A Father’s Day Realization

Happy (belated) Father’s Day! I hope you all did something fun. My husband, 18-month-old son and I spent most of the day hanging out in our backyard. We played in the kiddie pool, blew bubbles and enjoyed a good old American BBQ.

It was a great day, with one exception: the dang mosquitoes! We’ve been at war with them for a while, trying tried repellant, citronella candles, swatters, and garlic. Nothing seemed to work.

As I waved the mosquitoes away from my son’s neck and frenetically scratched my own red-welted ankles, I cursed their existence. But, I reminded myself, at least the mosquitoes in my neighborhood are merely annoying — not life-threatening.

In other parts of the world, mothers and fathers have to worry that their child’s mosquito bite may lead to malaria. And while there’s been impressive progress in preventing and reducing deaths, malaria still kills one child every 60 seconds, largely in sub-Saharan Africa.

This stinging reality is difficult for Americans to imagine, as malaria was eliminated in the U.S. more than 60 years ago.

Because the need is so great, I’m honored to join the Nothing But Nets team as the new Deputy Director. In five years, Nothing But Nets has distributed more than 6 million insecticide-treated bed nets to protect parents and their children from malaria.

I look forward to working with you to make more Americans aware of malaria’s toll on families and communities, and more importantly, how you can be part of the solution.
Please consider donating $10 (or more!) to send a net and save a life. Do it to honor your dad.