Transcript Staff Writer

Malaria claims a child's life every 30 seconds in Africa, according to a presentation made Monday night at NorthHaven Church.

NorthHaven Church partnered with His Nets, a Norman-based organization to host "Norman Gets Malaria" night. During the one-hour presentation, the public learned about the deadly disease and the prevention efforts being taken to help those at risk across the globe.

Pastor Mitch Randall opened Monday's forum with a few words.

"We are living in a world that is globally connected," he said.

Randall traveled with Gov. Brad Henry, Oklahoma's First Lady Kim Henry and a group of volunteers to Ghana, Africa, in summer 2007 to distribute insecticide-treated mosquito bed nets to areas of Africa where malaria strikes often and kills millions of people each year.

"Three thousand kids under 5 died today because of malaria," Randall said.

He said people feel compelled to help others suffering from disease and poverty around the globe.

"As a city, the citizens are not only thinking about neighbors across the street but across the globe," he said.

Randall said during the seven-day trip, he estimated the group saved 12,000 lives.

"When you leave the village, you are reminded that you made a difference each day," he said.

Dr. Don Lassiter, public health consultant, told Monday's audience of the 6.7 billion people living on Earth, 3 billion are at risk for malaria. Between 350 and 500 million are at risk for contracting it each year.

"One of the problems about malaria is getting the word out about what it is," Lassiter said.

According to Lassiter's presentation, malaria is an illness transmitted from humans via a mosquito bite. An infection invades the red blood cells. The cells rupture as the disease spreads into the blood stream and infect other cells.

Lassiter said the disease can be prevented and cured with anti-malaria drugs. However, people residing in parts of Africa where the illness is prevalent are so poor they can't afford bug repellent or medicine.

T. Thomas, director of His Nets, said 35 years ago, one of his daughters contracted cerebral malaria in West Africa. She was able to recover, but still faces obstacles because of the illness.

He said about three years ago, another daughter encouraged him to come up with a solution to help others avoid the disease. His Nets was born.

"Last year, God blessed us and we were able to distribute almost 21,000," Thomas said.

A His Nets brochure states the cost is $6 for each net, a price too high for many families living in poverty-stricken villages. His Nets primary focus is to provide nets to high risk families with children under the age of 5 or pregnant women. One "single" family net can protect a group of five people for about five years.

"In three years, we have given out a lot of nets," Thomas said.

Keynote speaker Kim Henry spoke about a Ghana trip and presented a slide show of photographs she snapped in the African nation.

"This is really an important issue for many reasons," Henry said.

She described the week-long journey as an "incredible, life changing experience."

The First Lady said it's clear that poverty is an issue for the people of Ghana. The annual income is about $300 per person.

During the trip, Henry visited hospitals that were overwhelmed with patients suffering from diseases including malaria. She noted Ghana's mortality rate is 50 percent.

"We didn't just go into the village and hand out nets," she said.

Henry said she discovered that individuals find peace in their spiritual lives and relationships with a higher power. Whether someone was Christian or Muslim didn't matter.

"People seem to be so spiritual and in tune with God," she said.

Henry said the group's mission was to save children and help spread the word of God. As the governor and first lady traveled through villages, they were greeted by people who offered bowls of eggs, yams and chickens as gifts.

The first lady said she was amazed with their generosity because for some, they gave away food that would have been used for meals to feed families.

For more information about His Nets, call 447-2471.

Meghan McCormick 366-3539 mmccormick@normantranscript.com