Heroes Race Fundraiser

Get involved on behalf of the OPC to save the sight of 800,000 people!

On 17th June 2012 at Parc Saint-Cloud, Paris, a team of OPC supporters will participate in the Heroes Race with many other non-profit organisations. This community run, of 6km either run or walked, aims to raise funds. To take part in the Heroes Race is to participate in a great community event and a moment of fun and togetherness.

By signing up, you commit to raising at least 300 euros through your contacts, be they friends, family or colleagues. You will be provided with an online fundraising page through which your friends and family can show their support by making a donation. The sum raised will be sent in full to the OPC.

These funds are essential for the progression of the fight the OPC is leading against onchocerciasis, commonly known as river blindness, which threatens the sight of over 800,000 inhabitants of the Congo. After 11 years of treatment, the complete elimination of the disease is now within sight. Objective for 2012: to pursue our goal of liberating those 800,000 people from the risks associated with the disease!

With 300€ raised, the OPC will save the sight of 1,500 villagers, children and adults! Much more than a financial donation, it’s the gift of care that you give by running for the OPC! The Heroes Race is an effective way to support the OPC and to get you and your friends involved with a cause which is close to your heart. Without new donations, thousands of people risk going blind, despite the fact that some simple medication is all it takes to avoid this happening!

So don’t hesitate, join us, and sign up now!

Thank you for your charitable commitment! During the sign up process, a charge of 12€ will be requested. This sum will go towards the organisation of the run and will cover the costs related to the event.

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To find out more about the Heroes Race:
 The Heroes Race in three steps
 FAQs on the Heroes Race
 Getting there and programme for the day
 Can’t find the answer to your question? Contact Alain: a.soty@opc.asso.fr / +33 (0) 1 44 12 41 99

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LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PROGRAMME FOR THE FIGHT AGAINST RIVER BLINDNESS IN THE CONGO

In many regions of tropical Africa, it is children who must guide the blind. Several years ago, we often came across ’cursed villages’ near rivers where practically all the adults had become blind. The children had to leave school in order to care for their parents... whilst knowing they would be the next to lose their sight.

There is no curse on these villages. They’re simply situated in the proximity of running water, which provides the inhabitants with water and irrigates their land, but which also houses the development of small flies carrying a dreadful disease: onchocerciasis.

Parasites transmitted by the flies cause permanent lesions, in particular on the eyes. The sight of the sufferer worsens, until they become totally and irreversibly blind.

A drug, kindly provided by Merk is capable of eradicating river blindness... on the condition that each year all of the threatened populations are treated, for at least 15 years.

The OPC has accepted has accepted this challenge. The OPC (Organisation for the Prevention of Blindness) is the only French non-profit organisation involved in the WHO’s African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control (run by the World Health Organization) which covers 20 African countries. To act effectively even in the most remote areas, we have developed an immense support network composed of 5,815 volunteer villagers and 497 health workers with various qualifications (from doctors to auxiliaries) trained by us. The latter also work towards the early identification of other ocular complaints.

Thanks to this brilliant support network the OPC’s programme covers, for the minimal cost of 0.18€ per recipient, all the homes affected by the disease, thus around 800,000 people from 770 villages.

In 2001, the programme’s first year, only 233,000 people (29%) were treated in 56% of villages. Since 2010, after 10 years of treatment, 652,000 people are protected (81.3%, almost all of those eligible) in 100% of the villages. In 8 out of 10 villages, the disease is now undetectable, and in the two others, it is far below the threshold presenting a risk of ocular disease. By protecting their sight, the OPC has given back a future to the villagers. The adults can once more cultivate, without risk, their most fertile fields which are close to rivers, and the children are going back to school.

Despite this success, the external financing that the OPC received has run out... Our philosophy and our commitment oblige us to continue helping our Congolese friends to completely and definitively eliminate this plague.

Now we need another important partner: YOU. Because it’s YOU who can contribute directly to the elimination of river blindness in the Congo by participating in the Heroes Race for the OPC!

Join team OPC! Click here to sign up