We are writing to thank you for your support over the years.

You know that because of the National Kidney Foundation thousands of Singaporeans have signed organ and tissue donor cards.

You also know that because of the National Kidney Foundation thousands more have become aware of how they can make their lives more healthy by avoiding habits and lifestyles that lead to organ failure.

Still many Singaporeans die every day because there are not enough organs available to meet the need. And there are thousands of patients in Singapore who are on transplant waiting lists.

Obviously, there is still an urgent need for the National Kidney Foundation and its grassroots efforts to reach out to people across the country.

Who among us doesn't know someone, perhaps a family member or a dear friend, whose life has become a struggle because of diabetes or kidney disease? The stories are countless.

But we also know countless people who have been helped by the National Kidney Foundation - people who without the intervention of the National Kidney Foundation would have become mortality statistics.

While the NKF has had dramatic success in the 35 years since it was founded, we still have a lot of work to do. Too many people are dying needlessly from diabetes, kidney disease and other organ failure due to lack of donors, poor health practices and financial difficulties in affording healthcare.

When we started out in 1969, we were the first and only organization in the country dedicated to addressing these issues. Many people told us that we were wild dreamers for thinking that we could do something about such a difficult public health problem.

But the National Kidney Foundation, with the support of people like you, pressed ahead. The first step or phase in our strategy was to provide subsidized dialysis and kidney treatment and to increase organ donation, and within a few years we implemented Phase II, which focused on preventing the need for transplantation in the first place. And we succeeded.

Today, the numbers of Singaporean organ and tissue donors have increased dramatically. And more and more are survivors with the benefit of organ and tissue transplants.

But now the National Kidney Foundation is poised to launch Phase III of its strategy. We are going to launch an aggressive attack on childhood diseases through a national campaign of community education and empowerment.

The campaign will use all the grassroots tactics that have worked so well for us in the past. The local National Kidney Foundation sites nationwide will work with credible community groups and organizations. We will attack and eliminate the causes of childhood diseases that cause such tragic and unacceptable suffering.

While this campaign is just as ambitious as ever, we recognize also that the National Kidney Foundation is faced with some significant challenges. And we need your help.

We need to expand our mission with more sites and affiliates across the nation, and we need to expand our funding base. Both of these efforts are critical to the long-term sustenance and growth of the National Kidney Foundation.

Over the years, National Kidney Foundation has grown and succeeded because of the support of friends like you. As we embark on this new phase of our mission, we hope to be able to continue to rely on your support.

The fact is that we need your help now more than ever. And so we write you today to ask you to make a gift to the National Kidney Foundation. We hope you will consider writing a check and supporting our efforts.

Our mission is just as valid and just as urgent as it was the day we started. And with your help we can continue to save lives. After all, we are still the only organization in the nation dedicated to addressing the problems that financially disadvantaged patients face with organ and tissue transplantation.

If we don't do this job, no one else will. Please join us in our mission and make a gift today.

Thanks again for your support