2020 is nearly over.

Looking back on this year, for the first time in our generation, we’ve experienced a real change in our daily lives, our busy lives. We learned that plans needed to be adjusted, or changed entirely. We had to rethink them constantly. We learned that freedom costs and staying home saves us and those around us.

Just a few weeks after the new coronavirus arrived and caused a health crisis in Italy late February this year, the virus entered Moldova, presumably carried in by the many Moldovans working in that hard-hit country.

Dear member of the MAD family,

Today my thoughts are very much with you, your family, and your wellbeing.

SEVEN YEARS!

Is that a long period or a short one?!

So here we are again, over half a year since we launched our wheelchair campaign in the GlobalGiving March Accelerator and you made your life-changing donation to deliver wheelchairs to the poorest country in Europe. We did it!

WIN-WIN for everyone!

MAD-Aid, the Isle of Wight’s only medical aids collection and redistribution charity, is excited to announce the opening of its new headquarters on York Avenue, East Cowes, on 22nd of March.

There are 1000s of children who rarely see the sky, homebound, for the mere lack of a wheelchair. With your help, we can, for GBP26 / USD36 a child, equip 200+ poor Moldovan youth with refurbished UK wheelchairs, giving them mobility, social inclusion, and access to education. The project is win-win: for the UK healthcare sector that saves on the disposal expense, funds that can better be used for patient care, and for the Moldovan youth who are given a chance at a brighter, more joyful future.

MAD-Aid started in 2012 with a MAD Moldovan woman living in the United Kingdom. That is as in MAD – passionate – about giving back to her country of origin.

2016 has been a challenging year globally, and for us too. Despite the challenges, we’ve carried on Making a Difference to the people in Moldova that we support.

Has been a long time since we came with any updates – How are we doing? How are the children at Phoenix doing?

On Sunday 17 April I ran the 10.5 km race as part of this year’s Chisinau marathon. My target was to complete the course in less than one hour. It was closer than I expected – 59 mins and 59 seconds! It’s a good job I sprinted at the end!

What A year has been for MAD-Aid and for each of us involved in it!

Giving is not just about making a donation. It is about Making a Difference.

Things can move fast sometimes. We were contacted by our transport company on 30th October. “We have an empty lorry” they said. “Can we take a load for you?” We negotiated a great deal, and a consignment of wheelchairs was shipped off on 1 November!

Children with disabilities are at the heart of our charity, but if we can we do not say NO to anyone. Wheelchairs from Southampton Hospice help Moldovan veterans.

Our second lorry load of equipment arrived in Moldova on Wednesday 26th June. This time we are delivering to our own secure warehouse, leased free by Riscani Council and managed by our local team at Moldova Aid. Hospitals and clinics can collect equipment, and we have good stock control. Once again, huge thanks to all our volunteers, both in the UK and in Moldova, who worked late into the night to load and unload.

MAD-Aid would like to say a Very Happy Golden anniversary to our trustee John Barnes and his lovely wife Ann.

MAD-Aid was officially launched on 1st of September 2012. We had a vision and we had some clear goals: to collect discarded medical equipment, to get charity status, to raise funds for our first delivery.

We’ve just heard from Victoria that all the deliveries are now done. Victoria and John will visit the hospital in Chisinau tomorrow, Thursday, to check that the equipment is on the wards. Deliveries were carried out in a hired transit van beautifully decorated with our sponsors’ signs and our own.

On Monday, March 4th, 2013, just five months after our launch, our first lorry filled with beds and medical equipment left the Isle of Wight for Moldova.

Things are moving very fast now at MAD-Aid. Since telling you two weeks ago that we are seeking funding for our first shipment, we’ve sourced almost all the money we need, thanks to generous donations and the help of our tireless volunteers.

Welcome to our new blog. We expect that it will be the first place to look for news of our progress.

Since we launched on 1 September 2012, we have received both practical help and funds from generous donors including A E Brown (Farms) Ltd. We are also grateful to Victor of Web Creative Solutions for creating our website, to the Moldovan Embassy in the UK and to members of the Moldovan community on the Isle of Wight who have been with us from the start. We thank you all.