Making a difference, one worm at a time

Young people tackle a debilitating problem for children around the world

While some students spent their March Break kicking back on a beach or lacing up their skates in hockey tournaments, the Emdin sisters Fiona—16, and Abby, 15, of West Lake—worked to assist impoverished families in Jamaica.

Their work on that humanitarian mission inspired them to do more.

Upon their return the Nicholson Catholic College students, along with a friend, Laura Hallsworth, figured they had to find a way to help deprived children. With some digging they found the World Health Organization (WHO) had already made some important strides in determining that de-worming treatments lead to significant improvement in the health and education of afflicted children around the world.

Abbey (left) and Fiona Emdin at Pumpkinfest.

The WHO estimates that 2 billion people worldwide are affected by these parasites. The effects range from lethargy, vomiting and diarrhea to, in the extreme, organ failure. For many afflicted children the condition has a crippling effect on their ability to attend school or even learn to read or write. They fall behind and are lost from the system.

De-worming medication comes in the form of a 50- cent pill that will treat a child for between six months and a year. But, like many developing world health issues, the effort lacked funding. The girls got to work.

Together Fiona Emdin, Abby Emdin and Laura Hallsworth founded a student initiative called “World Without Worms” (www.worldwithoutworms.com). The program seeks to raise money for treatment as well as training for non-governmental organizations working in the affected regions.

“It is such a simple problem to solve because the pills are only 50 cents to de-worm a child for up to a year and we are just trying to raise awareness about how cost effective this problem really is,” said Abby Emdin. “We can help a lot of children by raising a small amount of money.”

Through their fund raising efforts the Emdins and Hallsworth have already raised $2,000 toward their $10,000 goal, including moneys raised at their display at Pumpkinfest in Wellington on Saturday.

All of the money will go to “De-worm the World,” an agency that partners with existing agencies such as “Feed the Children” that are already on the ground and able to administer the medication.

The group will be spreading the word again this weekend at the Quinte Mall as well as continuing their fundraising activities at their school and with donation jars at area veterinary offices (they hope pet owners will donate the matching cost of pet de-worming). They hope other students, at all levels, will become involved and start their own “World Without Worms” projects.