An outpouring of charity amid flames

When calls went out throughout San Diego County for volunteers to assist those displaced by rapidly spreading wildfires, the response often was more than the 23 emergency shelters could handle. In fact, from major centers such as Qualcomm Stadium and the Del Mar Fairgrounds to smaller quarters set up in rural communities, the emergency shelters were a model of civic cooperation and commitment.

Venezuelan doctors carry out Miracle Mission journey in Ecuador

A commission of three Venezuelan doctors is traveling Ecuadorian lands in order to attend the poorest zones of Quito and the indigenous village of Saraguro, where they are carrying out a patients selection journey for the Miracle Mission.

Angel Flight gives sick kids wings

MORUYA man John Gillett is the Eurobodalla’s one and only Angel Flight pilot. His voluntary job consists of flying sick children, who live in isolated areas, to a major hospital.

Cuba eye program provides care for thousands

Jose Gomez bounds around the patio of a sunny vacation cottage near the beach, giggling as his mother gently tosses him a soccer ball.

Heroes in the Sky

When Lissa Klueter decided to take flying lessons in 2000, her interest was purely recreational. When her husband David began taking lessons in March 2001, it was still just for fun. But now the two Belmont residents, and their plane, are involved in something much larger. Last year the husband and wife team began flying missions for Angel Flight of Virginia, the local chapter of Angel Flight of America, a nonprofit charitable air medical transportation organization that gets patients to the treatment facilities they need.

“Operation Miracle” Restores Sight to Over 10.000 Ecuadorians

More than 10.000 low-income Ecuadorians have undergone eye-surgery for free and recovered their sight thanks to the Operation Miracle program, a project promoted by Cuba and Venezuela in several Latin American countries.

The true Angel of Africa

IT WAS supposed to be a relaxing break in a new and fascinating location, Likoma, an island on Lake Malawi. Then Sonia Waters got chatting to the cleaner and her holiday turned into a dream mission, Malawi Dream, to be precise. That is the name she has given to the nonprofit organisation she has started to help the community she befriended on the island.

Tutu wants miracle of helping blind to see

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has spoken of the miracle of giving sight to people through cataract operations.

Miracle girl who became face of Live Aid triumphs with graduation

The image of a young Ethiopian girl ravaged by hunger and 15 minutes from death came to symbolise Live Aid’s 1985 plea for money for the victims of the devastating famine. Birhan Woldu, described as a “miracle baby”, survived the 1984 humanitarian crisis and was seen as a symbol of hope for Ethiopia.

Yesterday, in a triumphant reversal of fortune, she graduated from university with a diploma in agricultural science after studying at the Wukro Technical and Vocational College in Tigray, northern Ethiopia, where she grew up.

A scholarship from the African Children’s Educational Trust paid for her studies, which she hopes to combine with a degree in nursing. She intends to work among farming families in the impoverished northern provinces of Ethiopia. She will also help her father, Abu, to grow tea and coffee in the village of Quiha, the epicentre of the 1984 famine where more than one million people – mainly children – died as civil war raged.

Her home is a stone hut, where she lives with her 58-year-old father, her stepmother and seven brothers and sisters. The family survives on £80 a month provided by the Educational Trust, and the food Ms Woldu grows.

“I am thrilled she has passed,” said Bob Geldof, who pioneered the Live Aid campaign. “She has come to symbolise Ethiopia’s plight, from the very first film of her. She is probably unaware of that, which is part of her charm. She is a single example of the waste of humanity, when not just one person died but a million people around her.

“It is extraordinary she has become a worldwide symbol, but she bears it well; she is dignified, dynamic, elegant and intellectual. I hope she goes on to lead a fantastic life. It is unbelievable that this is the same scrap of a girl.”

Last year, aged 23, Ms Woldu made her first trip outside Ethiopia, travelling 3,700 miles to appear on stage with Geldof and Madonna in London for the Live8 concert.

When Geldof described her to the crowds as “a beacon of hope and inspiration to millions, proof we can make a difference”, it became clear that her recovery had been seen worldwide as a symbol of hope for Africa.

Introducing her to the crowd, Geldof said: “Some of you were here 20 years ago. Some of you weren’t even born. I want to show you why we started this long walk to justice. Don’t let them tell you this doesn’t work.”

Through an interpreter, Ms Woldu told the crowd: “It was Live Aid that helped to save my life – and now I believe together we can save the lives of millions more. We Africans love you very much. It is a great honour to be here at the start of the Live8. Please continue to support the Live8; we love you very much. Thank you.”

The first Live Aid raised £110m. Six days after the 2005 Live8 concerts, the world’s richest nations announced £28.8bn extra aid for Africa, plus measures on debt, trade and health.

Ms Woldu has said that her proximity to death has left her “grateful to be alive”. Her grave was being dug alongside thousands of other victims of the famine and her death seemed inevitable before rehydration injections given to her by a nurse saved her life. She told Brian Stewart, a Canadian reporter who was with the team that filmed her fragile body in her father’s arms: “I could have been just dust by now, but I’m not. I’m alive to see beauty around me, and to see new things. I’m very happy.”

But she cannot hear of the famine that killed so many, including her mother and sister, without crying. “I don’t remember it, and I’m glad I didn’t. I’m glad I didn’t see my people die in that terrible time. It is past. I don’t see it the way adults see it, and I’m glad I did not see it.”

Her education was part of a scholarship scheme run by the African Children’s Educational Trust (A-CET), a Leicester-based charity that sponsors the education of more than 2,000 youngsters. A-CET’s chief executive, David Stables, said: “We are proud of Birhan’s academic achievements. This epitomises much of what we are doing. It is important to feed starving people during famines, but it is equally important to try to make sure famines do not occur again or so often.

“By educating the youngsters and particularly in Birhan’s case, for her to get a diploma in agriculture, should help. By supporting the education of vulnerable Ethiopian youngsters, this can be their way out of poverty. Birhan has shown the way.”

Twin healers

Surgeons describe shared tour of duty caring for victims of war in Afghanistan

NATO rescues Pakistan quake survivors from winter

NATO’s engineers are assisting the Pakistan army in ‘Operation Winter Race’ to help survivors of October’s earthquake exposed to harsh weather conditions in the mountainous Himalayan region, the organization’s spokesman said on Friday.

Samaritan rescues ’seal woman’

The “seal woman” is going to work herself out of her financial distress.

Rescue Fund: Wise County mother, children start over with nothing but each other

“Dee” had a comfortable life in another state with her three children and a man who made a good living running his own contracting business. Then, she said, he fell in with drugs and a rowdy crowd, and everything fell apart.

Positive news from Century Village

It’s sad but true fact that the negative side of a situation is always more newsworthy than the positive. In response to your articles, I want to say that there was much that was positive at Century Village in Boca during the days of Hurricane Wilma, and thousands of residents were given aid and support.

Hairdressers unite to help hurricane victims

Haircuts, manicures, pedicures, facials and massages are part of the regular routine for some, a special treat for others.

An angel in the sky

A private pilot in town volunteered his time and airplane to fly reunification flights for the survivors of Hurricane Katrina.

Schools give to hurricane victims

An outpouring of support and generosity swept through the San Fernando Valley and surrounding areas in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. A campuswide fund-raising drive by the students and faculty at California State University, Northridge, netted $84,484, which was presented in a ceremony last week to the American Red Cross.

Salon owners host silent auction to help a family

The owners of a local salon are working to help a family from the Gulf relocate to Canton.

‘Forgotten’ towns get help from student hairdressers

The forgotten towns are now getting relief. As word trickles in about small towns on the Mississippi Gulf Coast that are barely a dot on the map, much like Pontotoc, whose needs have been overlooked, folks in Pontotoc have been responding with truckloads of water, food, and clothes.

Rescue 4 Hurricaid Set to Take Fligh

Donated items will be hand-delivered the to Salvation Army distribution centers in Biloxi, Mississippi, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Area kids step up to help: Generosity of students aids the Gulf Coast

Going door to door and asking for money is not an easy thing to do.

Support for new UN emergency fund

Six countries have pledged almost US$150m (£80m) to a proposed new United Nations emergency fund.

About 45% of Russians give charity to orphans

About 45% of Russians offer help to orphans in one way or another, a state-run opinion poll center said Friday.

NZ volunteer helps reunite Katrina victims and families

Lynne Pope woke up yesterday to find 191 emails waiting for her.

Massive Local Volunteer Response for Katrina Aid

Red Cross volunteers usually have to take several courses before they can help out with disaster relief.

Students help Katrina victims

When Horizon High School English teacher Anna Royse talked about civic responsibility in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, her students immediately put to practice what she preached.

Miracle brought them here

Arvette Carter held her 2-year-old granddaughter in her arms at the Superdome in New Orleans, convinced the little girl was dying.

Man builds house, donates it to Katrina aid

As Steve Patrick watched television coverage of Hurricane Katrina’s aftermath last week, he got an idea.

Three heroes outwitted bureaucracy

KATRINA’S detritus will be months in the sifting, but what best reveals what went wrong may be found in the contrast between bureaucrats ensnared in red tape and three individuals who sprang into action as circumstances required.

Ghana gives “widow’s mite” to Katrina victims

The West African state of Ghana is giving its “widow’s mite” to the United States following the Hurricane Katrina disaster – a gift of cocoa drinks and chocolate.

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