Bali
Blood Bank - The Story
The
Rotary Foundation GSE team leaders to the rescue With time and
lives hanging in the balance, two Rotarians, 11 time zones apart,
help save the Bali Blood Bank.
When
U.S. Rotarian Marilyn Fitzgerald arrived on the lush shores of
Bali, Indonesia, to lead a Group Study Exchange, she could scarcely
believe her good fortune. After all, Bali is one of the most sought-after
vacation destinations in the world, with its lavish resorts and
easy lifestyle. "I have to admit, part of my Rotary dream was
to lie on the beach, sipping fruit drinks," she confesses.
But
Marilyn, a member of the Rotary Club of Traverse City, Michigan,
soon found that an entirely different fate awaited her.
Shortly
after her arrival in April 1998, she was escorted by her Rotarian
hosts to the local blood center. The tiny building (600 square
feet; 55 square metres) served three islands and 7.5 million people.
"I was horrified," she recalls. "There was no air conditioning,
so the windows were open and insects were flying in. The refrigerator
door was broken and held closed with thin tape. Blood could only
be stored for 48 hours. They had just two cots for donors.
"Most
of the equipment dated back to the early 1970s. Staff, who lacked
rubber gloves, were forced to re-use transfusion needles numerous
times. Crowded, unsanitary conditions prevailed, with staff cooking
facilities located next t blood-sorting areas.
The
Bali Rotarians described the mounting death toll. Rotarian George
Fraser, Australian consul and a member of the Rotary Club of Bali
Kuta, told her that just one month earlier, he watched helplessly,
as two Australian tourists, victims of a car crash, bled to death
because no blood was available. In April, she learned, 100 people
died from Dengue fever, a blood borne virus that can be cured
with a simple but life-saving transfusion.
Not
long ago, it appeared a solution was in sight. In the mid-1990S
Bali Rotarians answered a plea for help in building a new Blood
Bank Center. After two years of hard they finally raised the funds
began to plan the ground breaking ceremony.
Tragically,
Indonesia suffered a massive devaluation of its currency, the
rupiah, in 1997. The value of money saved for the new blood bank
was savagely reduced and local sources of funds dried up as the
economy plummeted. The Rotarians learned they would need to raise
U.S. $80,000 by 1 October, or the building contractor would be
forced to dramatically increase the pricetag, due to the deteriorating
the deteriorating economy. It seemed as though the Bali Blood
Bank project would be put on hold indefinitely.
Around
the family dining room table, Marilyn and her Bali host, Freddy
Subiyanto, a member of the Rotary Club of Denpasar, plotted ways
to save the center. "It was very hard to ask for help," says Freddy,
"But so many people were dying. Knowing Marilyn as I do, I knew
she could make a difference.
"When
I saw the blood center, all could think was, "Of course we'll
help" Marilyn says. "It never occurred to me what a task this
would be."
In May 1998, Freddy led a Group Study Exchange team from Bali
(District, 3400) to Michigan and Canada (District 6290). The pair
talked informally with local Rotarians and determined that there
was interest and support. So in August, he returned to wage a
full-scale.
"People
said it would take a couple of years to raise that kind 'Marilyn
says. "But we only had two months. We thought of all kinds of
fundraising gimmicks. We thought we'd raffle off a car or a vacation.
But we just didn't have the time.
"So we stood in front of one Rotary Club after another and told
our story. When Freddy said that people were literally bleeding
to death every day - indeed, that very day - because there wasn't
enough blood, they pulled out their checkbooks.
"In
14 days, Marilyn and Freddy gave 12 formal presentations and numerous
informal presentations around District 6290. They presented a
video produced by the Rotarians in Bali showing the current Blood
Bank Center." Many days the task, seemed overwhelming and some
days even close to impossible," Marilyn says. "But there always
seemed to be a Rotarian around to us encouragement and let us
know that Rotary dreams can come true if we all work together.
"Freddy
gave me courage," she adds. "The first time he stood at the podium,
he said simply, 'Look, we're desperate.' He couldn't finish the
sentence. I realized then how very hard it was for him to ask
for help."
She
also says she was inspired by watching the Bali Rotarians in action.
During the GSE tour, Marilyn's team visited many humanitarian
projects, including orphanages, village for Hansen's disease (leprosy)
patients, polio immunization drives, a mobile health care unit,
and a cataract replacement surgery center. "It really helped to
see such hard-working Rotarians," she says.
Traverse
City Rotarians responded with $17,500, and Rotary Charities of
Traverse City stepped in with $10,000. With the aid of then District
Governor Tom Bos and Rotary clubs throughout the district, the
pair managed to raise an additional $20,500 in two weeks.
But
one final problem remained. Most of the contributions were in
pledges, and, therefore, not immediately available. The pair again
approached Rotary Charities of Traverse City, which advanced the
needed funds. When Freddy returned to Bali with his good news
from District 6290, his fellow Rotarians shared some good news
of their own. While he was away, two Japanese Rotarians arrived
carrying five million yen (U.S. $36,000) -in cash- from the Rotary
Club of Hiroshima East, for a grand total $86,000.
The
new Bali Blood Bank opened its doors in February 1999. Thanks
to the extra money, the new center was furnished with necessities
such as air conditioning.
The
project also received a Matching Grant totaling $30,000, with
$12,000 contributed by District 6290. The Rotarians used the grant
to buy two new bloodmobiles, urgently needed to travel to outlying
villages, where most of the people live.
In
June, Freddy was back in Traverse City. He and Marilyn are making
the rounds, thanking local Rotarians. They're also on a mission
to replace the center's 30-yearold equipment and provide staff
training.
"People need to see beyond the Group Study Exchange as just a
nice trip to another country," Marilyn says. "We really learned
how districts can. link up and become partners." The Rotary Foundation
of R.I. sends about 550 teams on GSEs each year, she observes.
"Imagine the impact on the world if only half of those teams worked
on humanitarian projects with the host countries."
-Paul LaPorte & Janice Somerville Chambers (The Rotarian,
Aug. 1999)
"Celebrate
Rotary"
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