Meet Heaven’s Angels rider - Helen Adipo
- Jan 15, 2009
Following on recent posts about how innovation is a key factor in Virgin's success, this principle is also fundamental to the work of Virgin's not-for-profit foundation, Virgin Unite. We aim to harness the entrepreneurial energy that has made Virgin so successful in the commercial realm and apply it to solving social and environmental problems.
One example is our Heaven's Angels programme, which seeks to tackle the persistent problems of inadequate healthcare and poverty in rural Africa. Thanks to some tremendous fundraising by Virgin staff across the Group, we're equipping health workers in Kenya (where roads are poor and transport options few) with motorbikes. This means they can deliver essential medicines and supplies to remote areas, as well as use the bikes to start small their own businesses to generate greater income.
The project has already had some great successes. Meet Helen Adipo, a Heaven's Angels health worker with the Apex community clinic in the rural village of Usenge, Kenya. Originally an HIV patient at the clinic, Helen was eventually recruited by the clinic's director to become a rider. Helen's experience has inspired her to become an outspoken peer educator, caring for HIV patients, and educating people about the disease to prevent infections and reduce stigma and fear. She credits her Virgin motorbike with dramatically increasing her capacity to deliver lifesaving antiretroviral drugs to her patients, as well as to conduct outreach in her community.
