he ain't heavy...he's my brother

If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Depart in peace, be warmed and filled," but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit ? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
James 2:15-17

To the tragedy of the 17 million people who have lost their lives to AIDS in Africa, add the 12 million orphaned children left behind. Traumatized by the death of parents, stigmatized through association with the disease and often thrown into desperate poverty by the loss of bread- winners, this growing army of orphans -- defined as children who have lost one or both parents -- is straining the traditional extended family and overwhelming national health and education systems in the most severely affected countries. The problem is particularly severe in Zambia, where, according to the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the number of orphans topped 1.2 million in 2000 -- 1 in every 4 Zambian children. Of these an estimated 930,000 have lost at least one parent to AIDS. Housing, feeding, educating and nurturing these children is both a moral imperative and essential to Africa's development prospects, Mr. Stephen Lewis, UN special envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa, told Africa Recovery. "There has to be an Herculean effort made for these kids so we don't lose them." Otherwise, he cautioned, "you reap the whirlwind.... You have a society where kids haven't been to school and therefore can't fulfill even basic jobs ... a society where a large proportion can have anti-social instincts because their lives will have been so hard. You have a generation of children who will be more vulnerable to exploitation and to disease because they won't have the same sense of self-worth."
The needs of AIDS orphans are as immediate as their next meal and as extended as access to education, guidance and care until the end of their adolescent years. Speaking to leaders of industrialized countries at the July 2001 Group of Eight meeting in Genoa, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appealed for the resources "to care for all whose lives have been devastated by AIDS, particularly the orphans." The number of AIDS orphans exceeded 13 million globally, he noted, "and their numbers are growing."

And it has grown. That was in 2001 and this is seven years later. Right now, just in sub-Saharan Africa alone, there are over 11.4 MILLION orphaned children ! And, by 2010, that number is expected to climb to 15.7 MILLION. Just in one country, Kenya, there are almost 2 MILLION children living without the love, guidance and protection of a parent. How anyone can sit idly by and watch this unfold is just beyond me. I am fundraising for the Ride:Well Bike Tour and Blood:Water Missions 1000 Wells project and will be riding a bicycle across the US this summer to raise awareness about this disaster. My faith says that God will provide all that is needed. Much is needed, but my faith is as big as the need. What will you do ? How will you help ? One way you can help is to give. If you can't be a goer, be a sender. We need your support for this bike ride. There are many ways to give. Be creative. There are millions waiting on you...