Last week's San Francisco Bay Area City Tour, our 17th, was a fantastic success! The biggest highlight of the week was at our supporter rally in the heart of San Francisco on Wednesday, where our supporters heard from the Nothing But Nets team and partners and had the opportunity to sign our giant Message of Hope. We had challenged the city to achieve at least 200 signatures to unlock funds from a generous donor who would send 1,000 bed nets. Not only did we reach our goal, but we nearly doubled it!
We were thrilled to be joined by the UN Refugee Agency once again and are excited to send this Message of Hope with bed nets to a refugee settlement in the near future. And of course, we got to meet and thank many of our supporters - the true heroes in the effort to end malaria.
To top off a week that was going so well already, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom proclaimed it Nothing But Nets Week, and we received a statement of support from U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi!
Earlier in the week, we visited the San Francisco Zoo, where supporters could join the campaign and meet Mozzie the Mosquito. Set in the African animal section of the zoo, it was fitting that visitors were able to learn about malaria there - as Africa is the place where malaria is most prevalent around the world.
After our visit to the zoo, we hung out at Bay Area BART stations and then at San Francisco State and UC Berkeley campuses, where students learned about malaria, grabbed a cup of coffee, and took fun photos with Mozzie. As expected, Bay Area residents welcomed us with open arms and embraced Nothing But Nets with enthusiasm and support.
On Tuesday we had the honor of attending a San Jose City Council meeting, where we were presented with a commendation from Mayor Reed that recognized the great work of Nothing But Nets and highlighted our three events with the San Jose Earthquakes that were still to come during the week.
Later that day, we hosted a faith dinner with the Taylor United Methodist Church and their communities in Oakland. Bishop Brown of the Cal-Nevada Conference and Bishop Bickerton of the Western Pennsylvania Conference shared their passion for the campaign and acknowledged that it's their youth that are leading the way, and we should follow their example. The atmosphere was electric - we were proud to be part of such an inspiring event.
Later in the week, we attended a youth clinic with some of the area's youth soccer players and our friends at MLS W.O.R.K.S. The young soccer players learned about malaria and practiced new soccer skills with players from the San Jose Earthquakes. Through skits and other activities, the youth got engaged in the issue of malaria and now they can “spread the buzz” in their schools and communities. That evening, the Earthquakes hosted us at their game against the Colorado Rapids, and we got it started with the coin toss, and Mozzie took the field at half-time to toss Buzzkill t-shirts to the crowd.
Thank you to the Bay Area for all of your warm welcomes and support of the Nothing But Nets campaign. From San Jose to Oakland to San Francisco, you came out with your families, friends and colleagues to get educated and spread the word about the need to end malaria deaths. As the area with the greatest concentration of Nothing But Netssupporters, you showed us your great ability to think globally and act locally!
© NOTHING BUT NETS 2017 • SAVE LIVES. DEFEAT MALARIA
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