Adventures In Health Educational And Agricultural Development Inc

The Little Engine That Could. This small nonprofit accomplishes large projects in Tanzania. Run by a Board of dedicated volunteers, donations go directly to the communities they serve. Unafraid to tackle projects large or small, AHEAD has been helping people improve their lives since the 1980’s.

As a first time volunteer with AHEAD recently, I traveled to Tanzania and was able to see first hand the desperate needs of the communities it served there, and the tremendous assistance this organization provides. AHEAD has built and equipped multiple health facilities and schools in multiple areas over the years,
which has not only improved the quality of life for these people, but has decreased the rate of disease and suffering, especially for women and children. I am humbled to be able to contribute to the work of this life giving organization.

Ahead Inc does an outstanding job helping underserved communities (current focus is Bukoba District -Tanzania) develop. Experience, integrity and heart.

Over the years, AHEAD, Inc has provided essential healthcare and educational opportunities to people with few other resources. They are committed to continuing the development of health centers, improving the lives of people in Africa. Hopefully with more funds, they will be able to do even more good work!

Every day I am so thankful for AHEAD INC and all that they do. I was born into the foundation over several years ago and I am constantly inspired by the work that Mama and Baba Williams do for the people of Tanzania. They go to rural areas in Tanzania and those less fortunate through education and teaching and through medicine, and they have been doing this for years. I am honored to know the people that work for AHEAD and I'm honored to be a volunteer.

They have a wealth of knowledge on how to deliver health services to the under - served communities in USA and Africa.

AHEAD has made a difference in the lives of more than 1 million children via immunizations, nutrition and management of diseases.

The leadership has has a clear vision and strategy for the goals it sets. All positive considerations are taken into account and action is performed.

Building health centers and schools in rural villages in Africa are some of three many accomplishments. All of their funding goes directly to help those in need. The organization has been around since the 1980's. If they had more monies, they could help even more people.

AHEAD is an amazing organization. They work with villages in Tanzania, Africa to initiate or improve their agricultural development, health services, education services, and development. They work for a number of years in one village, and then move on to another. They have built hospital wings and clinics, installed electricity in schools and brought in educational programs. They help villages to develop employment opportunities and skills and improve their agricultural development. The work they do has profound impact on the lives of so many. In one village they were able to raise money and purchase a motorcycle ambulance so that mothers in labor could get to the hospital and the survival rate for mothers and children increased dramatically. Irving and Elvira Williams - a doctor and nurse couple - started AHEAD over 30 years ago and it keeps doing miraculous work. My daughter, husband, and mother have all been to Tanzania to witness and assist this wonderful organization and I hope to go myself.

I have had the pleasure of working with AHEAD for close to eight years now. The work they do on a very grassroots level has brought untolled aid to rural regions of Tanzania and The Gambia. The founders and their entire family and now; 30 plus years later, a large number of volunteers both in the United States and Africa are organized and energized to provide so many goods and services that we take for granted. They do not give hand outs but rather give hands up. They focus first on clean water and proper professional medical care and then work on building housing, schools and entrepreneurial enterprises. Again their focus is creating stability in the communities they serve and the ability to grow the same! To make this already incredible story better they provide millions of dollars of aid to these regions on an annual budget of less then $100,000. However, with the economy and world issues this has been harder and harder so they now must raise more to keep all their progress continuing. They are a deserving and outstanding organization who puts those they serve first, affecting positive change to individuals and communities!

I have see the work of this organization and the work and impact it has in local communities in Africa, The Gambia and Tanzania. The youth leadership development initiative helps young people to acquire those skills they would not have been able to especially those in rural areas. Teaching rural women skills they can utilize to start a small business and provide for their families has been very helpful in The Gambia and continue to grow. I will surely recommend this organization to anyone who has resources to donate that will impact lives in a third world country or want to volunteer. I am grateful to this organization because it also helped me adjust to life in the USA when I migrated it 19 years ago. It helped me build the friendships I have and integrating to this society. The value of this organization is the reason why am involved to help grow it to serve more.
Health care is millions of miles away for many in Africa. AHEAD brings it closer to those that need it most.

One of my cousins, Pam Sampson of Northampton, MA, died in childbirth in Dec. 2013. She was able to deliver a healthy baby boy but never got to see him, as she died of preeclampsia, a rare condition in which the placenta attacks the mother's body. A healthy 32-year-old before contracting preeclampsia, Pam had a degree in sports management and loved to travel. "We all miss Pam tremendously and always will," her uncle told me.

In the United States, about 10 women die in childbirth for every 100,000 deliveries. In countries like Tanzania, where AHEAD Inc. is active, the maternal mortality rate tops 400 maternal deaths per 100,000 births. Preeclampsia is a threat in Tanzania too, but the cause of death more often is banal, like having complications and no way to get to a hospital because you live in the country. I visited Tanzania with other AHEAD volunteers in 2008 and saw firsthand such dire situations in what otherwise is a captivatingly vibrant society. Now I am on the board of directors for AHEAD, which has been providing transportation to regional hospitals for at-risk expectant mothers, among other grass-roots initiatives that have saved thousands of lives over a period of more than 30 years. Founded by an African American pediatrician and his wife, who has a master's in social work, this organization gets results because of its grass-roots orientation. Their website will open your eyes.

I will just have to say that it is rare that a small non-profit have this type of longevity. A contribution to AHEAD, Inc. directly makes a difference to the lives of others. Volunteering to work overseas with AHEAD makes a difference in the lives of the volunteers. I have seen first hand how that experience can change a life forever. It has done that for me. I am one of many very grateful board members and a volunteer. Thank you so much, Baba and Mama Williams!

AHEAD Inc. has been reaching out to improve the quality of life for orphans and other vulnerable children, women and youth in underserved communities in Tanzania and The Gambia for over 30 years. What I have found in my experience that makes AHEAD unique, is that its staff and volunteers reach out to wherever the need is: inside hospitals and health centers; on the road with mobile health clinics; and, in the open spaces of villages where resources are scarce and where outside aid rarely finds its way. I have found that AHEAD's work made a direct and significant impact the health and well-being of lives in the communities it served as evident in the following: AHEAD has raised the immunization coverage for children five-and-under from 27% to 98%; Increased prenatal visits from 4% to 70%; constructed 6 healthcare facilities for maternal and child services; constructed 2 dormitories for girls attending secondary school; and provided tuition scholarships for students attending secondary and vocational schools, to name just a few.

AHEAD provides life saving and life enhancing services to the desperately under-served rural communities of Tanzania and The Gambia. They have been providing medical care, building hospitals, education, building schools, farming and agricultural assistance and most importantly providing technologies and the education to find and purify water for drinking, something many in the world take for granted but it is a life and death necessity in many parts of the communities AHEAD serves. They also help with maternity issues, curriculum development, life-saving and life-enhancing special surgical missions and just the knowledge that the United States and the world cares! They help to make these communities sustainable and self reliant giving them far more then just a donation and making our volunteers and staff (although very small) feel a true and lasting sense of accomplishment. Further, because AHEAD's overhead is very low a high percentage of the money they raise goes directly to our mission and programs meaning on a minimal budget often under $100k annually) AHEAD provides millions of dollars of aid and gifts to these communities annually - not including the residual value and benefit of the installations AHEAD has provided for the past 3 plus decades! All in all as a volunteer and board member of several organizations I have not participated in an organization who's founders are so involved in making things happen and that offers so much value to those they serve on such a small annual budget. It is a pleasure to speak up for AHEAD and encourage others to participate in this worthwhile organization.

I have known about Ahead Inc since my daughter and mother in law went on a volunteer trip to Tanzania with the Williams' who run AHEAD. Its a small but passionate organization with a group of African American founders Irving and Elvira and other leadership, mainly healthcare and higher education professionals focused on helping people help themselves. Its a highly ethical and transparent organization that makes a dollar go a long way. Focused on improving healthcare of women and girls and children in remote rural Africa and vocational training. Currently transitioning to a new District in Tanzania. Exciting times for this small nonprofit. Great track record and a highly deserving organization, worth supporting !

We first learned about AHEAD on our first trip to Tanzania for the 4th Diaspora Heritage Trails Conference, though we had heard about them on WPFW, our local public radio station. This decades-old organization was born from Julius Nyerere's call to Africans in the Diaspora to come help build his new nation, when the young pediatrician Dr, Irving Williams and his accomplished wife Elvira took their four young children and starting providing child wellness services. Seeing the great need they started a nearly 40-year effort improving maternal and infant health outcomes, helped build schools, have established water purification services, traveling medical care, internship and scholarshjp programs in what has proven to be more than just a flash in the pan but a lifelong effort that is still building bridges of friendship and health. We recognized them this year at the 7th Annual Julius Nyerere Commemoration where we dedicated all funds raised to AHEAD because of our support and belief both in their commitment and the critically important work to which they have dedicated their lives and organization.

AHEAD has made such tremendous strides in strengthening the lives of men, women and children in Tanzania and The Gambia! AHEAD's projects not only provide the resources to meet the needs of individuals living in the communities served, but help individuals to collectively build the knowledge and skills in the areas of health, education, and environmental awareness that are necessary to empower the communities to thrive!

I am 13 years old and I traveled to Tanzania with my Great Uncle Irving a pediatrician and my Great Aunt Elvira. My mother went too but she was sent to the hospital to work on patients. I went to the school to meet the students who were older teens. They told us of their aspirations at the Ahead school to learn computers and communications.
The showed us a play they wrote about a girls whose father would let her go to school. she and her mother left him and she was educated. Years later her father went to her for a job. I learned that school should not be taken for granted and I work harder now. I gave out gift from America and I painted class rooms but the gift the students and teacher gave to me was so much more.
I reach out and learn about others and I want to become a physician.

AHEAD, Incorporated has made a tremendous difference in the health and survival of mothers, infants and youth, having touched the lives of millions in rural communities in Africa since 1981. The mission of AHEAD, Inc is to substantially reduce the maternal and infant morbidity and mortality rates; and, to cultivate and advance healthy living in rural communities in Tanzania and The Gambia. AHEAD implements innovative life-saving programs that build leadership among people living in rural communities. Beneficiaries are involved in all aspects of AHEAD programs, from conception of projects and programs, planning, implementing and giving oversight. The administrators and implementers of all programs are residents of the countries which ensures that programs are sustainable. I am most impressed with the reception and appreciation of beneficiaries of AHEAD, Incorporated. I commend the founders, board of directors, donors and all who have had some impact on AHEAD and its programs during its 30 plus years of providing services to the people of Tanzania and The Gambia.

BLESSED OPPORTUNITY
I am greatful to have had the opportunity to travel abroad with AHEAD, INC to Tanzania, for the first time to perform mission work. My experience was humbling, educational, rewarding, life-changing, exciting, exuberant and healthy to say the least. I have seen the positive impact that the AHEAD organization has made in the Kisarware District of Tanzania. How they have improved the quality of education and health for the families there. My time there was very inspiring, especially seeing how we connected with and learned from one another. AHEAD INC promotes diversity in a "on hands way" helping one by educating, understanding and encouraging us to appreciate others and their backgrounds. I highly recommend AHEAD,INC. to work/serve with. Dr and Mrs Williams and family is to be commended.

I had the wonderful opportunity to volunteer with AHEAD, Inc. in Tanzania over this past sumer. Although the trip was short, at just 3 weeks, it was still a wonderful learning experience, on both professional and personal levels. What is unique about AHEAD, Inc. is their deep connection with the local people--the Williams' family immersed themselved in Tanzanian culture when they founded the organization and have tailored AHEAD to directly meet the needs of the people by starting sustainable projects in health and education. AHEAD, Inc. does not merely provide healthcare and education, but they empower the people to learn and then teach and take care of one another---which is best exemplified by their own school teachers who were once AHEAD students themselves. AHEAD and the Williams' family have made a lasting difference in the lives of so many. I am so glad I had a chance to volunteer with them and learn a little bit about Tanzanian culture, as well as current issues in healthcare and education faced by this country.

My husband Mike and I were among the first group of volunteers to go to Tanzania with the Williams in 1988. I am a Physician Assistant and worked in the office with Dr. Irving Williams. I heard that he took all his vacation in July every year and went to Tanzania to work and I was bowled over. I continue to this day to be bowled over by the Williams and their organization.
In the 1970's they took their 4 children and moved to Tanzania, he, a pediatrician and his wife, Elvira, an educator. He said they "wanted to give back". When they returned and settled in the Washington, DC area, they continued their work by founding this organization. AHEAD is their life. They give everything to their life's work. Their home is outfitted to be a meeting place, classroom, storage facility and headquarters of their organization. They are the most unassuming, altruistic, giving and truly "good" people I know.
THE ORGANIZATION IS ENTIRELY RUN BY VOLUNTEERS. Every year they take volunteers who work WITH the African people, who have the energy and willingness, but lack the supplies and information. AHEAD started not by going into the village and telling the people what they were going to do for them, but by asking them what they needed done. The first thing this pediatrician and his teacher wife did at the Kishapu clinic was build a water catchment/containment facility. Dr. Williams said the medical people spent the first two hours every day walking five miles to get water for the clinic, and that is what they wanted done.
In 1988, I spent the months before we left getting donations from the drug company representatives of medicines that we could take with us. I personally packed them in my car, drove them to the Williams' house, packed them, flew with them to Tanzania, loaded them into the truck, unpacked them in Kishapu, and then saw the woman with terrible arthritis who had walked 2 hours to get to the clinic and waited 4 hours to see me, and I gave her 10 Advil. She kissed my hand. I cried. It was the most rewarding thing I have ever done.
Mike and I also helped the villagers to put screens on all the windows to prevent malaria carrying mosquitos from getting into the clinic and OB delivery room. We did a survey in the village at the market place to see what fruits and vegetables were available and what they cost, to give AHEAD an idea of what would grow in the area and was affordable to the people. Subsequent groups helped plant gardens, and establish solar energy so the clinic could have a refrigerator to keep vaccines and light for night time emergencies and deliveries. They took a Toyota to replace the bicycle pulling the cart that served as the "ambulance" taking emergencies to the hospital 2 hours away.
Mike and I have retired and moved away. The Williams carry on. We help them financially with what we can. If you want to give to an organization where 100 % of your donation goes to do the good work, this is the one. If you want your life changed forever, your frame of reference on life altered forever, then call them and go with them.

NINE YEARS AGO MY COLLEGE AGE DAUGHTER WAS A 5 WEEK VOLUNTEER WITH PROJECT AHEAD INCOOPERATED. SHE WAS AN ADVANTAGED CHILD WHO RETURNED SEEKING OUT WAYS TO HELP OTHERS. SHE HAS BEEN A BIG SISTER TO A TEEN IN ATLANTA AND WORKS IN THRIFT SHOPS FOR HOMELESS SHELTERS AND MODELS FOR NONPROFIT FASHONING SHOWS. SHE SITS ON THE BOARD OF A NON PROFIT THINK TANK AND WORKS 40 HOURS A WEEK AS A TV REPORTER.
SHE HAS HOSTED A JAZZ FESTIVAL FOR AHEAD INC. TO GIVE BACK. SHE WAS IN 5 WEEKS A GIVING PERSON JUST FROM TEACHING AFRICAN STUDENTS , PAINTING A SCHOOL HOUSE AND TEACHERS QUARTERS AND MENTORING STUDENTS. WITH PROJECT AHEAD SHE SLEPT IN TENTS AND USED THE HOLE IN THE GROUND TOILET. SOMEDAYS, SHE SAID THAT SHE HAD NOTHING TO EAT BUT IT BROUGHT HER IN TOUCH THE STUDENTS AND HOW WASTEFUL AND NEEDLESSLY DISSATISFIED WE ARE IN AMERICA.
I WENT WITH AHEAD INC. THIS AUGUST, NO, I DIDN'T SLEEP IN A TENT AND I HAD ENDLESS ROLLS OF TOILET PAPER BUT THE EXPERIENCE WAS THE SAME. I WENT TO MUHAMBILI HOSPITAL THE NATIONAL TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL TO VOLUNTEER. I AM A PEDIATRIC CARDIOLOGIST AND THERE ARE ONLY TWO OTHERS IN THE COUNTRY. THEY ARE BOTH AT THE TEACIHING HOSPITAL. TOGETHER WE DIAGNOSED T.B. PERICARDITIS AND RHEMATIC VALVE DISEASE IN A LITTLE GIRL WITH MARFAN'S.
I SAW LITTLE BLUE BABIES AND ONE WITH A BIG HOLE IN THE HEART BOTH WAITING TO BE FLOWN TO ANOTHER COUNTRY FOR SURGERY. ONE LITTLE BOY AND A HEART DEFECT THAT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED THEN SUFFERED AN INFECTION IN HIS HEART FROM POOR DENTAL CARE. HE DIED THE NIGHT HE WAS DIAGNOSED. IF APPROPIATE CARE IN HIS VILLAGE WERE AVAILABLE IT COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED. THESE ARE THE CHILDREN WHO WERE CARRIED ON A PARENT'S BACK FOR MILES TO DAR ES SAALAM. AS SUCH, THEY ARE ALSO CARRIED IN THE HOSPITAL AS THERE WERE NO PEDIATRIC WHEEL CHAIRS. WHEN THERE ARE MANY ADMISSIONS, THE CHILDREN SLEEP TWO IN A BED WITH THEIR PARENTS. RHEUMATIC FEVER, MALARIA, HIV AND DIARRHEA ARE CONSIDED COMORBID DISEASES TO BE EXPECTED WITH THE APPENDICITS, ECT. PROJECT AHEAD PURPOSELY PLACED THEMSELVES OUT IN THE RURAL AREAS TO IMPACT DISEASE PREVENTION. TAZANIA NEEDS TO DEVELOPE ITS REGIONAL MEDICAL SERVICES AND EARLY REFERRAL PROGRAM AS WELL AS LEVEL THREE MEDICAL CARE. I WILL RETURN WITH MEDICAL COLLEGES TO HELP. I LEFT A EXCELLANT TEACHING MANUSCRIPT ON FETAL ECHOCARDIOLOGY FOR DIAGNOSIS AND MANAGEMENT. I HOPE THAT WILL IMPACT DELIVERY OF TERTIARY CARE.
IN MY US CITY, I VOLUNTEER IN A MEDICAL NOT FOR PROFIT, ENCOURAGING STUDENTS INTERESTED IN MEDICAL CAREERS AND TEACHING AT SCHOOLS. WE HAV A HEALTH FAIR FOR UNINSURED. THE KEY TO A ORGANIZATION THAT USES ITS FUNDS MAXIMALLY TO HELP THE MOST PEOPLE IS PERSONAL INVOLVEMENT OF THE DIRECTORS IN PROJECTS. THE DIRECTORS OF AHEAD AE ALWAYS THERE AND THINKING OF THE BRIDGE TO THE NEXT PROJECT. I HVE READ THE PREVIOUS REVEIWERE AND PERSONALLY KNOW THAAT THE PROGRAM DESCRIBED ARE REAL AND BIGGER THAN LIFE FOR THE PEOPLE OF RURAL TANZANIA.

This organization has been working for children for about 30 years. Their primary purpose is poverty alleviation. They provide education for children, health care, and care for orphans and other vulnerable children. One big example is raising the number of children who have received a full complement of childhood immunizations in Tanzania from 27% to 98%. I have volunteered time. That is fantastic. They deserve all our support.
Van

AHEAD is a great organization doing wonderful things to help wome and children attain a fruitful and healthy life. Not to be overlooked is the opportunity for volunteers, who make the work possible, to gain inner peace, sense of doing great work and knowledge that one person can make a difference in the lives of others.

MANY LIVES, LITERALLY, HAVE BEEN SAVED, AND MANY MORE TRANSFORMED BY THE WORK OF AHEAD, INC. I am so pleased to have been involved, for the past 16 years, with an organization that is making a difference in the lives of so many in Tanzania, and the Gambia in West Africa. The organization, STAFFED ENTIRELY BY VOLUNTEERS, was started by a couple of very dedicated individuals: Dr. Irving Williams, Pediatrician, and his wife, Elvira, who holds a Master's of Public Health Administration. They raised four wonderful children (3 of whom are medical doctors and one with a PhD), all while giving back to the community of less fortunate children in Boston, Massachusetts. However, they felt compelled, even while their children were still young, to make a difference on a larger stage and thus gave birth, almost 30 years ago, to AHEAD, Inc. They began by creating medical, educational and agricultural facilities in Tanzania and later in the Gambia. They trained health care workers to teach their community how to prevent aids and to care for those who had been infected. They provided vans that would transport personnel and medical equipment. They trained people to teach families in rural communities how to purify water by making "cookers," at the cost of $1.00 each, (monies received through fundraising) that would use the sun to clean the water. They created schools, and trained teachers. They taught families how to sow, harvest, and sell their vegetables to provide needed income. Volunteers travel to Tanzania, and the Gambia, each spring to assist with AHEAD's work. AHEAD has truly demonstrated the old maxim, "Children [and families] don't care how much you know, it is important that they know how much you care. Lives have been changed, people have been inspired and communities are becoming more healthy, educated, and financially self-sufficient because AHEAD, not only cares, but uses its limited, and often personal, resources to teach what it knows. My husband and I have also been financially supporting this very worthwhile organization for the past 16 years and are extremely pleased with the help our monies have been able to provide.

This remarkable African self-help organization , known as "AHEAD, Inc.", has been going strong for over 40 years thanks to the untiring efforts of a family of a dedicated family of health care providers and over 100 volunteers who have lived and worked side by side with the people of Tanzania. As a volunteer I have traveled to the Meatu and Kisarware Districts of Tanzania, two of the most impoverished rural locations in Tanzania. AHEAD takes on the most challenging of the communities , where the villagers have little or no access to preventive health care services, or access to clean water. As a volunteer, I helped rehabilitate regional hospitals in both districts, assisted with health education programs in Meatu, worked with teen high school students learning computer skills, and in Washington, D.C. helped organize several years of fundraising activities. AHEAD relies almost totally on individual donations and each summer takes a group of volunteers to live and work side by side with Tanzanians. It is very inspiring to work with AHEAD!

Fantastic experience! As a first time participant in AHEAD's volunteer program this year (and first time volunteering abroad), the experience in Tanzania far exceeded my expectations. With so many terrific projects, there is something for everyone. I did not have trained experience in Health, Education, or Agricultural Development but I felt that I was still able to contribute in a significant way. Meeting and working with the people in Kisarawe District, and other "super-fun" volunteers, was life-changing. I saw first hand how small things can make a huge difference. I would highly recommend AHEAD to anyone wishing to volunteer or donate to an organization that has been making a real impact on the lives of many for 30 years - and an extra special bonus is that the experience ends with a Tanzania safari tour!

As a Board Member of Adventure in Health, Education, and Agricultural Development (AHEAD, Inc.), I am proud that we are embarking on another 30 years of service to under-served areas in Tanzania and The Gambia. We continue our goals to further reduce poverty, premature deaths from preventable diseases, and to give youths opportunities for a meaningful education. We have been successful in helping decrease infant and maternal mortality rates in thirteen villages, immunizing thousands of children from birth to age five, establishing a skill center to facilitate the development of knowledge and skills in youth that lead to jobs, reducing the rate of HIV/AIDS infection and, in general, positively improving the life styles of thousands of persons in the regions in which we serve. AHEAD, Inc. performs its work in Tanzania and The Gambia with a small permanent staff in Tanzania and scores of volunteers, mostly, from the U.S. and Bermuda.

I have worked with AHEAD, Inc. for 15+ years and plan to continue to do so for a long time to come. Working with AHEAD, Inc. has been irreplaceable because the experiences have provided me with a sense of purpose and wonder.

I request that you provide this organization with your support!

AHEAD, Inc is one of the most outstanding organizations in the world today. For the past 30 years, AHEAD has been working in developing communities to provide health services to women and children, education services for those aspiring to learn, and training for those who want to work and provide for themselves and their families, and be an asset in their communities and nation.

AHEAD has been an organization that over the past 30 years has worked with underserved communities in African countries to improve the quality of life for their citizens. Women no longer have to fear death during pregnancies because AHEAD has provided safe, clean supplies for expectant mothers during deliveries. Children receive immunizations provided by AHEAD which has significantly reduced the number of infants and children who die from preventable childhood diseases. All these things AHEAD has done over these years that has made a difference in the lives of women and children. PLEASE give AHEAD your support.

Since 1985, AHEAD, Inc. (Adventures in Health Education and Agricultural Development, Inc.) has been at the forefront of developing and implementing programs to eliminate poverty, diseases, illiteracy, and, improve the quality of life for individuals. Since its inception, AHEAD has relied on the generosity of volunteers to help decrease high infant and child mortality; immunize millions of children; reduce the incidence of malnutrition; and provide pre-natal care for women, as well as provide educational opportunities for orphans and other vulnerable children.
As our president would say, “We are delighted about, and grateful to volunteers who have joined us in this mission. We invite others to join us in this essential work. We know that if you do, the experiences will be a part of your pleasant memories for a long time to come. We invite you to peruse the AHEAD, Inc. Website (www.aheadinc.org) to learn more about what we do. We invite you to think about innovative ideas and ways to strengthen and extend AHEAD, Inc.’s scope and to share those ideas with us electronically (elvirafw@aheadinc.org) or by contacting the office 9301-530-3697).”

I first volunteered with AHEAD, Inc. in 1993, as a volunteer in their youth program in The Gambia, West Africa. It was my first trip abroad and it was a truly transformative and amazing experience. I learned so much about myself, the world, and the interconnectedness of humanity is connected. AHEAD has been doing tremendous work in African villages -- literally helping mothers and babies survive , and communites thrive, for many years. It is because of my experience with AHEAD that I pursued graduate studies and became an anthropologist. I am proud to be able to support the continued work of AHEAD and raise awareness about the work of this incredible organization.

AHEAD-TANZANINA
GREAT NON PROFITNGO
Ahead- Inc., since its inception about 30 years ago, both Elvira and Irving Williams has been working tirelessly to make the lives of many Tanzanian more dignified. Through education, health care and medicine, agricultural training they have empowered numerous people to control their daily lives. I have seen their works in my homeland Tanzania (Kisarawe). The approach and philosophy of Ahead-Tanzania resonate well with the local community. They teach the people on how to “fish” rather than providing them with a ready-made “fish”. People feel much more empowered with education (skills and job training training), new methods of farming, and prevention of AIDS/HIV. The volunteers from USA through Ahead to Kisarawe in Tanzania bring a powerful message on the level of socio-political intercultural amalgamation. Kisarawe is a Coast area of Dar Es Salaam with much influence of Islam culture. Through Ahead-Tanzania the people along the coast realizes what people of USA stands for. People realize that we are one in the human race, and therefore we have to care each other. Ahead-Tanzania is above all political bias in the hearts of the people in Tanzania.
Yonga

It is always a great pleasure to recommend an organization like AHEAD for an award. For the past twenty years I have been privileged to volunteer as a professional nurse with AHEAD. AHEAD has been providing medical services to women, infant and children who would have died because of a lack of medicine, equipment and supplies and no one else to care for them but AHEAD. AHEAD continues to help people in remote communities in Africa experience a reversal in disease and deprivation by implementing sustainable health programs. AHEAD has saved the lives of many infants, children and women.

I would like to recommend the excellent non-profit Adventures in Health, Education and Agricultural Development (AHEAD) for an award. For the past 30 years this organization has focused on building the very foundation which is lacking in many underdeveloped areas of the world– health care, education and employment - through their direct hands on involvement. And they have worked to empower some of the most vulnerable members of our human family - women, orphans and other vulnerable children in rural villages in developing countries. Without AHEAD, many may have died because of a lack of medical supplies, equipment, and attention due to childbirth, malaria, HIV, and diarrheal diseases, just to name a few of the causes of preventable and needless deaths. AHEAD has earned accolades from UNICEF for its' effective primary health care services which have resulted in an exponential improvement in immunization rates in children five years in AHEAD targeted villages. They have educated hundreds of teens and young adults, helping them find employment and create opportunities for economic advancement. Despites these and hundreds of other achievements, AHEAD has largely operated under the radar for its 30 years of existence. I have not even mentioned the life-changing impact that volunteering with AHEAD in the field has had on past AHEAD volunteers, such as me. I was moved everyday by the outpouring of gratitude from the villagers we impacted each day. It affected my future career choices in working in international health. Please consider honoring and recognizing this outstanding organization with a well-deserved award.

I am personally familiar with AHEAD Inc. and have been for approximately 6 years now. This Maryland US based nonprofit organization was founded in 1981 by Dr Irving and Elvira Williams, an extraordinary husband and wife team who had a vision. They wanted to improve the health, education, etc. of rural communities in Tanzania and the Gambia in Africa. They risked it all and moved to Tanzania and lived there with their children for many years and now travel back and forth to Africa to continue their program along with staff and volunteers. They focus on improving immunization rates and access to medical care in rural communities, clean drinking water and education. As an active supporter and friend of the Williams' I have learned all about AHEAD and its wonderful work. My daughter and my mother in law were part of a group of volunteers from Maryland who traveled to Tanzania and worked with Ahead staff two years ago. They witnessed incredible poverty and limited access to what we consider a basic standard of living. They reported that they were totally impressed with the work being done by AHEAD and its hands on focus on vocational training and educating of girls and improving medical care. A few years ago AHEAD supplied specially equipped ambulances to a village to transport pregnant women to the hospital. Ahead sees a discrete need and addresses it. It is a small organization that operates on a limited budget, but they are making a significant positive difference in the lives of countless folks in Africa, and they have been doing so for 30 years!

30 years ago, Elvira and Irving Williams formed the non -profit organization, AHEAD, Inc. after seeing so many people dying from diseases who would not have if they were living in the United States and other developing countries. Over the years, this organization grew from just helping people not die, to providing healthcare and medicines; to giving young opportunities for job training and skills and education; they have donated well over 1 million dollars of medical supplies and equipment; taught better methods of farming; building wells; building clinics and dormitories for students; the list goes on and on. One other side benefit not to be forgotten, is that they have provided opportunities for people from the US and other countries to have significant intercultural opportunities to meet and work with, learn and learn from people in Africa. We are a global community, what happens in one part of the world affects what happens in another, and Adventures in Health, Education and Agricultural Development, Inc. has more than done their part to bring the people in the world a little closer together!

My husband and I traveled to Tanzania in August 2008 to spend two weeks at the AHEAD vocational school. We were able to observe the classes, chat with the teachers, and also helped establish a small library. The AHEAD school provides opportunities for children whose parents cannot afford secondary school, and does so on a shoestring. The dedication of the teachers and principal was impressive. Dr. and Mrs. Irving Williams are extremely caring people who have been active in Tanzania for several decades and know how to work with their African colleagues to get things done in a collaborative way. They are especially interested in helping girls and women to assume leadership roles, and have been very successful in promoting outstanding women. Their activities in the field of immunization and public health are also outstanding. Recently they have been able to raise money to transport donated hospital equipment and also to purchase specially adapted motorbikes with sidecars, so that pregnant women in rural areas can be transported to medical facilities. We highly recommend supporting AHEAD, Inc.

My wife and I were two of the first AHEAD volunteers to Tanzania in 1988. Our experience of working with rural villagers in the areas of health, education, and agricultural development changed our lives. AHEAD's philosophy is to approach the villagers to find out what their needs are and to work cooperatively with them. It is truly a grassroots organization. Volunteers are welcome from every background; the only requirements are open hearts, open minds and a willingness to engage with the people of Africa. AHEAD is a small family with a big impact in a large continent. It's well worth your time, money and effort because the return is so great.