Blog Contributor:
Ian McGroarty
May 8th, 2009 11:28 AM UTC
By Ian McGroarty
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Yesterday, ONE volunteers in Kansas met with Grace Seaton, a staff member of Rep. Lynn Jenkins. They report back:
The meeting went quite well! I covered our bases using info and talking points, as well as sharing on a more personal level why I care about the ONE message and campaign. Volunteer Alden Hickman was a great individual to have in there, and brought a great balance to the meeting with his prior experience. Volunteer Jennifer Roland also explained to Grace why she cares about ONE, and fighting extreme poverty and preventable disease.
Grace seemed responsive, and recognized our passion for and knowledge of ONE’s issues. We made a specific request that Rep. Jenkins contact Representative Jerry Lewis, ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee, and ask that he support a $51.7B allocation to the Foreign Operations bill to support development assistance.
Overall, it went beautifully.
-Justin Newhouse, Kansas ONE Volunteer
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May 7th, 2009 4:25 PM UTC
By Ian McGroarty
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Lunch hour at ONE tends to vary. Sometimes we go out for sandwiches, sometimes we stay in and heat up frozen and pre-cooked meals, and sometimes we sit down with partners and talk about innovative ways to combat extreme poverty. Today was the latter, as ONE staff shared a lunch hour with staffers from the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).
The MCC is a government agency created to be unlike any other foreign assistance program. By focusing on country ownership and sustainable long-term economic growth, the MCC represents a new, transparent, accountable, and results oriented approach to development aid. So what is it that makes MCC different?
MCC uses a series of 17 economic indicators to determine which countries meet a minimum standard to receive funding, known as the “threshold.” From this, eligible countries create program “compacts” based on what they see as their needs. It is true country ownership. The MCC then picks the best programs and funds them for a multi-year period while monitoring progress.
What this adds up to is the funding of the commonly overlooked, but incredibly necessary, long-term growth mechanisms that are developed by the recipient country and accountable to show results. In addition, the threshold that countries must meet provides clearly laid out goals for non-eligible countries to strive for. The Millennium Challenge Corporation is a functioning example of foreign assistance done in a smart and successful way.
For some success stories, check out some of the progress reports on our issues pages, including a report on the MCC program in Tanzania.
ONE would like to thank Aaron Sherinian, Neneh Diallo, Sherri Kraham, Jonathan Bloom, and Jim Mazzarella for a wonderful lunch session!
-Ian McGroarty, US Field Intern
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Apr 25th, 2009 12:05 PM UTC
By Ian McGroarty
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Let’s get hypothetical. If you were to make a list of malaria’s greatest fears, what would you include?
Topping my list would be Rwanda, which in the last three years decreased the reported incidence of malaria by 60% — and there’s nothing hypothetical about that.
Thursday, I had the opportunity to attend the Global Health Council’s congressional briefing on Rwanda’s fight against malaria. Through an incredible integration of prevention, treatment, mosquito control, and health system strengthening, Rwanda decreased cases of malaria reported in public clinics from 1.7 million in 2005 to 700,000 in 2008! How did Rwanda do it?
To begin, Rwanda implemented the common system of community health workers in a unique and effective way. Instead of having the community health workers act as an extension of individual NGOs or other charitable organizations, they are an official piece of Rwanda’s health system. Rwanda’s community health workers are elected by their community, hired by the government, and are therefore accountable to both. They are the backbone of Rwanda’s progress in eradicating malaria, and the numbers back this up.
In 2005, only 1 in 10 high-risk households had a bed net. In 2008, after the distribution and usage follow-ups by the community health workers, this number rose to 6 in 10. In addition, 9 out of 10 fevers are treated within the first 24 hours and 9 out of 10 high-risk households are sprayed with pesticide. Both the treatment and spraying are done by the community health workers. Couple the work in the field with a government that is extremely results-oriented and tough on corruption, it is no surprise that Rwanda is winning the fight against this preventable disease.
Though there are definitely factors still to be confronted, the largest being tackling malaria not just in Rwanda but the region as a whole, the foundation is laid and the enthusiasm is there. In a region where it is easy to focus on the challenges, it is refreshing to hear a positive story.
-Ian McGroarty, ONE’s US Field Team Intern
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Mar 31st, 2009 2:00 PM UTC
By Ian McGroarty
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Who would’ve thought redundancy could be a good thing? Check previous blog posts and you will see why. More and more ONE volunteers are delivering information packets and requesting meetings with their members of Congress! Here are three recent deliveries from Texas and Oregon.
-Ian McGroarty, US Field Intern
 On Monday, March 23, I visited the District office of Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) in Austin to present the latest ONE packet. This was not my first time to Sen. Cornyn’s office – I have made many trips there over the last five years advocating for the full funding of programs like PEPFAR and the Global Fund in the U.S. federal budget.
As in the past, I met briefly with Sandy Edwards of Sen. Cornyn’s staff who sat down with me to review the contents of the ONE packet. I re-emphasized to her that ONE is a broad-based organization, representing many diverse religious, political and philosophical points of view. I stated that our main focus is the end to diseases like HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria in the world and the extreme poverty in which they breed. I mentioned to her that there are over 100,000 ONE members throughout the state of Texas and informed her that we will be active in our advocacy this year for maintaining full funding levels in the Foreign Assistance portion of the 2010 U.S. federal budget. Sandy was quite courteous and receptive to my presentation and took a ONE band from me along with the ONE packet.
I thanked her for her time and told her that I would be back in contact with her soon to set up a formal meeting with Sen. Cornyn’s district office staff to discuss the issues that I was presenting that day in the ONE packet.
We have a lot of work to do here in Texas in reaching more people with the message of ONE and in mobilizing our supporters to more thoroughly advocate for ONE with our elected officials.
What office visits like this demonstrates to ONE members is the necessity of our advocacy as ONE not just with those representatives who are already our supporters in Congress but our active engagement with representatives in Congress who may not yet be convinced of the moral imperative and the strategic importance for our national security that programs supported by ONE brings to our country.
-Debbie Kreuser, ONE volunteer- Austin, Texas
 The delivery to Sen. Merkley’s office was interesting because the staff had never heard of the ONE campaign. I spoke with Sen. Merkley’s Press Coordinator, Matt. I reiterated the information included in the packet and requested a formal meeting with the Senator. He accepted the packet and explained that he would get it to the Senator’s Legislative Liaison who would contact me as soon as he could to set up the meeting.
I also delivered a packet to Sen. Wyden. I left the packet at the office and explained ONE and requested a meeting with the Senator. His staff looked over the packet with me and explained that they would pass it along and schedule a meeting.
-Erik Sorensen, ONE volunteer- Oregon
You can do this too! There is no better way to advocate against extreme poverty and preventable disease than by speaking with the policy makers directly. Email us at one@one.org to find out how you can help!
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Mar 30th, 2009 10:12 AM UTC
By Ian McGroarty
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When’s the last time you taught your member of Congress something new? ONE members across the country have been delivering information packets and meeting requests to their members of Congress’s offices, and we are already seeing results! Volunteer Nate Smith recently met with Rep. Bob Etheridge of North Carolina’s second district.
-Ian McGroarty, US Field Intern
 My wife Megan and I met directly with Congressman Etheridge this afternoon. The Congressman was very open and friendly during our discussion. After briefly introducing ONE he asked several questions about what types of programs we supported and shared a story of a recent trip he took to Kenya. He was also quite impressed by the membership numbers we were able to quote, especially those related to the second district. We emphasized our thanks for his past voting record and expressed our desire that he become a more vocal supporter of the International Affairs account.
The Congressman shared many of the pressures facing the budget committee especially in light of the recent financial hardships experienced by many constituents. We took the opportunity to explain why we felt the current climate made it even more important for the International Affairs budget to remain intact as the financial situation has had a more severe impact on the poorest of the poor. While we did not receive any commitments, I did leave the meeting with the sense that Congressman Etheridge understood the challenges of extreme poverty, that he was impressed with ONE, and that he was happy to meet with constituents who were passionate for a cause. I sincerely hope we were able to lay groundwork for future in-roads with Congressman Etheridge.
Nate Smith- ONE volunteer, North Carolina
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Mar 24th, 2009 11:46 AM UTC
By Ian McGroarty
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If you’ve been following the ONE blog recently, prepare to be amazed. As previously mentioned, seen, and celebrated, more ONE volunteers across the country are visiting their members of Congress to introduce (or reintroduce) ONE and request a formal meeting. How can we possibly visit all these members of Congress in a matter of days? There’s no Santa Claus-esque secret here, it’s simply through the efforts of our incredible volunteers. See what they had to say about their visits!
-Ian McGroarty, US Field Intern
 Today Rick Waterhouse and I delivered a ONE information package to the office of Rep. Frank Kratovil for District 1 of Maryland. We left the information with his District Office Assistant, Sharon Addison, and we requested a future meeting with the Congressman. Rick and I briefly introduced ONE to Sharon. I am looking forward to meeting directly with Rep. Kratovil and his staff in order to inform them about the work ONE is doing around global poverty and disease, and to encourage Rep. Kratovil to take ONE’s message to the next level.
-Caitlan Quinn, ONE Volunteer: Baltimore, MD
Brooke Curnow and I met with Rep. Chaffetz’s District Manager, Jennifer Scott, and delivered the packet. The delivery went well. We will make a future appointment to meet with Rep. Chaffetz.
-Nancy Kelly, ONE Volunteer: Pleasant Grove, UT
 On Tuesday, March 17, three of us met at the district office of Congressman Leonard Lance in Westfield, New Jersey. We were escorted into a large room with a conference table and spoke to the Congressman’s Deputy Chief of Staff. We introduced ourselves and I spoke briefly about ONE and its priorities. We came away with a form to send in for an appointment in May or June when the Congressman is back in New Jersey.
Perhaps the best moments were after we left the office and took some time to chat outside. We agreed it was good to see other ONE faces after participating in ONE only by e-mail for so long, we divided up some local organizations to contact about ONE, and we thought we would explore forming a local ONE chapter.
-Brock Haussamen, ONE Volunteer: Bound Brook, NJ
 My wife and I were finally able to deliver our information to the district office of Representative Etheridge this afternoon. While the office itself was extremely hectic we were able to drop off the information and get clarification on scheduling a face-to-face district meeting with Representative Etheridge or a member of the staff. It was an important first step in what we hope is the development of a strong advocate for the ONE campaign.
-Nate Smith, ONE Volunteer: Clayton, NC
 On the morning of March 19th, I delivered a ONE information packet to U.S. Senator Patty Murray’s district office in Vancouver, Washington. Senator Murray is a member of the Budget Committee and a participant in setting the budget for FY 2010, which includes money for poverty-related issues. I met with Theresa Wagner, the SW Washington Director for Sen. Murray. We had a nice chat. I gave her the ONE packet and she gave me her card.
-Jeff Hollett, ONE Volunteer: Vancouver, WA
Sound exciting? Then get involved! What better way to shake up your day than joining the fight against extreme poverty and preventable disease? Email us at one@one.org to find out more information on how to deliver a ONE packet to your member of Congress.
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Mar 12th, 2009 2:40 PM UTC
By Ian McGroarty
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Sidewalks are rumbling. Halls are echoing. Desk lamps are shaking… ONE is on the move! As mentioned in an earlier blog, ONE volunteers all over the US are dropping off packages to their Representatives containing information about ONE’s fight against extreme poverty and global disease. But you don’t need to hear it from me, check out what the volunteers are saying:
 Today we delivered the ONE packet to the office of our new district Representative, Congressman Tom McClintock. We were pleased to deliver the package and the message that we care about the welfare of the world’s most vulnerable people. We felt like she really listened as we personally shared about how ONE is pressing the world’s leaders to not forget about the poor in this downturn economy. It was a wonderful experience and I look forward to us getting to return to have a more in-depth conversation about ONE’s mission.
Ruth Burton, ONE volunteer- Valley, CA
 ONE members from Fairfield County, Connecticut met with the staff of our new Congressman, Jim Himes, today. Amy Lappos, his constituent service representative in Stamford, met with us. Beth Jones, Thomas Mahoney, Sara Luchenta, and I told her about ONE and how our overall goals like ending extreme poverty and beating global AIDS, translate into our interest in the details of President Obama’s first budget request. Amy said Rep. Himes, who was born in Peru, is very interested in our issues. We left her with ONE wrist bands for herself, Congressman Himes and his wife, Mary. We look forward to congratulating Congressman Himes in person on his victory, and encouraging him to support the fight for the poorest people on earth!
-Seth Amgott, ONE volunteer- Rowayton, CT
Wyoming ONE volunteer, Jeanne Leske, went to Rep. Lummis’s office and gave her secretary the ONE package and a ONE band. The secretary was so enthralled with ONE’s message that she couldn’t take her eyes off the package- not even for a photo!
ONE volunteers in Minnesota made a visit to Rep. Ellison’s office to drop off the ONE packet and show off their incredible posing abilities.
Don’t see your Representative? Then get involved! Send us an email (one@one.org) if you are interested in delivering a package to your Congressperson’s district office. Who knows? The next pearly whites you check out on the ONE blog may be your own!
-Ian McGroarty, US Field Intern
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