Saturday, May 17, 2014

Out of Africa


We are continuing our discourse with the Ministers of Health in the nations of Sub-Saharan Africa through the ongoing projects of the World Bank.  These ladies and gentlemen are on the front lines in the fight against infant mortality.  They are working to improve the health of mothers and infants in their countries by investing in their health care systems.  To date, we have corresponded with Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Mozambique, Togo, and Uganda.  The newest citizens of these countries, who struggle to enter the world, will benefit from life-enhancing qualities of the Tikü.

Many regions in these nations have epidemics of malaria, dengue, and/or leishmaniasis.  Funding is allocated to treat these debilitating and often fatal diseases. Since the Tikü has ports fitted with insect mesh, exposure of the infant to the mosquitoes and sand fleas that carry these illnesses is limited, even in outdoor locations or in structures open to the environment.  For patients in these areas with endemic vector-borne diseases, the Tikü offers another life-enhancing feature, reduction of fever.  The incubator functions with water; hence, cool water for reducing body temperature may be used instead of warm water for elevating body temperature.  The mattress will accommodate a toddler up to 74 cm tall.

It is good to be able to offer the end users of the Tikü features of great use to them that are not available in conventional, commercial incubators.  We are working to develop accessories that will broaden the capabilities of the incubator and extend its benefits to children and adults.




Friday, May 9, 2014

A Four-figure Donation!


A Very Good Weekend for Mothers!

While celebrating the launch of the blog for Designs for the World, we have been blessed by an extraordinary event.  We received the contribution from an anonymous donor in Europe, who had previously pledged to help.  We were overwhelmed that the donation was for a four-figure amount.  The message that was conveyed was a wish of success and an assurance that "we were doing the right thing for the world".  We extend our heartfelt appreciation.


Since the announcement of the Tikü incubator a few months ago, we have received enthusiastic support for our endeavor to help save the lives of at-risk infants.  We are now experiencing fiscal generosity from people, who place a special value on these newest members of the human race.  We thank all who have chosen to assist us in realizing our goals.

We wish a Very Happy Mother's Day to all mothers and mothers-to-be around the world!  May your children be healthy and happy and live long lives!

Thursday, May 8, 2014

The Journey Begins

Greetings to All of Our Friends!

Many have requested that we provide a forum to post news about our rapidly evolving venture.  We welcome you to our blog, where you may follow our developments, post your comments and suggestions, and/or contribute to our endeavor with a donation, http://bit.ly/1nrES0M.

Since the introduction of our incubator last January, we have been recognized by several prestigious international agencies that are helping us to get our innovation to the families who need it.  We have been endorsed by the Under-Secretary-General of Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordination of the United Nations and by the Administrator of the Bureau for Global Health of the U.S. Agency for International Development.  The incubator is currently being evaluated by UNICEF and by the World Health Organization.

We have tendered our candidacy for a grant from the the consortium funding the Saving Lives at Birth challenge, http://bit.ly/1kPtLvQ.  We are amongst 500 applicants for endowments.  It is excellent to learn that so many are striving to help improve the lives of mothers and families.

When we are able to properly assess requisite annual production from commitments for procurement from humanitarian projects, we are ready to commence manufacturing at an initial level of 2,500 or 10,000 incubators per year.  Over 80% of our vendors and subcontractors are located within a 75 mile radius of Tampa Bay, so our enterprise will create jobs and revenue for Florida.  Furthermore, 98% of all components of the incubator are “Made in the U.S.A.”, so we are helping our fellow Americans.

The mission and progress of Designs for the World has been presented to civic and entrepreneurial groups.  We were well-received at a 1 Million Cups event of the Kaufman Foundation, http://bit.ly/1kPuxcf, in Saint Petersburg.  Following the presentation, we had a lively question-and-answer session, wherein many from diverse backgrounds voiced enthusiastic support. Notably, I spoke with a missionary, who had just returned from a tertiary hospital in Kenya.  She expressed that the Tikü would be perfect for this new facility, since it was so simple-to-use and well-suited to the conditions that she had encountered.

We have begun to reach out to local churches for their support. We have approached pastors of congregations from a range of denominations, including Catholic, Lutheran, Mennonite, Mormon, Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist, Epispicolian, and Evangelical Christan.  Many faiths have missions overseas that could be directly helped by our incubator.  Others are involved in support of victims of disasters, like those caught in the aftermath of Supertyphoon Haiyan in the Philippines.  We feel that these good people will be moved by the teaching in Mark 10:14.

To connect with those who are dealing with infant mortality daily, we have begun contacting the Ministers of Health of developing nations, who are confronting the crisis with the help of the World Bank.  Our incubators are currently being considered for procurement by projects in Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Laos, Lesotho, Liberia, Mozambique, Peru, Togo, and Uganda.  We have many others to approach, primarily in South Asia and in Africa.

We have now brought you up-to-date on our progress.  There are many causes to which to contribute but we feel that helping babies to have a chance at life is particularly compelling.  We believe that Designs for the World has a great deal to give to humanity.  We welcome your help.  Remember, "It takes a village to raise a child".