Global Health Partnership Reaches New Heights

More than a dozen supporters of Engeye took on Mount Kilimanjaro in October as part of the nonprofit’s “Climb for Good” campaign, supported by the Albany Med Health System as a platinum sponsor. Several climbers had ties to Albany Med, while other members of the Albany Med community joined the group in Tanzania in support of the fundraiser and to celebrate more than 20 years of partnership between Albany Med and Engeye.

The expedition marked the culmination of a year-long fundraising effort. Climbers and other supporters raised $37,000 through donations from family, friends, colleagues, and corporate matches. Together with support from the Albany Med Health System and other campaign sponsors, the Climb for Good raised a total of $87,000 to support Engeye’s work in Ddegeya Village in rural Uganda.

For Theresa Weinman, a 36-year Albany Medical College employee who has been involved with Engeye since its earliest days, the campaign celebrated a relationship that has grown alongside the organization itself.

“This is a partnership that has thrived for two decades,” Weinman said. “The relationship between our organizations includes a founding story, a training pipeline, and a shared investment in rural Ugandan health.”

Peter Forman, MD, who leads Delmar Family Medicine and completed his family medicine residency at Albany Medical College, was among the Albany Med participants in the Climb for Good.

“Being part of this experience was a powerful reminder that health is shaped by so much more than what happens in a clinic,” Dr. Forman said. “Seeing people come together around a shared purpose, knowing our efforts will help improve access to clean water, health care, and other essential resources, made it incredibly meaningful.”

The Albany Med Health System’s sponsorship is helping fund one of the community’s most pressing needs: reliable access to clean water. As part of its support for the campaign, Albany Med provided $20,000 toward the development of a new protected water source in Ddegeya, where families currently rely on a shared borehole that has become strained by demand. The health system also funded 100 solar-powered lights for families without reliable access to electricity.

Work on the new water source is now moving forward. Funds for the water project have been received by the Ugandan Water Project, and its Uganda-based team has begun coordinating the drilling process. Once drilling is successfully completed, work will include securing the borehole and testing the water quality before a handpump is installed. Community training will also help ensure that the water source is properly managed and maintained for years to come.

The need is significant. Families near the Engeye Health Clinic rely on a shared community borehole for drinking, cooking, bathing, and handwashing. Increasing demand has strained access, sometimes forcing residents to turn to unprotected water sources and increasing the risk of preventable illness.

The new protected water source will provide more reliable access to clean water for community members, while related efforts will support handwashing, sanitation education, and long-term sustainability.

The work is one more chapter in a relationship that began at Albany Medical College through the vision of the late Stephanie VanDyke, MD ’09, whose commitment to improving access to health care in rural Uganda helped bring Engeye to life. Since then, more than 100 members of the Albany Med community have traveled to Engeye to provide health and education support, with many returning multiple times.

Today, Engeye provides care to more than 18,000 patients annually while also supporting education, economic development and public health initiatives.

“Albany Med’s long-standing relationship with Engeye reflects its deep commitment to resource-limited care, global health, and health equity, bringing this mission well beyond the Capital Region,” Weinman said. “This partnership is truly reciprocal, with education, expertise, and skills flowing in both directions.”

Twenty years after Albany Med volunteers helped launch Engeye, the Climb for Good campaign provided a fitting way to celebrate how far the partnership has come. The work now underway in Ddegeya demonstrates where it continues to go, translating decades of collaboration into investments that can improve health and quality of life for the community for years to come.