"We
sat with a group of approximately 30 young orphans who wanted
to talk about their experience. We also listened to a young
girl share how she saw her mother gunned down by a helicopter.
She does not know what has become of her father. Others spoke
about the many, many people that had been killed during these
attacks. Each
child had a story to tell."
~CHRF
Emergency Relief Director
A
20-year long civil war has become one of the most horrific human
rights violations in history. According to the United States
Commission of Refugees, one out of every five Southern Sudanese
has died in civil war. As of 2003, nearly 4.3 million people
were forced to leave their homes, most of them are still refugees.
With over 1.7 million people suffering from food shortages,
at least 600,000 children died last year of easily treatable
illnesses.
In 2003,
CHRF's Emergency Relief Team made up entirely of volunteers,
once again organized three airlifts to active war zones in the
Upper Nile Region where other relief organizations refuse to
go due to high risk. Our team personally delivered over 32 tons
of aid, including 135,000 meals to hungry and frightened children.
Afghanistan
"One
wish of mine would be for each donor to be present to see the
faces of those people as we hand out these aid items and experience
their gratitude and appreciation! These relief items mean so
little to us in the West, but they mean so much to those who
are in such desperate need!" CHRF
Emergency Relief Director
While the
conflict in Afghanistan has come to an end, many charities have
left due to the dangerous conditions leaving a huge void for
us to try to fill. Consequently, thousands of very young children
are still desperately trying to survive in deadly terrain without
family. They have little food to eat and no place to go.
In response
to this international neglect, with our donors' help, we established
the Samaritan Center Orphanage to care for innocent war orphans.
We also delivered over 61 tons of food and provided over 270,000
meals to desperate families.
Iraq
Since
the 1980's Iraqi children have been exposed to three severe
conflicts. Families have witnessed the destruction of their
country's political and economic infrastructure, leaving them
isolated with limited resources if any.
Although
the United Nations opened the door to humanitarian aid after
the Gulf War in 1991 through the Oil for Food Program, thousands
of children have still been suffering from malnutrition even
before the recent conflict began in March 2003.
With
the help of our donors, Children's Hunger Relief Fund provides
hope for those left behind. While on their way to deliver
lifesaving emergency relief items to stranded Iraqi families,
our Emergency Relief Team sought out and delivered food and
medical supplies to children along the way that were passed
up by larger organizations.
