year’s SEOF activities were displayed.

All in all, the 2012 gala was better attended than last year’s event, although slightly less money was raised due to a decrease in raffle ticket sales, a result of the tickets’ late arrival.

JULY MISSION STRENGHTENS GLOBAL BONDS

Western Volunteers Head Back To Nigeria

Teachers and Volunteers

This summer, four American volunteers made the trip to Nigeria to help villagers in three communities in Gombe State and two communities in Imo State. Our two teachers taught Economics, Accounting, Health, and Religion to about 70 students. For volunteers John Michael MacInnes, Molly Langford, and Aleyse Bradford it was their first trip to Nigeria. Tom von Geldern attended the July 2011 trip.

All four volunteers were together for the Gombe phase of the trip. Molly and Michael, with babysitting concerns, were unable to make the Imo phase of the trip.

Accounting, Business, Religion, and Health

Thomas von Geldern and Aleyse Bradford spent nearly one week teaching some 70 students at Ngwoma. Thomas, on his second trip to Nigeria, taught accounting and business-related subjects to the older students.

Aleyse taught religion and health to her group of younger students who ranged in age from about 3 years old to 14 years old. On the last day of class she distributed copies of the New Testament to the students which was much appreciated. A few students who had not received a copy came several days later to get copies.

Engr. Chuks Ololo

Volunteer Thomas von Geldern

Kindly send us an email to info@seofoundation.org

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East Orange, NJ 07019(973) 380 - 0531

JULY MEDICAL MISSIONSOn this mission, we treated 2,347 patients.

Since the medical missions began, we have treated 14,988 patients.

GOMBE STATE [July 10 -13]

The July 2012 medical mission was scheduled for Gombe, Imo, and Kogi States. The clinics began in Tula, Gombe, at the home of Dr. Kennedy Ishaya, the Gombe State Commissioner for Health. A total of 350 patients received free

treatment by the five doctors who were able to assist.

The second clinic was held in Poshiya, in Biliri Local Government, at the home of the traditional ruler of the Tangele people. Some 404 patients were treated

at the one-day clinic. An elementary school let out all their students to be seen by the medical team. Since the majority of the children were suffering from worm infestations, we decided to de-worm the entire student

population. The de-worming exercise was supervised by Molly Langford, who was on her first visit to Nigeria, and Musa Idris Maiyamba, our lead doctor.

Some 221 primary school children were de-wormed.

On Friday, July 13, our team headed to Ayaba, a remote village on the outskirts of Gombe. The nearly two-hour drive took the team through beautiful

scenery even amidst the poverty of some of the communities. A midwife who worked at the health center was one of the volunteers and assisted in delivering a baby, our first. In Ayaba, 371 patients were treated along with

around 70 students for worms.

All in all, 1,416 patients were treated in Gombe over the three-day exercise.

IMO STATE [July 19, 27]

Two communities in Imo -- Ngwoma and Akokwa -- were beneficiaries of the July medical mission. A team of seven doctors and two nurses travelled to Ngwoma to assist some 219 villagers. Many thanks to Basil Onukogu for his

generous donation which enabled the SEOF to carry out the mission. Also, we thank Michael MacInnes and Molly Langford who also made donations. Ken Chikwe and Ijeoma Mejeha were the lead doctors for each of the clinics and

helped organize the team of Nigerian-based medical professionals.

The second free medical mission for Imo State was scheduled for Akokwa, in Ideato North LGA, in Imo State. The clinic was held at the Mater Amabilis

Charity Hospital, run by an order of Catholic Nuns. Five volunteer doctors and the resident doctor treated the 203 patients.

This brought the number of patients treated in Imo State to 430, including the 8 patients treated post clinic at Ngwoma.

KOGI STATE [Postponed to October 2012]

The Kogi State clinic, which was scheduled for July 28, was postponed to October due to scheduling conflicts with the Nigerian Medical Association and the death of the mother of Ojo Emmanuel Balasire, our lead Kabba medical

coordinator. Condolences to the Balasire family on their loss.

ADAMAWA STATE [July 26 - 28]The twice-postponed medical mission for Adamawa State was finally held in

Numan, home to the Bachama people, a Christian community in Muslim-rich northern Nigeria. Originally planned as a one-day clinic, it was lengthened to

three days at the insistence of our partners to enable the inclusion of surgeries. Our partners, the Good Citizenship Foundation, supplied the four surgeons who performed 14 surgeries. A total of 501 patients were given free

treatment at the venue, the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria. More partnerships are planned with the Good Citizenship Foundation to add a surgical component to as many of our missions as practicable.

Gombe Medical Mission

Gombe Medical Mission

LOCATION PATIENTS TREATED

Gombe State 1,416

Imo State 430

Adamawa State 501

TOTAL 2,347

Akokwa Medical Mission

On July 26, a team from the SEOF Owerri office visited St. Joseph’s Home for Orphans and the Destitute, a haven for unwed mothers located in Owerri, Imo State. The home is operated by an order of nuns called the Sisters of the Needy. The orphanage was started in 1983 to provide shelter to unwed mothers who wanted to carry a baby to term. From there, it grew to an adoption agency for the children born mostly to teenage mothers who did not want to keep the children. Sister Scholastica Umeh, the nun in charge of the orphanage, gave the team a brief history of the home founded by Fr. Ononiju.

Women who feel stigmatized because they are expecting often do not reveal their pregnancy to their families and the home serves as a safe haven for them to carry their babies to term. The mothers are encouraged to take their children home, but a large number choose to leave their children for adoption. The approximately 50 pounds of clothing donated to the orphanage were made by SEOF volunteer Molly Langford, Michael MacInnes, and their friends in New York and Philadelphia. Thanks to them for their generosity. About 10 children ranging from 2 to 5 came out to greet our team. It is sights like this that make our work so meaningful.

COMMUNITY OUTREACHThe SEOF hosted an educational seminar on diabetes, visited an

orphanage, and continues computer training.

A standing room crowd of doctors, nurses, and other medical

personnel gathered at the Gombe State Specialist Hospital to hear Molly Langford speak on Diabetes Management. Molly described how diabetes was presently being treated and managed in the U.S., including considerations in ADA goal setting to determining the effectiveness of various medications available on the market.  After her talk, she engaged in a lively discussion with the audience on the differences in available treatment as well as new products under research in both the U.S. and other developed nations.  Her presentation was well received by the audience, some of whom observed that the standard of care in Nigeria needed much improvement.

SEOF VISITS ORPHANAGE St. Joseph’s Home for Orphans

LOIS REILLY SEMINAR ON DIABETES MANAGEMENT

A+ CERTIFICATION TRAINING

Three A+ Certification students unfortunately did not succeed with their exam. Despite their disappointment, we heartily applaud their gallant efforts. We are now beginning discussions with Meridian Nigeria for additional training to successfully complete the exam. Many thanks to Dan Akaluso, Sean Smith, and Michael Baron who paid for the initial exam.

SEOF STAFF CHANGES

Thank God Nnawuihe will replace Gladys Aguzie as the new computer teacher in our office at Ngwoma. Nnawuihi has already taught several classes in Gladys’s absence. We wish Gladys best wishes in her new career.

Meanwhile, our secretary, Maryanne Ahanonu, will be leaving for school. A replacement for her has yet to be chosen, although a few of the previous students have been helping in her absence.

DONATIONS

Chan Medi-Pharm, a Nigerian based charity, donated some medications to the SEOF to assist with the Gombe State medical mission. The box of donated medications was delivered to the SEOF along the major road in violence riddled Jos, Nigeria, on Sunday, July 9 2012.  Hartman, a staff of the organization then led the team through the safe part of the city.  We appreciate their generosity and thoughtfulness.

Volunteer Molly Langford

VOLUNTEER PERSPECTIVES

Nigeria is a country of beauty, a country of corruption, always a place of community, and we all hope a country on the rise. As the team drove north to Gombe State for the first set of medical missions, the view stretched for miles: wide open space and mountains in the distance. The landscape changed drastically when we later drove south to Imo State -- thick with palm trees and humidity in the air.

The landscape is breathtaking, the people are warm and welcoming, but unfortunately most of the political leaders give in to corruption. As a result, the economic and social systems are severely oppressed; it is visible everywhere you go. It was both humbling and disturbing to see so much poverty. There is wealth in Nigeria, but very few hands ever touch any of it. In the U.S. we are accustomed to seeing pockets of poverty, inner cities or certain suburbs, but in Nigeria it is everywhere.

Even with all the poverty and oppression, the Nigerians are a relational culture that many westernized cultures need to learn from! When you remove money, material possessions and other distractions of life, only the human relationships remain. At our core as humans, we are designed for community, for family, for relationships. The people of Nigeria naturally understand that, for often that is all they have to hold on to.

The work of the SEOF is an important part of the change so many hope to see in the country. It was an honor to assist in the medical missions and education of the children. I trust that as the foundation draws more awareness to the country’s need, more people will come on board to help and more lives will be changed. Where there is hope, there is a future.

aleyse bradford

It is 5:50 am local time. I’ve not slept in over 20 hours. After winding my way through concourses and crowd control barriers, I find myself standing before a Nigerian Customs official.

Official: What is your occupation?

Me: Attorney Official: What is the purpose of your visit?

Me: Humanitarian. Official: Tell me, what can an lawyer from America do for the people of Nigeria?

At this point I am caught off guard and fumbling for an answer. It half enters my mind that if I fail to give a meaningful answer I’ll be denied entry. It is a valid question and one that had been asked numerous times by those who knew I was traveling to Nigeria. The truth is I had no real idea of what I would be doing. Yet, I was confident that there was something I could do.

Although I have been involved with the S. E. Onukogu Foundation for a couple years now, the opportunity to travel to Nigeria and see the foundation’s work first hand was very exciting. I must admit that up until recently, Nigeria wasn’t high on my list of places to see. Yet the more I spoke with Ernest Onukogu, and saw his enthusiasm for the foundation, the more interested I became in what I could do to further its endeavors.

I find it incredible that I can board a plane here in the U.S. and in a little more than 11 hours, be in a completely different world -- a world without continuous electricity, running water, and most of the daily conveniences that we take for granted; a world where the majority of the population gets by on $2.00 a day. Notwithstanding their lack of these things, I was struck by the warmth and generosity of the people we met. We were welcomed into people’s homes and greeted by smiling faces wherever we went. I was especially impressed by the Nigerian medical professionals who volunteer their skills to travel to outlying communities to treat rural citizens. Their dedication is invaluable to the people they treat.

Although most of my time was spent organizing pharmaceuticals, taking photos, and directing traffic as hundreds of people lined up to see one of the physicians, the most poignant moment of my trip was during our medical mission to Ayaba. As I was working the queue, directing people to the next available physician, I saw an elderly woman with vision problems struggling to make her way from the physician’s office to our impromptu pharmacy. I went over and took her arm. Grasping her hand in mine we began the slow walk to the pharmacy. During this brief walk, as she leaned on my arm, I found the answer to the question posed to me by the Customs Agent. What I can do for the people of Nigeria is to show that I care. Although they may be half a world away, they are my brothers and sisters and they matter.

john michael macinnes

VOLUNTEER PERSPECTIVESmolly langford

Our first medical clinic was in Tula and was overwhelming successful. We saw over 300 men, women, and children in that first day. I kissed babies, learned how to say a few simple words in Hausa, and diagnosed illnesses rarely, if ever, seen in the U.S. such as rickets and malaria. I quickly learned to rely on my physical assessment skills as we had no ability to check x-rays or order lab work. The practice of medicine in Nigeria relies heavily on asking the right questions and listening carefully to the patient’s answers -- an added challenge when you don’t speak the language. The Nigerian physicians helped guide me in practicing medicine without a net. My fellow travelers, Tom von Geldern, and my brother, Michael, ran the pharmacy and dispensed the medications we ordered until they ran out of most things after lunch. Aleyse Bradford helped register the patients, helped take patients’ vitals and manage crowd control. By the end of the day we were exhausted but fulfilled. Although we were limited in what we could treat, the people we saw were so appreciative of our presence.

The next few days brought more clinics and experiences. I presented a lecture on diabetes to the nurses and physicians at the Specialist Hospital in Gombe. I had my first encounter with royalty, as I was honored to take the blood pressure of His Royal Highness the Mai Tangele. We set up a makeshift clinic under the trees after a brief stop to wait for some of our group. People had heard we were in the area and requested to be seen as we stretched our legs under a tree. Of course we obliged, until the crowd grew to the point that if we continued we would miss our scheduled clinic all together. I saw a women give birth to a beautiful healthy baby boy. I confirmed multiple new pregnancies. I ate more rice, goat, and yams in 12 days than I usually eat in a year. I learned the proper skills necessary for a successful bath out of a bucket. I met incredible doctors and nurses and volunteers who do this type of work on a regular basis and continue to do so with grace.

I also realized that there is so much more to be done. We never had enough medications to treat the infections, hypertension, peptic ulcer disease, and pain issues we identified. We had four large suitcases of donated clothes to distribute but could have easily given away twice as much. It was frustrating at times to feel like we were just a drop of water in a huge desert of need. But I also felt a sense of renewal. Here was the social justice, community, spirituality, and simple living I had experienced so many years ago.

I returned home tired, dirty, and disoriented after a 16-plus hour journey. I hugged my husband and children and held them close, thankful for all the gifts we have in our lives. I also came home with a new sense of purpose to commit my time and talents to helping the foundation from this side of the Atlantic Ocean. My hope is to get my friends and family involved as well. I hope to return to Nigeria again in the future and bring other health care professionals with me. It may be a cliché but it is so true: the more you give the more you get back. Once again I am “ruined for life.”

The year after I graduated from college I spent living in Detroit volunteering for the Jesuit Volunteer Corps. The JVC has four core values: Social Justice, Simple Living, Community, and Spirituality. They also have a motto -- “ruined for life” -- that indicates that once you have been through the experience you will never view the world in the same way. That year was perhaps the most influential of my life. Because of my experience, I went back to school to become a nurse practitioner and focused my practice on the underserved. I tried to incorporate the JVC values into my everyday life. However, as the years went by those values become more theoretical than reality. A husband, three boys, and a demanding full-time job were my focus. I missed the idealism of my earlier years, but made peace with the fact that my life was moving in a different direction.

Then I met Ernest. Ernest and my brother have been friends for almost 20 years. They met waiting tables in New York and formed a lasting friendship. My family and I joined my brother for Thanksgiving of 2011 and Ernest and his son were there. Over the course of the day, we discussed the S.E. Onukogu Foundation and the medical and educational work they were doing in Nigeria. Ernest casually issued an invitation to join them in July for the medical mission that was planned. In the beginning I didn’t take the invitation seriously. Nigeria was frequently in the news for safety issues within the country and how could I possibly leave the boys for almost two weeks? However, as time went by, I couldn’t stop thinking about the opportunity. Here was a chance to again do something meaningful. It also seemed like a good life lesson to teach the boys giving to others. Throughout the process, Ernest was available to address my concerns and continually reinforce the need for volunteers. With the support of my family and friends, the trip became a reality. As an added bonus, my brother would be traveling with me.

We flew into Abuja on July 5 and spent two days acclimating to the time difference and preparing for our 300 miles in 12 hour journey to Tula. Along the way we were stopped by extremely pleasant military personnel with extremely large guns at least 10 times at check points. They all welcomed us to Nigeria with smiles. We managed to avoid elephant sized potholes while traveling at 80 miles an hour. God really must have been our copilot. Upon arriving in Tula we set up camp in the village home of Dr. Ishaya, a generous supporter of the foundation. His home was spacious but like the rest of the village lacked electricity and running water. We did enjoy the use of a generator at night and quickly learned how to draw water from the well.

UPCOMING MEDICAL MISSIONS

October 2012

Imo State

Kebbi State

Kogi State

VOLUNTEER PERSPECTIVES

tom von geldern

This is a message for next year’s batch of summer volunteers, regardless of whether or not I will be lucky enough to join you.

During the trip there will be a moment, sometime between the second-worst night of sleep that you’ve ever had and the third-worst breakfast in the history of the world, where you get frustrated. You will be counting a hopelessly tall stack of medications that have a hopelessly low chance of satisfying all of the need in the particular village to which you are heading. You will promise yourself under your breath that you will never again return to Nigeria.

You will pack yourself tightly into a van with several other under-bathed Americans and hit the road, late, at 6:30 am. By the time you arrive at the village, there will be a crowd of people waiting to thank you before you have even treated them. Their gratitude will slightly hinder the process of setting up the clinic. A line of elderly villagers and anxious mothers with sick children will form, most of whom can not afford medicine otherwise, and you will be empowered to help them. By afternoon you will have forgotten the morning’s frustrations, and at the end of the day you will be overwhelmed by the way that the village chooses to thank you.

By the end of your trip, you will have been exposed to no less than three new languages and many new cultures. You will see and learn things that you could never have imagined, you will do things that you never thought you would have. Indoor plumbing will be a rare opportunity, and electricity a fleeting luxury. It will be the most bizarre, frustrating, overwhelming, heartwarming, and rewarding experience you will ever have. You will not regret a moment of it.

I would also like to thank this year’s team, a family of big-hearted southerners, a soft-spoken dance instructor, and our coordinator and savvy guide who always seemed to have everybody laughing. It was a pleasure to spend this time with you, and I strongly suspect that we will be seeing each other again. Probably in Nigeria.

PHOTO ESSAY

Hiking in Gombe

Hiking in Gombe

Walking through Gombe