International Projects

Imagine- in the last 90 days over 1 million children under the age of five died from malnutrition and starvation! The problem with feeding the world’s hungry children is that their digestive systems are so malnourished and immature that they can not eat the commonly cooked cereals which contain mostly complex carbohydrates.

There is a solution. It’s called POWER FLOUR! Power Flour is barley malt flour which is added to porridges commonly used in areas suffering widespread hunger. It contains digestive enzymes that predigest the food. Just ¼ teaspoon of Power Flour in a bowl of porridge is all that is needed! This simple additive makes common starchy food easier to ingest and provides basic nutrients that are easily absorbed by the intestinal tract. A double blind study of Power Flour in Panama documented that the weight gain was doubled every five months for children receiving oatmeal and Power Flour verses those without Power Flour.

District 6220 has received a Matching Grant to start a project to ultimately care for the 15 to 20,000 children suffering from malnutrition annually in Panama. The first shipment has already arrived in Panama to be used by three NGOs there – Nutre Hogar, ProNinez, and the Darien Children’s Fund. Plans are under way to expand into Mexico, the rest of Central America and South America. We are open to opening projects anywhere in the world. In addition we are partnering with large nonprofits in the US.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call John Herlache @ 920-743-7755 or e-mail to jn.herlache@yahoo.com.

District Jamaican Dental Project

A team of five dentists and associated staff from northeast Wisconsin completed a week of work in the Christiana area of Jamaica in late April, 2007. The team leader was Dr. Chuck Wetzel of Elcho, WI. This marks 26 years of service in this small community near the geographic center of the island of Jamaica. The team was able to treat about 600 people during the course of the week. The clinic constructed at the New Vision Children’s Home was not available this year. The Rotary club is considering construction of a new clinic.

Appleton Rotarian Rick Hilsabeck helped arrange with the SAMP (Sharing Medical Supplies around the World) to ship a sea container of dental goods and medical supplies to the island. The Christiana Rotary club is working with the Jamaican government to help in distribution. In U. S. currency the container is worth several hundred thousand dollars. Thanks to Rick. The Appleton clubs and SAMP for working so hard to get this done.

We have now provided care to over 18,000 people who would not have been treated without our presence. Often we are able to restore or place sealants of several teeth for many of the children. If we place a nominal value of $89.99 on each person treated, we have provided over $1.4 million U.S. dollars over the years. At current exchange rates this equates to a gift to the Jamaican economy of over $69 million Jamaican dollars.

Over the years we have been able to introduce over 50 dentists to the wonderful people of the Christiana area. The Rotary club members have been incredible in their support. They transport us, feed and house us. They have become members of our extended families. We will try to keep the tradition alive with a trip in 2008. Interested persons can contact Dr. North Shetter DDS at nshetter@gmail.com