Volvo Historical Advertising
Check out these great, classic Volvo TV spots. A few of them I had never seen before, or at least do not remember. The first ad that stands out is our Stacking video that shows how strong our roofs are. Just after this was shot, winds from a hurricane were picking up and that stack was just no match for side winds. Like a stack of Lincoln Logs they all toppled over.
The second ad that stands out was with a noted journalist and TV newscaster, John Cameron Swayze. What I remember was his Timex watch commercials and him saying “It takes a licking and keeps on ticking.” It was one of those spots where the words fit the image. So we hired Mr. Swayze to ride shotgun with one of our test drivers.
dan
Posted in Volvo heritage, Volvo History | 4 Comments »Volvo Heritage Club
Remember Joe Isuzu? I can visualize him pounding the hood of an XC70, “This car will last forever.” I would never make that kind of claim, Irv Gordon might…not me. What can be said is a lot of our cars seem to keep going like that pink rabbit does. I think there are two factors for long car life: an owner who believes in regular scheduled maintenance and a car built for the long run.
To honor those that have spent time and racked up miles in their Volvo’s, we started the Volvo Heritage Club. Here is what Hemmings Motor News online said about it: Volvo Heritage Club
Join our club at VHC and 
.
dan
tack Spoc
Posted in Volvo heritage, Volvo Heritage Club, Volvo History | 6 Comments »Very funny Lone Ranger story
For those of you my age, well lets just say “older people,” you probably owned a cap gun with white handles, one just like The Lone Ranger used. It was probably one of the most watched TV shows in its day. Here is one funny story about our hero.
Legal disclaimer: It does contain strong language.
Have a great weekend.
dan
Posted in Volvo History | Comments OffChild Passenger Safety Week
In 1967, Volvo was the first auto manufacturer to introduce a child protection device for cars. (It’s hard to call it a seat, as it was more like a wrap-around steel shell with a nice covering.) The rearward facing position is still favored today, and it’s the best way to support a child during frontal impacts. You’ve probably heard me say this, but a 60 pound child becomes about 2,700 pounds during a frontal impact accident. Not a pretty sight.
Below is a memo sent from our Regulations and Compliance group to all employees that I want to share with you.
dan
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National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Child Passenger Safety Week, 9/16-22
Did you know? Car crashes are the number one killer of children age 1 through 12. In many instances deaths and injuries can be prevented by proper use of car seats, booster seats, and seat belts.
In 2010 655 children (age 12 and younger in a passenger vehicle) were killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes, 64% of whom were restrained. 3 out of 4 Kids are not as secure as they should be because their child seats are not being used correctly. Are you driving with a child passenger in your car? If so, is the child riding in a correctly sized and installed child safety seat? If they are, you deserve to be applauded as you have just greatly decreased their chance of being killed by 71% for infants and 54% for toddlers. Older children are also 59% less likely to be injured in a booster seat than if they were just wearing a seatbelt*. (*NHTSA)
With this in mind it is a fact; the most effective step you can take to prevent harm to your young passengers in the event of a crash is to buckle them into a correctly installed safety seat appropriate to their height and weight.
September 16-22 is National Child Passenger Safety Week, a week to remind parents and caregivers to make certain they are properly using and installing their child safety seats, culminating on Saturday 9/22 with National Seat Check Saturday. On this day you can get free, (in most cases) hands on advice and guidance on the proper sizing, installation and use of your child safety seat. If you are unsure of any aspect of the use or installation of your child seat, please visit a Child Passenger Seat Installation clinic. Please see the following link for locations of a CPS installation/check clinic.(www.nhtsa.gov/cps/CPSFitting/index.cfm.)
Volvo supports National Child Passenger Safety Week and encourages all child caregivers to take advantage of your local CPS fitting station if unsure of the correct use/installation of your child seat.
Product Safety & Compliance Department
Volvo Cars of North America, LLC
Posted in Child Passenger Safety Week, child safety seats, collision, safety, Volvo History | Comments OffGood Book to Add to your Volvo Collection
I’ve got books, lots of books. Books on fossils, rocks/minerals, sailing, fly tying/fishing, house remodeling, cookbooks (way too many), surfing and a rather nice collection of Volvo books. Oh, I even have one written by Douglas (Wrong Way) Corrigan signed by him to my mother, around 1938. She loved airplanes, and even worked at Lockheed in Burbank, CA during WWII. Still, in our house there is always room for another Volvo book.
Here’s what Mark McCourt, of Hemmings Motor News, wrote in their October issue about Volvo’s new book, “Volvo Prototypes: A History of Volvo Car Corporation 1927-2011″:
HemmingsMotorNews_VolvoPrototypes-email
Posted in luxury, Scandinavian Design, Sweden, Volvo heritage, Volvo History | 4 Comments »
Farm Implements and more, from David
David is long time Volvo Ambassador (short for loyal Volvo family member, dye-in-the-wool Viking helmeted Volvoist). He posted a comment on the Alex’s Lemonade Stand blog entry from last week and his comment is worthy of his own blog post. But what would a post be without first adding my 2 kroner.
David mentioned our 745 being likened to a farm implement. Around 1957 we imported Bolinder-Munktell farm tractors (TM425) and Volvo trucks (probably L370). Most tractors were sold in North Central California and mid-state Washington, and at least one truck was sold in the Los Angeles area. TM425 was powered by our sturdy B16 engine – it was one tough tractor. When I came to Volvo in ’66, I was so in love (aka an early version of David) that at lunch I would read parts catalogs to learn more about this cool Swedish company. My second job at Volvo was in our Order Office and I inherited truck and tractor parts. I was in! I got to talk to end users about their Volvo farm implements. In Torrance, CA, a trucking company had a ’56 conventional truck that needed a starter. I was in Valhalla. When the part came in I hand delivered it. So, as you’ll see from David’s note below, the Beamer boys weren’t wrong in calling our 745 Turbo InterCooled (TIC) a farm implement.
We too would love to sell wagons, but no one buys them. Okay you do, but there’s not enough buyers to make a good business case. As mentioned before, over the years since the introduction of our XC cars/suvs, sales died on V line. Maybe, maybe, maybe in the future, we will see.
As to the P1800ES being a mini-station wagon all I can offer is that one quick way to tell how an ES was abused is to sit down from the tail light forward, where sheet metal meets side windows and look for ripples in that sheet metal. A few I’ve seen were probably used to haul farm implements with all the ripples I’ve seen in them.
So Blog Reader, the following is from David:
Dan, those Bimmer boys really have the gall to call a Volvo a farm implement. Furthermore that insult really wasn’t very original. Enzo Ferrari told Ferruccio Lamborghini to go back to his farm implements. And oh, the response to that insult! It took a bit of time to develop, from building a factory, and then developing the Lamborghini 350 and 400 models. But to me the real reply was the breath-taking Miura. To this day, long past the demise of those founders, Lamborghini remains a thorn in Ferrrari’s side.
Now tell me what Volvo’s response to such an insult was – where are the super cars?
Wait a minute! I have owned a number of them and one that still graces my stable. One has to make certain concessions to Swedish and Volvo values for utilitarian designs that feature usefulness along with safety.
It’s always a matter of some interpretation, but to me those were the Swedish Cargo carriers that were perfect for the family of 2.1 kids, nimble & amp; maneuverable enough to stay out of trouble and a safety cage for the precious cargo if that didn’t work. SUVs may be today’s marketing mantra, but I’d never buy one. A station wagon however is what the spouse does want for her next car – she enjoyed the 850 Turbo wagon that was her last.
Among the cars that I have owned are a 145 in which I hauled more than one refrigerator. Very useful when a refrigerator dies and Momma wants a new one, NOW! I really liked the 140 series; when I was looking about for a “project” car, Momma really wanted a 145 to be located. But we settled for a 142E – spare Bosch FI parts are a plus.
At one point I had to do the hauling comparison with a brother-in-law with his new-fangled minivan. There was absolutely no comparison between the 245 I had at that point and his Chrysler product. It seemed that I could pack more behind the rear seats. Both cars could deal with the hard-shell rooftop luggage carrier. But there was absolutely no way that he could also add the bike carrier with four bicycles on the roof. So in a nutshell I could more easily take the family of four on the camping trip with everything needed. The fact that I didn’t factor into the equation rain-soaked camping gear is immaterial, it could have been addressed with genuine Volvo parts. P/N 552136-4 progressive rate rear springs would have kept me off the bump stops quite nicely.
Then there was the 740 turbo-wagon with the four-speed manual and overdrive akin to what you mention. Now that was a car that really could have used a modern dual clutch paddle-shifting transmission with millisecond shifting time. Woe was the one who didn’t get the shift in before hitting the rev-limiter in the 740 Turbo. And quite frankly that wasn’t easy to do. I recall that car being featured in a number of advertisements as well – a lap of the USA being one of my favorites. Its racing history may have been a bit different had the 740 been delivered with the 600+ mile range of my current daily driver (VW Jetta diesel – sorry). But the 740 lost a certain little bit – it failed the refrigerator test.
The 1800ES that I still own was the type highlighted in Volvo advertisements as “a sports car that really hauls.” There are a couple of pictures and a story to the pictures on the blog OldDeadVolvos ( http://olddeadvolvos.wordpress.com/2012/02/11/cargo-hauling-virtues-of-the-1800es/)
Thirty-eight years after it was made, it still does haul indeed.
Alex’s Lemonade Stand has been supported at many Volvo events and I welcome seeing them, for it also reflects Volvo values. Dealers also support Alex’s Lemonade Stand in their own ways. One such dealership is Keystone Motors, which sponsored Duane Matejka’s #1 Volvo P1800. That #1 is once again on the race track, but as they say, it’s under new management. Jim Perry’s adventures with #1 are quite well documented in his blog ( http://pandbmotorsports.blogspot.com/)
Still also on the track is Duane Matejka, still sponsored by Irv Stein and Keystone Motors, but it’s a different kind of racing – a form I surely do want to see one day, and happily make a donation. Known as the “24 hours of LeMons” the series is a parody of the well-known French event. Seeing a team at work is even more fun when you know some of the cast of characters. I met Irv Stein one fine weekend when he was racing his Volvo 1800 at Watkins Glen, and surprise, the transporter driver was none other than Duane Matejka. The Volvo Keystone Kops makes one more appearance this year, October 13-14 at the Autobahn Country Club in Joliet, IL, see this site for more information:
( http://www.alexslemonade.org/mypage/4937 )
The last time I saw an Alex’s Lemonade Stand was at a VCNA Open House in Rockleigh, NJ. Toward the end of a lovely day, a prize was offered for a car that Volvo employees most wanted to drive. Well, I did offer my keys to no avail, but a good friend did win it with another car that is really a hauler. That car type was mentioned by a Haggerty Insurance article as a future collectible, an assessment that I do agree with entirely. The car? A V70R that had been tweaked a wee bit to enhance the other hauling that we do.
I can understand that.
Oh where have all the wagons gone, I miss thee….
David Farrington
dan
Posted in Volvo heritage, Volvo History | 8 Comments »Someone I wished you all had met
When Volvo held our first celebration for the Volvo for life Awards in 2002, we received an entry that was so unique it caught everyone off guard. Soren, then the number 2 in PR and creator of the hero program, felt this person deserved special recognition. On stage, in Good Morning America’s studio in Times Square, stood little Alex Scott with her parents and sister. As her story was told, there wasn’t a dry eye amongst more than 200 people in attendance. For me, I could not be prouder of what Volvo was doing for her and was amazed at what she wanted to do for other children in her situation. Life does not get any better than those 30 minutes listening and watching her.
On Aug. 25, NBC Sports Network will broadcast the Pirelli World Challenge races from Mid-Ohio. (The races occurred Aug. 4 and 5). Volvo won both races. Within the broadcast, there will be a feature segment on Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) and Volvo’s connection to the non-profit organization. Included in the segment is what our cars will look like for the last race of the season – Sonoma at Infineon Raceway on Aug. 25.
To say Alex had spunk is an understatement. She embodies all that is wonderful about youth – that drive wherein nothing is impossible, elephants can fly, rainbow ends are pots of gold and Jack can climb a bean stock. For Alex, she was on a quest to help others like herself. I often wonder what she would have grown up to be, I suspect a research doctor. To learn more about ALSF and Volvo’s partnership, visit: http://www.alexslemonade.org/campaign/corporate-partners/volvo.
dan
Oh, and about the racing…many years ago, while testing a 740 wagon (with intercooler and one sweet turbo), we blew off the high pressure air intake from the intercooler to intake manifold. As our crew was tightening its hose clamp, the BMW driver came over and asked “having problems with your farm implement?” Within a few minutes, we were back on the track and shortly thereafter the BMW had really nasty engine problems. Our crew responded, “The Ultimate Driving Experience?”
Posted in Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, Volvo for life Awards, Volvo History | 4 Comments »
Volvo for life Award Winners – Where Are They Now? (Marilyn Adams)
Introduced in December 2002 by Volvo Cars of North America (VNCA), the Volvo for life Awards (VFLA) became the largest-ever national search for and celebration of everyday heroes. Since 2002, VCNA received more than 10,000 nominations from all 50 states, provided more than $1 million in awards and contributions in honor of heroes, and more than $5 million to help hometown heroes continue their extraordinary work in their communities.
Throughout the summer, we have re-told these six heroes’ amazing stories of inspiration and filled you in on what they’ve been up to since Volvo named them America’s Greatest Hometown Heroes. Here is the sixth and final Volvo for life Award winner’s story.
We hope you’ve enjoyed this series, and to celebrate the final post we’re holding a giveaway. To win a copy of Marilyn Adams’ book, “Rhythm of the Seasons…A Journey Beyond Loss” (http://www.amazon.com/Rhythm-Seasons-Journey-Beyond-Loss/dp/1882835387) just enter a comment on this story below. All comments will be entered into a random drawing, held on or around August 14, 2012, to win her book.
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Marilyn Adams
In 2008, Marilyn Adams, Earlham, Iowa resident and founder of Farm Safety 4 Just Kids, was named America’s Greatest Hometown Hero and grand prize award winner in the 6th Annual Volvo for life Awards. In recognition of her extraordinary work protecting children, Adams was awarded $100,000 for her charity and a new Volvo every three years for life.
Marilyn Adams, with a picture of her son, Keith
More than 25 years ago, Adams tragically lost her son in a farm equipment accident. The death inspired her to become a safety hero to thousands of children through Farm Safety 4 Just Kids (FS4JK), which she founded to educate kids and their families nationwide about farm safety and health. Through her visits to rural schools, media appearances and testimony before government agencies and Congress, Adams has spread her farm safety message across the country.
“I personally want to thank Volvo for honoring me with the highest award in the Volvo for Life safety category in 2008,” said Adams. “I am proud to have received this lifetime award on behalf of Farm Safety 4 Just Kids in loving memory of my son, Keith. Thank you, and God Bless all of America’s Heroes.”
Adams, 61, recently announced her plans to retire from FS4JK on June 1, 2012, during the organization’s 25th anniversary year. She will remain on the board of directors and continue to fulfill speaking engagements.
“Since receiving the grand prize, Volvo has helped us spread our farm safety message to countless rural families and to save an untold number of children from farm tragedies,” said Adams. “We couldn’t be more grateful. The $100,000 donation helped us expand our educational programs and establish an endowment fund for the organization’s future.”
Volvo Names Marilyn Adams "America's Greatest Hometown Hero" in 2008
Adams’ Volvos
In 2008, Adams chose a pearl white Volvo XC90, and named her car “Pearl,” fitting for the color of the car and in honor of a woman named Pearl who Adams worked with when she received her award. Since then, she has fallen in love with her XC90, taking it on countless road trips, and when her 3-year lease ended, she purchased it.
Marilyn Adams sits in her new Volvo XC90
Marilyn Adams stands in front of her Volvo XC90
Her favorite trip in “Pearl” was driving it cross-country to South Carolina for her son-in-law’s National Guard graduation. Peyton, her granddaughter, who was 6-months-old at the time, and her mommy, were along for the ride and excited about the built-in DVD player and all the toys the car could hold. “Everyone in my family has taken the car out for a test drive and they all love it!” exclaimed Adams.
In 2011, Adams picked up her new, red 2012 Volvo S60 T6 she named “Ruby.” Adams chose Volvo’s luxury sports sedan because she thought it would be fun to drive during her retirement. In fact, her 89-year-old mother has already asked her, “Why haven’t you taken your mother out for a test drive in your new red, hot rod yet?”
During her retirement, Adams plans to spend more time with her grandkids, garden, travel and continue to farm. She also plans to sew and quilt landscape art of both of her white and red Volvos.
Marilyn in her Volvo XC90, presented by Willis Auto Campus in Des Moines
More About Marilyn Adams and Farm Safety 4 Just Kids
In 1986, Adams faced every mother’s greatest fear. Her 11-year-old son, Keith, suffocated in a gravity flow wagon while helping with the first full day of harvest on the family’s farm in Iowa. Determined to find a constructive outlet for her grief, she was inspired to create a nonprofit organization working to educate children and their families about farm safety and health.
A year later, in 1987, Adams founded Farm Safety 4 Just Kids (FS4JK) and set out on a mission to promote safe farm environments and eliminate farm-related child health hazards, injuries and fatalities. A report by the National Safety Council found that children between the ages of 5 and 14 were 66 percent more likely to be injured in a farm accident than adults aged 45 to 64.
2012 marks the 25th anniversary of FS4JK. Since it was created, the organization has promoted farm safety to more than 6 million people through local programs and education. Today the organization has established a network of more than 120 local chapters across the United States and Canada that offer farm safety presentations on a local level. Outreach coordinators each cover nine different states, and over the past 25 years, 35,600 volunteers have donated more than 280,000 hours of their time.
FS4JK focuses on prevention through education. The organization has created a spectrum of nearly 100 educational resources on a variety of farm safety related topics. All resources are available to the public via an online catalog.
Farm Safety 4 Just Kids’ contribution to the farm safety movement has helped to reduce the number of agriculture-related fatalities among children. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, from 1998 to 2009 the rate of all farm youth injuries has decreased by 59 percent. Farm Safety 4 Just Kids was specifically mentioned as a contributing factor to the decline.
FS4JK is funded by corporate sponsors and individual donors. Current projects include overhauling the existing all-terrain vehicle (ATV) safety packet. In addition, FS4JK is working with the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the Central States Center for Agricultural Safety and Health to research how safety needs are impacted in the changing demographics of agriculture as small, part-time farms are on the rise.
Contest:
To win a copy of Marilyn Adams’ book, “Rhythm of the Seasons…A Journey Beyond Loss” (http://www.amazon.com/Rhythm-Seasons-Journey-Beyond-Loss/dp/1882835387) please comment on this blog post below. All comments will be entered into a random drawing, held on or around August 14, 2012, to win her book.
Posted in Volvo for life Awards, Volvo heritage, Volvo History | 4 Comments »A Viking returns – rebirth of Amazon
“The Swedes are a peculiar race,” according to Christer Olsson from his book “Volvo Gothenburg Sweden.” That book has and always will be, our official guide to what Volvo has done. It outlines Volvo’s historical chronology of our cars, trucks, buses, aero, marine, racing and other musings, and is our first go-to when we’re “stumped by the chumps.” If you can find it, it’s worth the search: ISBN 3-907150-58-9 (English Edition).
The first P130 Amazon series (two-door) had to compete with an aging 544 series, and the more practical 122 four-door. As a practical group of people, it’s surprising that Volvo would favor building another two-door sedan, just before launching their P1800 and still having the 544 series for another 5-6 years. I always wanted a 122, or even better, a 220 wagon. I think one of the best achievements from that series was how the doors closed. Not with a “click,” but with a good, heavy “thump.” Even today at club events, I just love the way that door sounds when it matches up with the door frame latch. My 130 (two-door) was hand painted - think cheap paint brush red - and a beat up interior – just one ratty Swede, but it ran. It would tow about 2,000 pounds and I used it for a side hobby/business I had with bee hives and honey. I always wanted to restore it but just ran out of time. Its new owner restored it and did a masterful job. No idea where it is today.
What follows, via the URL link below, is one person’s remarkable and heart-warming story of how he brought back to life a 1966 Volvo 122S and wove together a new chapter for not only the car, but for two of the car’s owners.
http://sharkeyvolvo122.blogspot.com/
Hemmings Daily is a great publication (then again most of you who have tinkered with Swedish Iron or anything older than your grandmother’s Dodge Dart, know Hemmings). Mark McCourt wrote a wonderful piece about this story, and how a Trans Am Volvo 122 was found and brought back to life.
If you want to see the vintage Volvo 122 up close, attend the Waterford Vintage Race Weekend at the Waterford Hills track in Clarkston, Michigan, on July 27 through July 29, with the Trans Am 2.5 Challenge Race scheduled for Saturday, July 28. For more information, visit WaterfordHills.com.
dan
Posted in Sweden, Volvo heritage, Volvo History | Comments OffVolvo for Life Award Winners: Where Are They Now? (Rose Mapendo)
Introduced in December 2002 by Volvo Cars of North America (VNCA), the Volvo for life Awards (VFLA) became the largest-ever national search for and celebration of everyday heroes. Since 2002, VCNA received more than 10,000 nominations from all 50 states, provided more than $1 million in awards and contributions in honor of heroes, and more than $5 million to help hometown heroes continue their extraordinary work in their communities.
Throughout the summer, we will re-tell six heroes’ amazing stories of inspiration and fill you in on what they’ve been up to since Volvo named them America’s Greatest Hometown Heroes. Here is the fifth of six Volvo for life Award winners that we will be checking in with during the month of July.
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Volvo Names Rose Mapendo "America's Greatest Hometown Hero"
Rose Mapendo
In 2007, Rose Mapendo, a resident of Avondale, Arizona, was honored for her humanitarian outreach when she was named “America’s Greatest Hometown Hero” in the 5th Annual Volvo for life Awards. Nominated by Susan Sarandon, Volvo awarded $50,000 to Mapendo’s charity and gave her a new Volvo ever three years for the rest of her life. Mapendo is the co-founder of Mapendo International (now RefugePoint), and more recently, Mapendo New Horizons.
In Swahili, “Mapendo” means “great love,” and never has a name fit a person so well than in the case of African refugee and widowed mother of 10, Rose Mapendo. Mapendo lost her husband and her freedom in the wake of the Rwandan genocide, yet she considers herself “lucky.” Unlike countless fellow Tutsis, Mapendo survived. She and her children were rescued and brought to the United States where she now fights to protect and empower vulnerable survivors in Africa through the aid organization, Mapendo New Horizons.
“I want to thank Volvo for being one of the first to shine a spotlight on the refugee crisis and honoring me with the Volvo for life award in 2007,” said Mapendo. “I am deeply grateful to Volvo for all they have done, and for the $50,000 that has gone a long way to helping save the lives of countless refugees.”
Since receiving the Volvo for life Award, Mapendo went on to receive numerous accolades for increasing public awareness of the refugee crisis and for securing private resources to help them. Among them are the CNN Hero Award in 2008 and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Humanitarian of the Year Award in June 2009. On World Refugee Day, she was presented with the Humanitarian of the Year Award by NBC’s Ann Curry and received a hug from actress/fellow humanitarian Angelina Jolie. In 2008, Mapendo was invited by First Lady Laura Bush to share her amazing story at the White House.
Dr. Kigabo and Rose Mapendo
Today, through Mapendo New Horizons, an organization Rose and her brother, Dr. Kigabo Mbazumutima, founded to support refugees in Africa, she travels around the country speaking and inspiring organizations and colleges with her story of survival and hope. Rose always says, “I can never be quiet with my story. I must share it.”
“We believe the Volvo for life Award was the key that unlocked all of the others,” said Dr. Kigabo, who was with Rose when she accepted her award. “Volvo put Rose and her story in a very important spotlight and after that, everyone wanted to know more and figure out how they could help.”
Rose and her children in front of their Volvo
Rose and her twin boys and their beloved Volvo
Mapendo’s Volvos
Mapendo chose Volvo’s flagship S80 sedan, which features the finest in luxury, performance and class-leading safety, because of her large family. Mapendo says the S80 has helped her family tremendously, and that everyone in her family shares the Volvo she won.
Mapendo’s Story
In 1998, Rose Mapendo was sitting on the concrete floor of a Congolese prison cell summoning up every ounce of courage, strength and intellect to protect her children. Almost 10 years later, she has used that same determination and drive to help protect and rescue thousands of fellow refugees of genocide.
Rose and her family in the Congolese Refugee Camp
Mapendo, a Tutsi, was imprisoned and tortured by Congolese soldiers in the wake of the Rwandan genocide. Following 16 months of daily confrontations with death, witnessing the torture and execution of her husband and giving birth to premature twins on the floor of her cell, Mapendo and her nine children ended up in a refugee camp in Cameroon. With the help of humanitarian workers, she left the refugee camp and resettled in Phoenix. Once safely established in the U.S., Mapendo helped found Mapendo International (now RefugePoint).
After six years helping refugees resettle in the U.S. with Mapendo International, Rose decided to focus her efforts to directly helping those suffering in the Congo, Rwanda and Burundi. She and her brother, Dr. Kigabo, joined forces and co-founded Mapendo New Horizons. Mapendo currently serves as the organization’s spokesperson, and, as a single mother, raises her children, all of whom attend school and college.
For additional information about Rose’s story, visit http://mapendonewhorizons.org/node/34.
About Mapendo New Horizons
Founded in 2010, Mapendo New Horizons’ (MNH) mission is to give help and hope to vulnerable survivors of physical, psychological and social trauma in Africa by ensuring them easy access to health care, protection and security.
“We want to empower survivors, especially women, where they are – survivors who will never have a chance to resettle in the U.S.,” said Dr. Kigabo. “These survivors are facing a continuation of a death camp even after they are freed. What is the point of surviving if you later die of malnutrition, childbirth or by a preventable or easily curable disease?”
Rose and Women in Africa
MNH has two immediate objectives:
1) To renovate existing, challenged hospitals/clinics (as a result of war/genocide) and build their capacity to provide modern, timely and sustainable health care that focuses on maternal/women’s health. Countless women die because they do not have access to a healthcare facility where timely and quality healthcare services are provided. This project is particularly dear to Rose and Kigabo because of their sister, Anne Natasha (the only girl who was a high school graduate at the time), died from a preventable childbirth complication because she did not have access to a medical facility with competent providers and proper medical equipment. This is why MNH’s comprehensive healthcare program will focus on the following:
- Education/training/mentoring: to identify and train local health care professionals in acquiring and maintaining advanced medical skills and knowledge to promote physical, mental and social healing/health. Several American doctors are working with Dr. Kigabo to lead these critical projects to success, and MNH would welcome additional American healthcare professionals to donate their time and expertise, as well as financial support to send medical missions to these countries.
- Reinforcing the diagnostic capacity of local health care facilities in the treatment of preventable and treatable diseases and health conditions that prematurely claim countless lives. MNH accepts donations of medical equipment and supplies to fulfill this goal, as well as financial support to ship donated medical equipment from the U.S. to Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi.
- Inspiring and supporting local communities and village’s efforts who strive to build their own clinics and hospitals.
Future site of Mapendo New Horizon's Women's Empowerment Center in Africa
2) MNH is completing a Training Center for Women’s Empowerment that Rose has been working on since 2008. In fact, like Rose, many women who survived genocide and war are in a need of empowerment to help rebuild their lives and meet their needs and the needs of their children. MNH recently spent time in Rwanda planning the Women’s Empowerment Project and created two initiatives to help women:
- Seamstress is MNH’s initial vocational training program that Rose wanted to develop in the empowerment center now that it is very close to completion. For $250, you can adopt and sponsor a woman to receive a 6-month course from a qualified seamstress instructor, start-up kit and a sewing machine and accessories. MNH believes in empowering women to stand (socially and economically) on their own rather than just giving them assistance
- Education. For $50/year, you can sponsor a girl’s education, which includes school supplies, backpack, shoes, etc. Even before Rose was tortured in the death camp, she experienced a form of gender torture. Even though she was intelligent, she couldn’t attend school because she was a girl.
To learn more about Mapendo New Horizons and to support their efforts, please visit http://mapendonewhorizons.org/.
Mapendo New Horizon Team in Rwanda
