Message from our Chairman

After more than a decade of political upheaval and three wars, the people of Georgia are putting their lives back together. American Friends of Georgia (AFG) is there to assist the most vulnerable in the country – the families that fall through the cracks of Georgia’s social welfare system.

I am sure most of your are aware of the immense human suffering created by the war with Russia in August 2008 – an estimated 30,000 Georgians were forced from their homes as Russian soldiers and Ossetian irregulars pushed through Georgian villages. AFG responded quickly, creating the War Relief Fund and mobilizing funds through the generous donations of people like you. The funds were used to provide basic aid and support for the thousands left homeless and adrift.

AFG has also built a unique program to assist families with children suffering from leukemia, a disease that Georgia is woefully under-equipped to fight. Seeking sustainability through creative and cost-effective programs, we have supported dozens of families through medicines and equipment from Project HOPE and others, the creation of a Parents’ House, transportation for children requiring overseas care and training of oncologists in the U.S.

In addition to those postwar efforts, AFG has worked since 1994 to help a generation of homeless, handicapped and sick children build stable, healthy lives in Tbilisi, Gori, Telavi, Bediani and other Georgian communities. We continue to support programs to assist students, single mothers and the elderly.

Please read our current newsletter, which is an update on some of our many other programs. Much remains to be done, and without your support, there is little we can do. Together, however; we are making a real, positive difference.

As always, all of us at AFG are incredibly grateful for your generosity.

Constantine Sidamon-Eristoff
Chairman, AFG