Washington, DC – A shipping container filled with $821,257 worth of medical supplies and equipment arrived Dec. 30, 2014, in Chania, Crete, Greece, thanks to the efforts of the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA), a leading membership-based service association for the nation’s millions of American citizens of Greek heritage and Philhellenes, which donated $18,000 to secure the shipping container and to the International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC), which worked diligently to coordinate the assembly of the medical supplies, announced Supreme President Phillip T. Frangos.
This is the eighth shipment of medical supplies AHEPA helped to deliver to Greece working in cooperation with IOCC. The medical supplies range from syringes and walkers to catheters and nebulizers-all materials needed to run and administer a hospital on a daily basis. All told, nearly $5.5 million in medical supplies have been donated and delivered to hospitals throughout Greece through this collaborative effort, Frangos said. The supreme president complimented the efforts on the ground of AHEPA Hellas District 25 and AHEPA Chapter HJ6, Crete-Kydon.
“Austerity measures have had a devastating impact on public health spending,” Supreme President Frangos said. “The ability of hospitals to purchase medical supplies and equipment has been hampered. The need continues to be very real, and AHEPA, working in cooperation with the IOCC, is proud to be able to facilitate the shipment of a significant amount of aid to help address the medical supply shortage in Greece.”
He added, “We thank the community for helping to make this important shipment of medical supplies a reality through its contributions and donations. The spirit of philanthropy is alive and well and it must continue to flourish if we are to meet the dire needs the people of Greece are enduring during this most difficult time. We are proud of the community’s action, and we encourage individuals and organizations to continue to donate to worthy causes that help Greece.”
Additionally, in March 2013, AHEPA Canada donated a rigid bronchoscope machine valued at 10,000 euros (or approximately $12,000 Canadian) to Evangelismos Hospital. The rigid bronchoscope is used to prevent lung bleeding while positioning stents in tumors.
To date, the AHEPA family has raised more than $550,000 for humanitarian aid for the people of Greece.
