World Moms Give of Themselves in Uganda
Oct 23, 2012

Motherhood is synonymous with selflessness.
When a woman becomes consumed in the care of a tiny newborn baby, she will sacrifice everything – from sleep, silence and solitude, to career ambitions and dreams of travel – all because her child becomes her first priority. And while mothers can become very focused on providing for the immediate needs of their family, having children also tends to give a woman an entirely different perspective on the world we live in.  As our children grow, we try to raise them to be considerate and compassionate and they remind us of the great disparities that exist all across the globe.  Disparities that limit the health and well-being of children who are not as fortunate as our own.

When I first met my friend Jennifer Burden, we discovered that we had lots of things in common. We both grew up in New Jersey. We both adore our daughters.  We both took time away from our careers to focus on the needs of our young children.  And we were both bloggers.  In fact, Jennifer is the founder of the World Moms Blog,  a collaborative international blog that highlights contributors from 20 countries who each write on the topics of motherhood, culture, human rights and social good.  For Jennifer and I, our greatest connection as mothers and friends was that we both felt passionate about making a difference in the lives of children and helping to provide vaccines to children as champions for Shot@Life.
But now, Jennifer has an opportunity that is bound to create ripples in her personal advocacy efforts.  You see today my friend will depart for Uganda as part of a special delegation of Shot@Life champions.  They will meet with UNICEF officials and health workers to see how immunization efforts are working to protect children from polio and measles.
Personally, I can’t wait to hear about her experiences first hand. Everything from the challenges in leaving behind her own young children, to the amazing things she will see and learn on this special trip.  Ready or not, Jennifer and each of the other Shot@Life champions are about to come face to face with parents and children who live in fear of preventable diseases.  I know Jennifer would never want to see her own children suffer from diseases like polio and measles, which is why she is so determined to help other mothers protect their children as well.  Jennifer, and all her travel companions, are destined to see the faces of their own sons and daughters in the eyes of the children in Uganda and at that moment their social mission is bound to become a personal obligation, further igniting their individual commitments to give every child a shot at a healthier life.
You can follow along on the Uganda journey at shotatlife.org/uganda and on Twitter at #vaccineswork.  Additionally, if you would like to contribute to the most recent Shot@Life goal of vaccinating 40,000 children by Halloween, than consider making a donation today.  Just $20 is all it takes for one child to receive life long protection against four different devastating diseases. And if $20 is more than you can spare, just give what you can. Even $1 will help to vaccinate a child against polio, which is still not eradicated and remains a threat to children everywhere.
Your involvement is as important as your donation, so check back tomorrow to find out how you can be part of the world’s biggest commercial and Rotary International’s  fight against polio.  We are this close and with your help we can do this!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trPE6N6VcQ4]

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