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Vol. 4, Iss. 2 | May 4, 2010Letter from the PresidentFirestone Liberia has made great strides thus far in 2010. I'm pleased to report on a few highlights in this edition of the Firestone Voice. In a remarkable illustration of progress and resolve, the Firestone Medical Center at Duside — the same hospital that was vandalized and destroyed during the Liberian civil war — recently hosted a five-day surgical mission that provided 142 life-changing operations free of charge to children from villages and towns across Liberia. We take great pride in having hosted this compassionate mission, especially given all of the years of hard work that went into rebuilding Duside into one of the finest medical facilities in all of Liberia. We are grateful to Children's Surgery International for providing 20 exceptional doctors and nurses to make this mission possible. In addition to the surgical mission, Firestone Liberia recently launched its very own radio station and extended the remarkably successful Donation Cargo Program for a fifth year. We have also updated our website with a new company stat sheet to show our progress in rebuilding social infrastructure like homes for our employees and schools for their children. We look forward to a productive summer as Firestone Liberia continues to be a force for progress in Liberia. Thank you for your continued interest in our company and its employees. Dan Adomitis, President Firestone Liberia Hosts Surgical Mission
The Firestone Medical Center at Duside, one of the premier hospitals in all of Liberia, recently hosted 20 volunteer doctors and nurses from Children's Surgery International (CSI) for a five-day surgical mission. Working from dawn until late into the night each day, the team of visiting surgeons coordinated with Firestone's hospital staff to perform 142 operations free of charge for Liberians desperately in need of surgical care.
All told, the mission was a tremendous success. The CSI team and Firestone Duside staff worked tirelessly, performing a record number of operations for a CSI surgical mission. In addition, countless other Firestone employees served graciously as hosts, assisting with the logistics of transporting, housing and feeding patients and family members. Based upon the great need and the success of this mission, CSI is already planning a second mission to Duside. This mission underscores the importance of the Medical Center at Duside's role in providing medical care not only to Firestone employees and their families, but also the greater Liberian community. I'd also like to thank co-workers from across the Bridgestone Americas family of companies for providing donations of toys, children's books and clothing for this mission. The donations were distributed to the young patients and — based on their reactions — your generosity was surely appreciated. You can find more information, a video and photos from the mission on our blog. Donation Cargo Program Extended For Fifth YearSince 2006, Firestone Liberia's Donation Cargo Program has regularly provided space on company ships free of charge for relief goods and other donated cargo from U.S.-based charitable organizations. In the past four years, more than 75 charitable shipments have arrived at the port of Monrovia. Estimates provided by the donating humanitarian organizations put the value of this cargo at more than $2.5 million USD. We are very excited to extend this program through 2010. The following are just a few highlights from Donation Cargo Program projects that took place in 2009:
Cargo space is available to qualified charitable organizations with the ocean freight expense covered by Firestone Liberia. Charitable organizations interested in shipping items to Liberia can download an application from our website and e-mail it to donationcargo@firestonenaturalrubber.com with a scanned copy of their 501(c)(3) documentation. Company Launches 89.5 FM — The Voice of Firestone Liberia
After months of preparations, our team in Harbel, Liberia, officially launched the company's own radio station — "89.5 FM — The Voice of Firestone Liberia" — on February 26. The station provides both entertainment and education. Disc jockeys play popular African and Western music while also informing listeners of company news, agricultural activities and health programs in the Firestone community. The 89.5 FM signal can be received from as far away as Monrovia, Liberia's capital. We hope our station's programming will provide Liberians a source of enjoyment and enrichment as well as a better understanding of our operation in Harbel. The Informer Names Firestone Liberia Concessionaire Of The YearCiting "quality services" and "programs that have impacted lives" in Liberia, The Informer recently named Firestone Liberia the country's Concessionaire of the Year for 2009. "Despite the daunting challenges of the global financial crisis, down to the constant wave of attacks by illicit tapers and rubber theft, Firestone Liberia retained an unimpeachable record during 2009," the newspaper wrote, announcing the award. "No other concessionaire has provided such quality services to the Liberian people than Firestone Liberia." The Informer also noted that 2009 was a banner year for the company's education initiatives, as Firestone High School graduated its first class of seniors and the reconstructed Firestone Quadrangle Science Building was reopened on the campus of the University of Liberia.
New Statistics ReleasedWe are proud of our team's hard work in the day-to-day rebuilding of our operation and the services we provide our Liberian teammates, their families, and the community at large. You can see footage of this rebuilding by watching our latest Partners in Progress video on our website. You can also learn how all of this progress adds up — to 1,700 homes built, $85 million in capital spending on our operation, and 1.5 million free rubber tree seedlings distributed to help Liberian rubber farmers — by viewing our latest stat sheet. |
