Chicago Fire defender Diego Gutierrez, the 2007 U.S. Soccer Foundation - MLS W.O.R.K.S. Humanitarian of the Year, and his wife Ginna will travel to Mali, Africa on Dec. 9 in their continued efforts with Nothing But Nets, a global, grassroots campaign to prevent malaria. Gutierrez will be accompanied by Dwayne De Rosario of the Houston Dynamo, as well as key partners from Nothing But Nets and the United Nations Foundation, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the American and Canadian Red Cross/Red Crescent Societies, Malaria No More, and numerous local non-governmental, faith-based organizations. Gutierrez will contribute stories and photographs from his experiences in Mali daily on www.chicago-fire.com. High quality photographs and video footage and audio will be available upon request due to the generous support of ExxonMobil.
"My wife and I are extremely excited to represent the Chicago Fire and Major League Soccer during this trip to Africa. It will be very rewarding to see how we are making a difference, and how people can save lives by donating just 10 dollars. Seeing the distribution of nets is going to be an eye opening experience," said Gutierrez.
From Dec. 9-17, 2007, Gutierrez and De Rosario will participate in an observation in an observation trip for MLS W.O.R.K.S., led by the UN Foundation, to observe the distribution of over two million long-lasting insecticide-treated bed nets to children and their families. In Mali, Nothing But Nets campaign supporters have funded 133,000 of the bed nets being distributed. Gutierrez will also take part in activities to educate local youth on malaria prevention and healthy living habits. On Dec. 15, the two MLS stars will partner with two-time WNBA Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist Ruth Riley in a sports clinic for close to 120 Malian boys and girls age 12-16. During the sports clinic, the athletes will teach soccer and basketball skills, while sharing information about malaria and malaria prevention.
"Hopefully the stories, footage, and photographs we bring back will help us inform and educate people on how they can make a difference" said Gutierrez.
The efforts will be part of a national integrated child health campaign conducted by the Government of Mali and its local and global partners, targeting over 2.8 million children under the age of five. The mission of the campaign is to provide long-lasting insecticide-treated nets, de-worming medication, measles and polio vaccinations, and vitamin A.
About Nothing But Nets
Nothing But Nets is a global, grassroots campaign to save lives by preventing malaria, a leading killer of children in Africa. Inspired by former Sports Illustrated columnist Rick Reilly, tens of thousands of people have joined the Campaign that was created by the United Nations Foundation in 2006. Founding campaign partners include the National Basketball Association's NBA Cares, The People of the United Methodist Church, and Sports Illustrated. It only costs $10 to provide an insecticide-treated bed net that can prevent this deadly disease. Visit www.NothingButNets.net to send a net and save a life.
To date, the Campaign has engaged more than 60,000 individuals, raised more than $16 million and will have distributed more than to 700,000 nets by the end of 2007.
