Not Just Tourists is a volunteer-led grassroots organization headquartered in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Not Just Tourists collects surplus healthcare supplies in Canada, USA, and UK and sends them overseas as donations with tourists visiting low income countries. Not Just Tourists has chapters in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Niagara Niagara may refer to: Geography Niagara Falls and nearby places In both the United States and Canada *Niagara Falls, the famous waterfalls in the Niagara River *Niagara River, part of the U.S.–Canada border *Niagara Escarpment, the cliff ov ...

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, a battle on 18 June 1815 in which Napoleon met his final defeat * Waterloo, Belgium, where the battle took place. Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Antarctica *King George Island (S ...

Barrie Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically i ...

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

, London (Ontario), London (UK) and Halifax.

History

Not Just Tourists was founded in 1990 in

St. Catharines St. Catharines is the largest city in Canada's Niagara Region and the sixth largest urban area in the province of Ontario. As of 2016, it has an area of , 136,803 residents, and a metropolitan population of 406,074. It lies in Southern Ontario ...

by Ken Taylor, M.D. and his wife Denise, who took medical supplies to Cuba. The Ottawa chapter was launched in 2005 by Mary Metcalfe and is currently coordinated by her husband Jacques Chenail. Ottawa and area travellers have brought suitcases of medical supplies to over 90 countries. The group also supports medical missions and contributes to ocean containers in support of medical humanitarian aid projects in countries such as Syria, Pakistan, Honduras, Cuba, and many other countries in need. Through its extensive regional network, NJT-Ottawa has also located and contributed donated wheelchairs, walkers, hospital beds, CPAP machines, and many other medical support devices, as well as medical supplies. The Toronto chapter was started in 2015 by Avi D’Souza. The group of volunteers meet on a weekly basis at Roncesvalles United Church to pack suitcases. In 2017, Drew Cumpson started the

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the five most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

chapter, nurse Simone Feller opened the Halifax chapter, and the first UK chapter was launched by Claudia Hon M.D. in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Cindy Ross, M.D. started the Orange Beach chapter in 2021, the first US chapter. In 2020, the

chapter sent personal protective equipment to China. In 2021, two volunteers privately arranged several shipping containers of medical supplies to be sent to Cuba.

Activities

Surplus medical supplies are donated by hospitals, clinics, medical suppliers, and individuals. Donated supplied usually include gauze, bandages, surgical instruments, masks, gloves, antiseptics, intravenous kits, urinary supplies and birthing kits. Suitcase contents are typically worth $200 to $400. Not Just Tourists has delivered over 10,000 suitcases to 82 countries Supplies are delivered to low income countries including Syria, Cuba, China, Peru, Mexico, Honduras, Uganda, Guatemala, Cameroon, Rwanda, Swaziland, Chad, El Salvador, Ghana, Ecuador, India, and Kenya.

References

{{reflist

External links

Not Just Tourists homepage
Medical and health organizations based in Ontario Organizations based in Ontario Medical and health organizations based in Canada Organizations established in 1990