June 2016
The Production staff for the play ECLIPSED made tickets available to thewomen.org to use as a fund raiser for our Liberian Cancer Center Project. Thanks to Dr. Lyris Schonholz who was instrumental in making the contact for us. The Play written by Danai Gurira (Walking Dead) depicts the lives of 5 Liberian women brought together by the brutal wars that raged in Liberia for 14 years; a “stirring tale of hope, humor and resilience”.
We received 20 discounted tickets for the June 16th performance purchased by our Treasurer, Arnold Toren that we were allowed to resell to raise funds. Thanks to each and everyone who contributed to the success of this event, as we were able to raise a whopping $30K. A Special thank you to all who donated even though you could not attend. It was only because of your combined generosity that we were able to accomplish our goal to purchase equipment and supplies that were needed for the cervical cancer screening program scheduled for February 2017. Of course none of this would have happened but for the generosity of Productions 101 and their super staff led by Wendy Orshan and Jeff Klein; special mention to Company Manager Jennifer Graves and ECLIPSED Producer Alia Jones-Harvey. Thank you! thank you! We are eternally grateful to David Tereschuck and his late wife Melissa who did the media coverage for the event with articles published in Huffington Post and the Media Beat. It was a wonderful night that began with cocktails at the Lamb with our guest of honor Dr. Bernice Dahn, Minister of Health of Liberia. Attending the cocktails were all our Board Members, donors and the producer of Eclipsed, Alia Jones-Harvey and Company Manager of Productions 101 Jennifer Graves. Cocktails were followed by a riveting performance by the actors, followed by a backstage visit. We met the entire cast of Eclipsed, lots of pictures were taken and loads of hugs and kisses were exchanged. Super special thank you to Ms Lupita N’yongo and her fabulous agent with whom there was an instant connection and who made the wheels turn !!!
Most importantly 100% of the money raised was used to purchase a care HPV unit , miscellaneous supplies and kits for screening 2,000 women in Liberia. This unit made by the company Qiagen was designed to use in the absence of running water and electricity, and gives HPV results in 2-4 hours. Liberian technicians will be trained to use this unit in January 2017 in preparation for our screening program that will launch in February.
