Give Who You Are.
HEAL International is a nonprofit organization that provides health education, micro grants for women, and health-related support to resource-limited communities. The work of HEAL International is based on the principle that every human life has equal value, irrespective of socioeconomic status.
We envision a world in which all children receive the love and healing they need and deserve.
Communities
Minority youth, At-risk youth, Sex-Trafficked children & University Students in Arizona and Tanzania.
Focus Areas
HIV/AIDS prevention, HIV/AIDS stigma reduction, Prevention of STIs, Public Health Education, After-school mentoring, Microgrants (East Africa), Empowerment education, Capacity-building (Train the Trainer)
From the Executive Director
Working cross-culturally means that we must challenge our own ideas about how life "should" work. It means that we must recognize that we have blind spots in every interaction. We are always operating without a complete and perfect picture -- and the picture that we have is always shaped by our own cultural lens and life experiences.
If we've learned anything in the last ten years, it's that lasting community development and evolution starts within communities. It starts with individuals who have dreams and vision, not outside aid workers telling people what solutions should be implemented.
We see our role as community facilitators. We bring some expertise and a willingness to find expertise when we don't have it. We bring a willingness to be flexible. We are the people who will walk the road with you, for as long as you need us there. Perhaps most importantly, we bring a willingness to listen without judgment and the need to "fix" everything.
Working with children living with HIV and without parents in East Africa has taught us that real change is a long road, a road worth walking, and that our destination is in every next step that we take.
Working with teens who have no hope of graduating from high school in Arizona has taught us that graduating from high school sometimes starts with having a mentor who shows up for you -- someone who respects and believes in you.
Working with children who are the victims of sex trafficking in Arizona has taught us that there aren't easy answers. Sometimes the only answer is being with a person in silence for as long as they need it.
HEAL International is a small organization with a big dream -- that every person has access to the healing that they need. That sex-trafficking is no more. That every child has access to HEALING and love.
Join us in giving who you are. You may discover more of yourself along the way.
Damien Salamone, Ph.D.
Executive Director