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Little money donated to Bono, Judd's AIDS cause
By MELISSA LEE
December 11, 2002
It's junk mail, mostly.
But Nelson Okuku Miruka keeps checking his box, hoping each day to find what he thought Nebraskans would be all too eager to send.
Not much luck lately for Miruka, president of Lincoln's Save Sub-Saharan Orphans, a recently formed group that sends money to AIDS orphans in Africa. Even after a visit from Bono and Ashley Judd on Dec. 1, World AIDS Day, people still aren't mailing in many donations.
"We are very disappointed," Miruka said. "Not as many people have reacted as we had hoped."
When Bono and Judd spoke to a packed Lied Center on Dec. 1, they called for greater AIDS awareness in the United States. They encouraged the audience to write to their congressmen and send donations to charity groups like Miruka's.
But since the celebrities left, Miruka has received just $406 worth of checks. It's far less than what he'd expected.
"We anticipated that when people realized the problem, they would respond more," said Miruka, who lost two sisters to AIDS. "A bit of disappointment has emerged."
An unfortunate question has emerged, too: Were some of those who so eagerly filled the Lied Center that Sunday night more interested in Bono himself or what the rock star was advocating?
Patrice McMahon, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln assistant professor of political science, says yes, at least for some people.
"I was disappointed but not that surprised," said McMahon, who sits on the board of the E.N. Thompson Forum on World Issues, which sponsored Bono and Judd's visit.
"I know lots of people were just excited to go because it was Bono and Ashley Judd."
The 1,500 tickets allotted to the public were snapped up in just 17 minutes when they became available Nov. 22. Clearly, demand was high, but Miruka hopes it wasn't because of the star status of the event's speakers.
"I think people's attention was diverted when Bono played," Miruka said. "We don't know if people were more interested in Bono's music than the cause he was fighting for."
It seems the event had at least some impact: Miruka said SSSO received no more than $300 in a normal month. December's donations have thus far surpassed that number.
And Bono's Lincoln stop has generated significant publicity that may help in the future, Miruka added. Nebraskans will be more likely to donate if they are more aware of the situation, he said.
Not all organizations have had bad luck, though. Nebraska AIDS Project sponsored the 10th annual Night of a Thousand Stars on Dec. 7 in Omaha, and plenty of donations poured in then, Miruka said.
The group, which has branches in Lincoln, Omaha, Kearney, Scottsbluff and Norfolk, raised an estimated $250,000 for AIDS prevention efforts that night, he said.
Miruka is glad to hear of that success, saying the efforts of Nebraska AIDS Project were "really excellent."
"But we really thought the people of Nebraska would help us more," he said. "Despite all the publicity, despite all our efforts."
That's discouraging to McMahon, who said she felt parts of the Lied Center event were poorly organized.
She wasn't impressed by the stars' presentations, and Bono and Judd made a couple of quick judgments, McMahon said.
"They were a little surprised when we weren't falling all over them," she said.
But both Miruka and McMahon hope more donations will start coming in. It may take some time yet, McMahon said.
Said Miruka: "I am still begging, really. I am still begging Nebraskans to understand my cry."
SSSO's current funds will be sent to Africa before Christmas, Miruka said, so children can have food, blankets and bed sheets as soon as possible.
The public can still help, however. Donations should be mailed to Save Sub-Saharan Orphans at P.O. Box 83995, Lincoln, Neb. 68501.
Little money donated to Bono, Judd's AIDS cause
By MELISSA LEE
December 11, 2002
It's junk mail, mostly.
But Nelson Okuku Miruka keeps checking his box, hoping each day to find what he thought Nebraskans would be all too eager to send.
Not much luck lately for Miruka, president of Lincoln's Save Sub-Saharan Orphans, a recently formed group that sends money to AIDS orphans in Africa. Even after a visit from Bono and Ashley Judd on Dec. 1, World AIDS Day, people still aren't mailing in many donations.
"We are very disappointed," Miruka said. "Not as many people have reacted as we had hoped."
When Bono and Judd spoke to a packed Lied Center on Dec. 1, they called for greater AIDS awareness in the United States. They encouraged the audience to write to their congressmen and send donations to charity groups like Miruka's.
But since the celebrities left, Miruka has received just $406 worth of checks. It's far less than what he'd expected.
"We anticipated that when people realized the problem, they would respond more," said Miruka, who lost two sisters to AIDS. "A bit of disappointment has emerged."
An unfortunate question has emerged, too: Were some of those who so eagerly filled the Lied Center that Sunday night more interested in Bono himself or what the rock star was advocating?
Patrice McMahon, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln assistant professor of political science, says yes, at least for some people.
"I was disappointed but not that surprised," said McMahon, who sits on the board of the E.N. Thompson Forum on World Issues, which sponsored Bono and Judd's visit.
"I know lots of people were just excited to go because it was Bono and Ashley Judd."
The 1,500 tickets allotted to the public were snapped up in just 17 minutes when they became available Nov. 22. Clearly, demand was high, but Miruka hopes it wasn't because of the star status of the event's speakers.
"I think people's attention was diverted when Bono played," Miruka said. "We don't know if people were more interested in Bono's music than the cause he was fighting for."
It seems the event had at least some impact: Miruka said SSSO received no more than $300 in a normal month. December's donations have thus far surpassed that number.
And Bono's Lincoln stop has generated significant publicity that may help in the future, Miruka added. Nebraskans will be more likely to donate if they are more aware of the situation, he said.
Not all organizations have had bad luck, though. Nebraska AIDS Project sponsored the 10th annual Night of a Thousand Stars on Dec. 7 in Omaha, and plenty of donations poured in then, Miruka said.
The group, which has branches in Lincoln, Omaha, Kearney, Scottsbluff and Norfolk, raised an estimated $250,000 for AIDS prevention efforts that night, he said.
Miruka is glad to hear of that success, saying the efforts of Nebraska AIDS Project were "really excellent."
"But we really thought the people of Nebraska would help us more," he said. "Despite all the publicity, despite all our efforts."
That's discouraging to McMahon, who said she felt parts of the Lied Center event were poorly organized.
She wasn't impressed by the stars' presentations, and Bono and Judd made a couple of quick judgments, McMahon said.
"They were a little surprised when we weren't falling all over them," she said.
But both Miruka and McMahon hope more donations will start coming in. It may take some time yet, McMahon said.
Said Miruka: "I am still begging, really. I am still begging Nebraskans to understand my cry."
SSSO's current funds will be sent to Africa before Christmas, Miruka said, so children can have food, blankets and bed sheets as soon as possible.
The public can still help, however. Donations should be mailed to Save Sub-Saharan Orphans at P.O. Box 83995, Lincoln, Neb. 68501.
probably not. 
