Eisenhower Fellowships President George de Lama delivers to the City of Philadelphia 10,000 surgical masks donated by EF Trustee Solomon Cai and a group of Eisenhower Fellows in China.
Three Eisenhower USA Fellows in Philadelphia played a key role in getting this generous gift from our Chinese Fellows to health care providers on the front lines of the city’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Deputy Mayor Cynthia Figueroa, Philadelphia Foundation President Pedro Ramos and Fire Commissioner Adam Thiel, who also heads the city’s Office of Emergency Management, organized and coordinated the handover.
“This delivery could not arrive at a more needed time,” said Figueroa, who also serves as Philadelphia’s Commissioner of Human Services. “A huge thank you to Eisenhower Fellows. I could not be more proud to be part of such an extraordinary global network.”
Former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman, Vice Chair of the Eisenhower Fellowships Board of Trustees, praised our Fellows in China for their EF spirit. “This is a real example of how EF is making a difference around the world,” said Whitman.
Separately, the China Education Association of International Exchange, EF’s partners in the Zhi-Xing China Fellowship Program, donated 200 surgical masks to Eisenhower Fellowships.
Each staff member received four to protect themselves and their families. EF sent the rest to the University of Pennsylvania Hospital system through Eisenhower USA Fellow Dr. Brian Englander, Chairman of Radiology at Penn Hospital.
“At a time of need, it is gratifying to see how Eisenhower Fellows come together to pitch in and help those around them,” said de Lama. “This is the mission and ethos that form our common bond.”
Please send us your stories and photos of how Eisenhower Fellows around the world are pitching in to help others during this global pandemic to ike@efworld.org
In the meantime, here is an update about how EF headquarters in Philadelphia is working to adjust its programs, events and activities this fall amid this public health crisis.