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African Princess Visits Region for Expired HIV/AIDS Medications

In early November, Princess Jennifer Olanrewaju Lee, CEO of the Endurance and Love Organization, spoke at Revolution Hall in Troy, New York. She was hosted by Global Alliance Distribution (publisher of Global Scene Magazine) which held a music concert to help Lee raise awareness and funds to support her mission.

Princess Lee leads medical teams to provide healthcare in different part of Africa. The Endurance and Love Organization has offices in Atlanta, Georgia and Nigeria, Africa. “My mission is to go back to the different parts of Africa and take what America throws away to save lives… God sent me to America where you have everything to help people get healed.” Lee is currently working with Sierra Leone, Africa - which was ranked by the United Nations as the “worst place for children to grow up in the world.”

Princess Jennifer Lee speaks at Revolution Hall in Troy, NY (Photo by Katerina Parella) Top right: “Stop HIV” symbol by www.POZ.ca. Bottom right: HIV virus illustration by Ted Barker.

Giving out multivitamins and ibuprofen to the people she visits, the Princess explained that many African villages have never seen a medical doctor. Referring to a young woman who died from malaria, “Her mom could not afford five dollars in medication…”

At the fundraising concert in Troy, the African Princess requested prayers and contributions. “We are here tonight to pray for Africa… We just don’t have the resources you have, and sometimes it’s what you want to throw away.” Lee said she talks to doctors, and explains to them that the abundance of expired medicines can still be used in Africa to save many lives.

Vance I. Parella, CEO of Global Alliance Distribution (GAD), says “We are uniting as one, preparing to make a dent in this global epidemic that is ravishing children and families across the globe. The Capital Region will no longer sit back with our feet up and watch 2.4 million lives a year perish at the hands of ignorance and greed.”

Based out of Albany, NY, GAD is an international ministry “recognized around the world for sustained excellence in concert and music production that is dedicated to eradicating global poverty and injustice by communicating the great commission to the youth of this generation.”

Princess Jennifer Lee departed Albany International Airport for Africa in mid-November. She wrote to GAD on December 4th with the following news:

“I have exhausted all the medications I brought [from the USA] and need to buy more. There are many dying here and I am so overwhelmed and tired. I wish you were here with me helping and praying for me. If you can speak to people to give, please help raise more funds…”

World AIDS Day - Update for 2007

World AIDS Day was on December 1st, with year 2006 marking the 25th anniversary of the discovery of the HIV virus. President Bush said, “It is a day for the world to recognize the fact that there are 39 million people living with HIV/AIDS, and a day to remember the fact that 25 million people have died of AIDS.”

According to UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Program on AIDS, of the 39 million people with HIV/AIDS, almost 25 million live in sub-Saharan Africa, over 13 million are women, and over 2 million are children. Updated estimates on the epidemic can be viewed online at www.UNAIDS.org.

The United States accounts for roughly half of all resources going into the global fight against AIDS. The international theme for World AIDS Day is “Stop AIDS: Keep the Promise”. And according to the United States Global AIDS Coordinator, Ambassador Mark Dybul, that is exactly what America is doing.

The Ambassador is leading the implementation of President Bush’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) - “the largest international health initiative in history dedicated to a single disease.”

By law, at least one-third of the HIV prevention funds that countries receive through PEPFAR—a $15 billion, five-year program—must be used for abstinence-until-marriage programs (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 9/8/06).

Senator Barack Obama (D-IL.) spoke at an HIV/AIDS conference on World AIDS Day. “If condoms and potentially things like microbicides can prevent millions of deaths, then they should be made more widely available ... I don't accept the notion that those who make mistakes in their lives should be given an effective death sentence.”

Responding to criticism of the plan’s perceived shift towards abstinence-based programs, Ambassador Dybul said PEPFAR had “equally emphasized” abstinence, fidelity, and condom use in its prevention strategy.

In New York State, more than 7,000 people were diagnosed with HIV in 2004. Some groups are working to pass the “Healthy Teens Act” (A.6619C) in the 2007 legislative session. It would establish an age-appropriate sex education grant program, in part, to make teens more aware of potential risks involved in sex.

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