If you visit the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s Malaria Campaign website, the first image you may see is a photo of a group of smiling children and the text underneath the photo, which reads, “A child dies from malaria every 60 seconds.”

While an annual average of 1,500 cases of malaria are reported in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website states that malaria was the cause of 660,000 deaths worldwide in 2010 and that 91 percent of deaths from malaria occurred in Africa.

The ELCA malaria campaign website describes malaria as a disease mainly contracted from the bite of a female Anopheles mosquito, but that it can also be spread through blood transfusions and the sharing of needles.

The disease enters the blood stream and feeds off red blood cells, causing flu-like symptoms such as severe fever, chills, headaches, muscle aches, tiredness, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

California Lutheran University’s campus ministry and the ELCA malaria campaign have paired to bring fundraising to campus in an effort to destroy malaria worldwide by 2015.
“The ELCA stepped up, and decided to inspire their congregations to raise as a whole, $15 million to eradicate malaria. CLU decided to pledge $15,000 last year through Campus Ministry,” said Alli Westerhoff, senior campus ministry malaria campaign coordinator, in an email.

While most of this money will be focused on the medicine, part of the funds will be used to improve water wells and transportation to and from medical centers.

“The anti-malaria drugs, mosquito nets, prevention, more health solutions; maybe we can actually eradicate malaria in our lifetime,” said Campus Pastor Melissa Maxwell-Doherty.

Maxwell-Doherty attributed the student community playing a part in raising money for malaria, as well. In the past, with help from ASCLU-G, on-campus education seminars and fundraisers have been held to teach people about the harms of the disease.

In April 2012, an event was held for World Malaria Day that included the sale of tank tops, free food and music from African artists living in the Los Angeles area.

“All of the money raised on college campuses will be matched, up to $125,000. We’re happy to report that the participating college campuses have raised over $94,000 to date, and CLU has been a great contributor,” said Allison Beebe, ELCA malaria campaign assistant, in an interview.

This year, the malaria campaign will put on a fundraiser called the Professor Variety Show.

For a suggested donation of $5, students have the opportunity to help provide tools to fight malaria by watching professors perform musical and dance numbers, among other activities.

“The money is benefiting families in 13 countries in Africa. The money directly goes to providing prevention of malaria infections through bed nets for families so that they will be protected at night from being bit by mosquitos,” Westerhoff said.

“It goes towards education on signs of malaria in an infected person, and how to keep areas around their homes from becoming mosquito breeding grounds where malaria can become a problem. It also pays for medication and treatment of anyone infected with malaria. So far the ELCA has raised over $9 million, and the money has already been put to work,” Westerhoff said.

Nicho DellaValle
Staff Writer
Christa Price
Features Editor
Published Nov. 20, 2013