MAP International 70th Anniversary Newsletter

medicine for all people

medicine for all people

In the past 70 years, MAP has provided lifesaving medicine and health supplies to 82% of the countries worldwide

With your help, MAP International’s lifesaving medicine has reached millions of people in 160 countries over the past 70 years!

As an administrator at the Christian Medical Society, Ray Knighton was keenly aware of the growing need for medicine in developing countries. One fateful day, he received a call from a generous pharmaceutical friend who told him that he had shipped 11 tons of medicine to Knighton’s office.

Despite having only a small office to store all the medicine, Knighton and his secretary distributed every last box to doctors serving overseas within just three months. This act of generosity and kindness marked the beginning of MAP.

Seventy years since that fateful day, MAP has grown to be a leading global health nonprofit, reaching people all over the world. No longer held in an overflowing

office, medicine donated to MAP is carefully stored in our state-of-the-art Global Distribution Center located in Brunswick, GA. This past year, MAP opened our doors to a brand new Global Distribution Center, giving us the capacity to DOUBLE our impact. Combined, these warehouses can hold thousands of tons of medicine. And from there, lifesaving treatments are distributed to people around the world.

In 2024, with your help, our goal is to deliver 70 million treatments in honor of the 70 years of MAP’s service. It is thanks to the gifts of our supporters that this is possible. Each life saved, each person healed, each community transformed are testaments to God’s infinite mercy. Please know that your generosity and compassion are what make all of this work possible.

Our mission: To provide medicine and health supplies to those in need around the world so they might experience life to the fullest.

70 years of saving lives: Selected highlights supporters like you have made possible!

1954: A truckload of medicine is dropped off at the Christian Medical Society’s office in Chicago. Ray Knighton and his assistant orchestrate the delivery of 11 tons of medicine to mission doctors traveling from the United States to serve people in countries around the world.

1965: The Christian Medical Society board votes to spin-off its ‘Medical Assistance Programs’ and MAP is founded as a separate 501c3 organization focused on delivering medicines and health supplies to people in need.

1976: MAP partners with the Billy Graham Association to provide disaster relief for hundreds of thousands of people injured when a devastating earthquake strikes Guatemala.

2014: An outbreak of Ebola virus in Liberia captures global attention. MAP responds sending 33,000 personal protective health suits and more than $18 million in medicines and health supplies.

2014

2020-22: COVID-19 pandemic hits and MAP responds to urgent requests for emergency aid. MAP warehouse continues operations throughout the pandemic.

2020-22

2010: MAP provides more than $20 million in disaster aid following a devastating earthquake that leveled Port Au Prince, Haiti.

2010

2005: More than 225,000 people perish when a tsunami strikes Indonesia. MAP provides more than $10 million in medicines and health supplies to help those injured in the devastation in Banda Ache, the Andaman Islands and Sri Lanka.

2005

2023: New global distribution center opens in Brunswick, GA, doubling MAP’s warehouse capacity to store and ship medicine.

2024: MAP sets a goal of providing a record 70 million treatments and reaching more people than ever before.

1985: To improve its operational efficiency and access to ocean ports, MAP relocates its Global Medicines Distribution Center from Wheaton, IL to Brunswick, GA.

1985

1993: MAP International launches its Medical Mission Pack program to serve short-term medical mission teams. Since its launch, more than 45,000 Medical Mission Packs have been sent with medical mission teams to help people globally.

1993

A story of hope: How your generosity helped Joyce

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Since 1954, MAP medicine has touched the lives of countless people in 100 countries. Here is the inspiring story of one of those people our medicine was able to reach, thanks to your generosity.

When 14-year-old Joyce walked into the remote clinic in Zambia where a medical mission team was serving, the first thing the team noticed were the severe burns on the girl’s face and neck.

But the burns, though certainly painful, were not the primary reason Joyce had come looking for help. She suffered from seizures, and her family had not been able to afford the medication she needed to manage her symptoms for several months. In fact, the last time she had access to her prescription medication was four months ago.

Without the medication, Joyce was at constant risk of having a seizure and being injured in the process. A few days prior, Joyce had a seizure at home and fell into the family’s open cooking fire, causing severe burns on her face and neck.

Fortunately, the medical mission team had brought boxes of medicine and supplies from MAP International and were able to provide Joyce with not only her seizure medication, but also burn care treatment.

Now, Joyce can fully enjoy her days, without living in constant fear of the next seizure. Patients like Joyce are exactly why MAP exists — to put essential medicines into the hands of those who need them most, so that they may have the chance to live life to the fullest.

Extra burn supplies were left with the Zambian clinic so that more patients could be served even after the mission team returned home. “The supplies from MAP were a lifesaver,” says Sara, a member of the mission team, “because the remote clinic never received burn supplies from the government. The nurse in the clinic was very grateful!”

Read what our mission partners say about how your generosity touches lives

Here are some firsthand quotes from some of our mission partners over the years who want to share with you, in their own words, the difference MAP medicine makes.

“We are so very thankful for MAP International and the valuable medicines donated to us. MAP recently sent Love A Child, Haiti 110 huge boxes of medicines. Opening up a MAP Travel Pack box is like ‘opening a Christmas present’ on Christmas Day. It is full of wonderful blessings of medicines!”

— Sherry Burnette, Love A Child Haiti

“MAP International has played an absolutely vital role in our work in Bolivia. The amount of medication and the quality of the medication is phenomenal. Quite simply, people in these areas we are serving aren’t getting assistance any other way.”

— Dr. Tim Murphy

“We saw a nine-year-old girl who had a cut on her finger. The parents could not afford to take her to the hospital for stitches. The wound was infected and the entire hand was swollen. She was going into sepsis with a high fever. Antibiotics and dressing changes reversed the situation. Today, she is a miracle to her parents. Thank you to MAP for helping us save her life.”

— Penninah Ndungu, RN, medical missionary

7 decades of sound stewardship: How your gifts are used

As one of the top-ranked charities in the U.S., MAP International is dedicated to financial transparency and sound stewardship of the gifts entrusted to our care. We have been recognized by the following charity watchdogs:

Earned a coveted four-star rating, the highest level of achievement, including a 95% score for accountability, finance, leadership and adaptability.

Awarded the highest level of recognition offered by GuideStar, the world’s largest source of nonprofit information.

Met the 20 Standards for Charity Accountability set by the Better Business Bureau.

Accredited by the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability to uphold the highest standards of integrity and accountability.

Additionally, MAP is also ranked as one of “American’s Top Charities in 2023” by Forbes magazine, which awarded MAP a 99% score for Fundraising Efficiency and Charitable Commitment

Because of you.

Today, smiles are chasing away tears for so many in forgotten places who now have health and hope because of your unwavering generosity.

We dedicate our Special Edition Newsletter to our faithful supporters who make it possible for MAP International to carry out our calling to provide lifesaving medicine and health supplies for a world in desperate need. We hope you’ve been encouraged by what you’ve read. Please know, a gift in any amount will help ensure we have even more inspiring stories of redemption to share.