Art Lovers of America

A non-profit organization

ALA - LIFE SAVING MEDICAL EQUIPMENT FUNDRAISER FOR KERALA COVID -19 RELIEF

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHAT IS THIS CAMPAIGN ABOUT AND FOR WHO?
The Indian State of Kerala is amid its fight against the second wave of Covid 19 pandemic. This time, unfortunately, it appears to be a bigger challenge. With the best of public health systems and a capable leadership, the State had been able to contain the first wave effectively. Despite elaborate preparations, the increasing infection rate is putting the health systems under pressure. The State has adopted drastic measures to contain the spread. There are limits to which the State can augment its healthcare facilities to take on the speed and intensity of the second wave. We can help the State fill the gaps in critical areas in order to prevent overwhelming the systems and resources.

WHO IS LAUNCHING THIS CAMPAIGN?
LIFE SAVING MEDICAL EQUIPMENT FUNDRAISER for Kerala COVID-19 has been launched to support Kerala primarily by the partnership of two organizations. ALA, which is a non-profit organization that promotes Indian cultural activities among the Keralites across the USA. Care & Share, which is a non-profit 501(c)3 charitable organization that serves the community by providing disaster response, medical and research support and addressing homelessness. We encourage and welcome any organizations who would like to participate with this collaboration to raise funds to help Kerala. If you are interested, please contact us at- alacareusa@gmail.com Shijy Alex, President , ALA Mob : 224-436-9371

HOW IS THIS CAMPAIGN GOING TO PROVIDE RELIEF TO THE PEOPLE IN KERALA?
Our team of active and dedicated volunteers are going to be working closely with the state health officials (District Medical Officers/DMOs) in Kerala to ensure that the equipment we purchase are delivered to hospitals. For this, we have established a green channel, starting with our procurement team, then shipping, port clearance, distribution team and the ground support team in Kerala who all would be in direct contact with the health officials in Kerala to understand where the need arises and divert the supplies to those hospitals which are in acute shortage of equipments. Our counterpart in Kerala, in this effort is Kerala Medical Services Corporation KMSCL which ensures that the public/government hospitals across the 14 districts in the state receive help in a fair manner.

HOW IS THE FUND GOING TO BE UTILIZED ?
We are aiming to raise an amount of $100,000 by May 31, 2021, to support the hospitals in Kerala with necessary hospital equipment that would be needed to save countless lives. 100% of the fund we raise will be used to procure and purchase these medical equipment from identified vendors in the international market and then ship to Kerala. Oxygen concentrators Pulse Oximeters OxyFlow valves N-95 masks, PPE kits We will be reevaluating the list on a regular basis. We shortlisted the above equipment list by consulting with state health officials Dr Dileep Kumar S.R (KMSCL General Manager) , Dr. Mohammed Asheel ( Kerala Social Security Mission, Executive Director) Dr. Mathews (District Program Manager, National Health Mission)

ARE YOU SENDING MONEY OR MEDICAL EQUIPMENTS TO KERALA?
We are raising funds to purchase critical life-saving medical equipment directly from identified vendors and ship them to Kerala. We are not sending money.

HOW DO YOU IMPLEMENT THE EFFECTIVE DISTRIBUTION OF MEDICAL EQUIPMENTS IN KERALA?
Our team is collaborating with Kerala Medical Services Corporation KMSCL which is a fully owned Government Company for providing services to the various health care institutions under the department of Family Welfare as per Section 617 of Companies Act; 1956. One of the key objectives of the KMSCL is to act as the central procurement agency for all essential drugs and equipment for all public healthcare institutions under the department. The equipment we purchase would be shipped directly to KMSCL, who is licensed to clear the equipment from the port of entry, and then would be distributed to the government hospitals in all the 14 districts. We are coordinating with KMSCL who will be handling the reception and distribution of equipment, from the port to the hospitals.

IS MY DONATION TAX DEDUCTIBLE?
Yes, Care & Share is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit charity organization. Your donations are tax deductible under the regulations of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

MY EMPLOYER EXTENDS DONATION MATCHING BENEFIT. CAN I MAKE USE OF IT?
Absolutely, we encourage you to make use of this to double your contribution. Please search for Care & Share with EIN number 36-3708966. If your employer uses Benevity as a service provider, you can search for “ALA - Life Saving Medical Equipment Fundraiser for Kerala COVID 19” project from the list and then make the donation against this project. If your employer uses another provider, then please leave a comment “ALA Fundraiser” for proper accounting. If you’re unsure whether your company offers this benefit or want the instructions to request for a match, please head to https://www.careandshare.com/alaforkerala and search with your employer’s name.

I ALREADY DONATED ON FACEBOOK/GOFUNDME. CAN I STILL REQUEST COMPANY MATCHING?
Yes, please use the receipt from FB/GoFundMe to request the match. In case your employer does not accept this, please email us at donate@careandshare.com

I’M NOT SURE WHETHER MY EMPLOYER PROVIDES MATCHING BENEFIT. IS THERE AN EASY WAY TO FIND THIS OUT?
Yes, please go to ALA - Care & Share and find the search box in the company match section and search using your employer’s name.

WHERE DO YOU SOURCE YOUR OXYGEN CONCENTRATORS FROM, ESPECIALLY WHEN THERE’S A SHORTAGE IN THE AVAILABILITY?
Our team has identified and is working vendors in the international market for Oxygen concentrators. All of them have 2-3 weeks delay to ship. Because of the competitive nature of the market, we cannot disclose anything more in this regard. We will be sharing more information once our shipment arrives.

ARE THERE DELAYS IN PROCURING OR PURCHASING MEDICAL EQUIPMENTS?
Certain devices like Oxygen concentrators are in high demand now, owing to the worsening COVID-19 situation in India. According to the vendors we talked to, there would be a 2 to 3 weeks delay to ship after we order. Our procurement team is working hard with the vendors and shipping companies like DHL/FedEx to get them delivered at the earliest to Kerala.

HOW LONG DO YOU PLAN TO RUN THIS CAMPAIGN?
We plan to run this till May 31st, 2021. We may decide to extend the fundraiser further depending upon the situation in Kerala.

WHAT’S THE “REASONABLE” AMOUNT TO PLACE THE FIRST ORDER ?
Our team has decided to start ordering from vendors once we reach $40K in our fundraising efforts.

IS ANY PART OF MY CONTRIBUTION GOING TO THE CHIEF MINISTERS DISASTER RELIEF FUND OR THE CMDRF OF KERALA?
100% of the funds raised by this campaign is going to be used to purchase and ship life-saving medical equipment which are in dire need in the state of Kerala. If your preference is to donate to CMDRF, Care & Share has another campaign, you may want to check out that Vaccine Drive

I DON’T WANT TO USE GOFUNDME OR FACEBOOK TO DONATE, CAN I USE PAYPAL, ZELLE OR CHECK?
Yes. PayPal Id - donate@careandshare.com add a note “ALA Fundraiser” Zelle Id - donate@careandshare.com specify reason as “ALA Fundraiser” Check - Payable to “Care & Share” with “ALA Fundraiser” in the memo section. Post the check to Care & Share, 16612 W 159th Street, Suite 204, Lockport IL 60441

IS THERE ANY PROCESSING FEE ON MY PAYMENTS?
These three modes of payments have 0 processing fee - Facebook, check & zelle GoFundMe has 1.9% + 0.30 cents as credit card processing fee (GoFundMe Pricing) PayPal has 2.2% + 0.30 cents as credit card processing fee (PayPal Pricing)

GOFUNDME IS ASKING FOR A SEPARATE PROCESSING FEE/TIP. IS THERE A WAY TO AVOID THIS?
Yes, choose Custom and then make $ amount to 0

I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A CONTRIBUTION TO THIS FUNDRAISER, BUT I AM UNABLE TO DONATE FROM MY COUNTRY. WHAT SHOULD I DO?
We have five platforms to make a donation - Facebook, GoFundMe, PayPal, Zelle and by writing a check. Unfortunately, these options may not be available in some countries. If none of these worked for you, then we regret to inform you that you may have to go with another fundraiser that’s available in your country.

WHO ARE THE HEALTH OFFICIALS YOU ARE IN TOUCH WITH IN KERALA?
Dr. Dileep Kumar S.R (KMSCL General Manager)
Dr. Mohammed Asheel ( Kerala Social Security Mission, Executive Director)
Dr. Mathews (District Program Manager, National Health Mission)
Dr. Abey Sushan (District Program Manager, National Health Mission)
Dr. Geetha Gurudas ( Superintendent, Government Hospital, Kasargod)
Dr. Ancy Chandan ( ADMO , Wayanad )
Dr. M P Sasi ( Principal , Calicut Medical College )
Dr. Anuraj VT ( Kottayam Medical College )
Dr. Joseph Chacko ( Govt. Hospital Muvattupuzha )

WHO ARE THE POINTS OF CONTACT?
This campaign is a joint effort undertaken by ALA CARE, and Care and Share. You can reach us by email at Email : alacareusa@gmail.com
Shijy Alex
President , ALA
Mob : 224-436-9371
Kiran Chandran
Secretary , ALA
Mob: 319 - 693-3336
Leeza Mathew
Jt Secretary, ALA
Mob: 404-735-7663
Ashley Elenjickal
Vice President, Care & Share
Mob: 425 273 6021