U.S. First Lady, Ashley Judd Call on Americans to Support Malaria Fight

WASHINGTON, DC, April 2, 2007 — Mrs. Laura Bush called on Americans to donate $10 for life-saving bed nets and join the fight against malaria by April 25th, Africa Malaria Day and the first Malaria Awareness Day in the U.S.

"I urge all Americans to do their part to help defeat this disease," said Mrs. Bush. Her call was echoed by other prominent Americans and organizations who announced new initiatives in the run-up to Malaria Awareness Day.

PSI Board Member Ashley Judd, ExxonMobil and American Idol's "Idol Gives Back," Major League Soccer, pastor and bestselling author Rick Warren, Boys and Girls Clubs of America, Nothing But Nets, the Initiative for Global Development, America's Promise Alliance, and AngelPoints all unveiled new grassroots initiatives to save lives from malaria.

"Whether at their workplace, through their favorite television program, at sporting events, or in their churches and schools, Americans can do their part to make Malaria Awareness Day the first major milestone in the campaign to end malaria-related deaths," said Ray Chambers, co-Chairman of Malaria No More, an organization working to galvanize all sectors of American society to combat malaria.

U.S. President George Bush has announced April 25, 2007 as "Malaria Awareness Day" for the first time in the United States. New initiatives include:

* PSI Board Member Ashley Judd announced the April launch of a new initiative called "Five & Alive," which will bring attention to the devastating effects of malaria on children aged five and under in the developing world. "Every 30 seconds a child dies from malaria," she said. "Americans can help stop it for as little as $10."
Donate to Five & Alive

* ExxonMobil announced a $3 million "challenge grant" to match donations dollar-for-dollar to Malaria No More. The grant will be a part of the "Idol Gives Back" episodes of the FOX TV show "American Idol" which air on April 24 and Malaria Awareness Day April 25.

* Major League Soccer (MLS) will run malaria awareness and bed net fundraising promotions at MLS games beginning in the month of April in conjunction with Nothing But Nets and Malaria No More.

* Pastor Rick Warren and Saddleback Church are reaching out to 300,000 congregations in the United States in April to encourage them to take on malaria as a cause.

* Boys & Girls Clubs of America announced its own national campaign "Malaria Prevention: Deadly Disease, Simple Solution." In partnership with Malaria No More, it aims to build awareness and encourage fundraising among 4.6-million Club members nationwide.

* Nothing But Nets will kick-off a multi-city grassroots effort to send more nets and save more lives beginning April 25th. A program of the United Nations Foundation with founding partners, the United Methodist Church and the National Basketball Association's NBA Cares, Nothing But Nets has raised more than $4 million for bed nets.

* America's Promise Alliance announced that it will reach 11.7 million middle school students with a call for volunteers to organize bed net campaigns as part of their service-learning projects.

Malaria No More galvanizes individuals, organizations, and corporations in the private sector to provide life-saving bed nets and other critical interventions to families in need. Together these investments will significantly reduce malaria infections and make malaria-related deaths a thing of the past.

In addition to PSI, Malaria No More works in partnership with the American Red Cross, the Global Business Coalition, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Millennium Promise, the President's Malaria Initiative, UNICEF, United Nations Foundation, United Way of America, Against Malaria, Nothing But Nets, Hedge Funds Against Malaria and others.

• Archives

Insecticide-treated nets, like this one distributed by PSI/Malawi, protect families all over the world from malaria.