A sickle cell warrior wants change, N500 at a time

"My name is Toyin Adesola. I have been living with Sickle Cell for the past 50 years. According to statistics, an estimated 200,000 infants in Africa are born with Sickle Cell Disorder every year.

Nigeria accounts for three quarters of these births. Today, about 5.2 million Nigerians suffer from the condition. I am one of them. Still, I count myself lucky because I’ve been fortunate enough to have family & friends that are very supportive and financially capable to help me through the trauma.

Having lived with Sickle Cell for 50 years I understand the challenges of dealing with it.

But that’s just me. There are millions of Nigerians out there who are not so lucky. So many people with Sickle Cell have lost their lives unnecessarily because they lacked the necessary financial and moral support. Others have suffered from social stigma not only from the general public but even from their family members."

She goes on to tell us how she wants to change the status quo:

"That’s why we started . We are a non-profit organization setup to give support and succour to people living with Sickle Cell. Since its inception in 2008, Sickle Cell Advocacy has touched the lives of sickle cell sufferers around the country through the monthly Medical Outreaches where we provide free medical consultation and free drugs to underprivileged children and adults with sickle cell thereby assisting in managing their health.

We also organize a special event called “Touch a Cell Dance-a-Thon” where we go to schools and we try to educate the students about their genotype and sickle cell in general.

Sickle Cell Advocacy’s work also includes providing social support to people living with sickle cell. Our response to social stigmatization is to step in by providing support through a number of ways like paying for school fees, house rents, amongst others for Sickle Cell Sufferers. We have also empowered people with Sickle Cell through vocational trainings and provision of equipment to enable them starts their own businesses."

This is where the general public comes in:

The N500 by 1m campaign is an initiative set up to encourage 1m Nigerians to donate N500 or more.

She tells us:

"Sickle Cell Advocacy aims to provide urgently needed medication, life-saving surgeries as well as counseling and public awareness programs through the monies we generate from the campaign. With your kind donations, we will be able to provide even more support to improve the lives of those living with sickle cell in the country. Sickle Cell is no longer a death sentence, with proper care and management they can live a well fulfilled and purposeful life, just like I have. So what is N500 worth to you? It could be the difference between improving the quality of life for people with sickle cell,or allowing them waste away in agonizing pain. Why not join other Nigerians and I in this fight against sickle cell Anemia? Please send in your N500 or more to either of these accounts.

GTBank: Sickle Cell Advocacy & Mgt Initiative Account 0008294592,

EcoBank: Sickle Cell Advocacy & Mgt Initiative Account 0052126735

Or through our online portal via our website.

For more information visit the SAMI website at www.sicklecelladvocacy.org and join the conversation on the social media platforms; Twitter: @samiupdate, www.facebook.com/touchcell and on Youtube: SAMITVNG with the hashtags #500by1m or #WhatcanyoudowithN500?"