Young Relief Organization on the Move

For Immediate Release

BRADENTON, Fla./EWORLDWIRE/Jan. 11, 2007 --- International emergency disaster relief organization, ShelterBox released its 2006 activity summary this week along with plans for program expansion in 2007. The report was issued from ShelterBox Trust world headquarters in Cornwall, U.K. to national affiliates including ShelterBox USA based in Bradenton, Fla. In the past
year, ShelterBox has responded to disaster scenarios in 12 countries, providing emergency shelter for more than 82,000 displaced people, worldwide.https://secure.eworldwire.com/uploaded_images/client_logos/310499.jpg" align="right" alt="ShelterBoxUSA">

Begun in 2000 as a humanitarian project of a U.K. Rotary club, ShelterBox has grown to provide emergency shelter and tools/daily equipment to approximately half a million homeless disaster survivors worldwide. Sponsored individually and by various community and school groups, ShelterBoxes cost $900US, including worldwide transport. Specific donor Box assignments are posted on the Web site ('http://www.shelterboxusa.org') along with the final disaster destination. Donors are acknowledged in each deployed Box. Each Box contains an insulated tent, designed to shelter ten people. Other Box items are packed disaster-specific. Essentials include water purification tablets and tool kits, including a shovel and hand tools. Cooking and eating utensils and a simple multi-fuel cook stove are also available along with bedding, mosquito netting and kids' activity kits.

Recent natural disaster responses in 2006 included the Kashmir earthquake, which required aid missions both immediately after the late 2005 event and again in October 2006, in anticipation of another bitter mountain winter.
Total Boxes sent topped 8,000 providing relief for more than 137,000 survivors. The largest emergency response of 2006 occurred in Java, Indonesia, where successive disastrous events (earthquake, volcanic eruption and tsunami) over a matter of weeks beginning in May resulted in multiple Box deployments, totalling 1200 units, sheltering over 18,000 people.

Additional countries provided aid by ShelterBox in 2006 included:
- Afghanistan
- Ecuador
- Lebanon
- Romania.

Refugee aid in Africa was distributed through U.N. agencies working in Sudan, Somalia and Kenya via the
relief organization's ongoing humanitarian initiative, A Million in Africa. (UN officials have requested over 15,000 ShelterBoxes to alleviate the shelter shortage in their African refugee camps).

In December alone, ShelterBox delivered aid via special Response Teams, in Papua, New Guinea (1,000 people displaced by volcanic eruptions), Somalia flood victims (2,000 people) and 6,000 displaced typhoon survivors in Philippines.

In 2007, the international grassroots relief organization will expand from its current four-country operation (U.K., USA, Australia and Canada) by adding New Zealand, Germany, Norway and South East Asia, principally through local Rotary club administration. Recruitment efforts for development of ShelterBox Response Teams in the U.S. and Australia are expected to produce 50 trained volunteer members in each country, as well as an additional 100 British recruits to the current available roster of 60. Specifically in the U.S., ShelterBox USA will follow the 2006 lead of the U.K.'s parent organization and solicit US schools for Box sponsorship support early this year.

Other specific US organization plans include a Spring campaign of five American cities to introduce the unique emergency relief program to community and corporate leaders.

To learn more about getting involved or donating, contact ShelterboxUSA Executive Direcotr Beth Palmer at 941-747-8500, by e-mail at bethp@shelterboxusa.org or visit 'http://www.shelterboxusa.org'.

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CONTACT:
Beth Palmer
Executive Director - ShelterBox USA
PHONE. 941-400-5242 (cell)
941-747-8500 (office)
E-mail: bethp@shelterboxusa.org
URL: http://www.shelterboxusa.org

SOURCE: ShelterBox USA

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: Part of mule train rented in Pakistan (size: 0.0 kb)
For Box transport into Kashmir Mts.
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