Fullife Foundation

19/08/2025

Last month our Board met in Brisbane for our 6-monthly face-to-face meeting to review current projects and plan for the year ahead.

We were reminded of the incredible impact our projects in Ethiopia are having—improving the health of women and children. Even in tough times, every contribution makes a real difference. 💙

We also celebrated our founder Ian’s Order of Australia (OAM)—a truly well-deserved honour! 👏 And in a lighter moment, Michelle took out the Ethiopia Knowledge Challenge, ending Ian’s reign as champ. 🏆

A big thank you to Brisbane for hosting us once again.

03/07/2025

👏 A huge shoutout to Fullife Pharmacist Tim and his mate Andrew for raising an incredible $3,604.50 for the Fullife Foundation! 💛

They ran a massive 50km from Rocky Cape to Wynyard in Tasmania — an amazing effort that will have a real and lasting impact on the health of women and children in Ethiopia through our projects. 🇪🇹🌍

Thank you Tim and Andrew for putting your hearts (and legs!) into making a difference. 🏃‍♂️💪

Inspired to get involved? You can:
👉 Start your own fundraiser
👉 Donate via our website www.fullifefoundation.com.au or link in our bio

Together, we’re making change happen. 🙌

10/06/2025

🌟 We are thrilled to share that our founder, Ian Shanks, has been awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) 🇦🇺

This honour recognises Ian’s incredible service to the community through charitable organisations — including his tireless work as a pharmacist, charity founder and community leader.

From the pharmacy to the frontlines of maternal health in Ethiopia, Ian’s passion and purpose have changed thousands of lives.

Congratulations, Ian — we are so proud of you! 👏💛

Three Whittlesea locals have been recognised in this year’s King’s Birthday Honours. Tom Ingleton reports. When Ian Shanks set out …

28/05/2025

GET VACCINATED, GIVE HOPE at Fullife Pharmacies
⁠
For every flu vaccination that Fullife Pharmacies administer in 2025, they will donate $1 to the immunisation program in the Afar region of Ethiopia.⁠
⁠
Book online at your local Fullife pharmacy using the link in their bio.

30/04/2025

We’re excited to celebrate the opening of a new maternity waiting room at the Darcha Health Centre in Ethiopia, delivered in partnership with our friends at International Needs Australia

This new facility is now fully operational and gives pregnant women better access to quality healthcare and a safer place to give birth.

It’s another step forward in the Fullife Foundation’s mission to help reduce preventable deaths and improve the health of women and children in Ethiopia.

On this world health day, INA is thankful for the transformative health changes taking place in Darcha Ethiopia🏥.

In collaboration with our local partner Bole Bible Baptist Church (BBBC) , the Darcha Health Centre has just been equipped with facilities and technical skills required to enable safer births for expectant mothers. 🤰

Thank you Fullife Foundation for your wonderful support that has enabled this impact to be possible.

🌍

Visit our webiste to learn more: https://ina.org.au/our-work/health-projects/

05/12/2024

Reposted from While nationally early childhood mortality rates are decreasing, in Afar these rates are increasing, particularly the infant mortality rate which increased from 64 deaths per live 1,000 births in 2011 to 81 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2016 (Unicef).

A recent study carried out an analysis on the determinants of Neonatal Mortality in Afar region, where the researches concluded that s*x of child, place of delivery, birth type, size at birth and mother’s educational level were found to be statistically significant determinants of neonatal death. Some of the key recommendations from this study was to support girls education and ensure Mothers with no education receive health education and that institutional delivery should be encouraged to improve the survival of the neonates in Afar region of Ethiopia.

Together with our partner Waklisa, we are very proud to be supporting Afar girls with their education journey via our scholarship program and Waklisa continues to carry out education sessions to mothers on the importance of institutional delivery through the community awareness sessions they hold in Kalat, Angalile and Haledabi Kabele.

Thanks to and all our individual donors for your continued support which allows Barefoot and Waklisa to continue the work we do 🙏🏼

28/11/2024

🎄🎁 This Christmas, Give the Gift of Hope!

Looking for the perfect gift for someone who has everything? For just $20, you can provide four rounds of life-saving vaccinations to a child in Ethiopia.

Your thoughtful gift doesn’t just spread joy—it saves lives, helping protect vulnerable women and children from preventable diseases.

💝 Give a gift that truly matters.
Support the health of Ethiopian families and share the true spirit of Christmas: hope, love, and giving.

👉 Visit https://www.fullifefoundation.com.au/shop to donate today. Together, we can make a difference.

11/09/2024

Posted • The percentage of Afar households using improved drinking water sources is the second lowest in the country. According to the EDHS 2016, 57 percent of households use improved drinking water sources in Afar, which is under the national average of 65 percent.

Together with our partner Waklisa we are providing Sawyer bucket water filters to households, along with household level coaching on operation and maintenance. The sawyer filter is a very basic design, available in the local market and has positive user feedback where it has been piloted in the Afar and other regions of Ethiopia.

As of December 2023 we reached our first target of providing 1186 households with a water filter.

A huge shout out to who are supporting us in these efforts with the purchase of 100 water filters in 2025 under one of the projects they are funding. However, we need to raise additional funds so we can focus on purchasing more water filters so that we can reach 100% of households from all the kebele’s Waklisa are now working in.
📸

27/08/2024

🌍 Join Us in Making a Difference! 🌍

We’re excited to announce that Fullife Foundation has partnered with (Good Company), a leading workplace giving platform! This means you can now donate directly through your payroll to help us improve the health of women and children in Ethiopia.

Ready to make an impact? 💜 If your employer is partnered with GoodCompany, consider choosing Fullife Foundation as your preferred charity. Your regular contributions will support life-changing projects that reduce preventable deaths among women and children.

Talk to your employer today about giving through GoodCompany. Together, we can create lasting change!

17/07/2024

Exciting update from Fullife Foundation! Our hepatitis project, in collaboration with and partner Waklisa, is actively underway. Together, we’re working to support the Ethiopian government in eliminating viral hepatitis. Keep up the amazing work—your efforts are making a significant impact on the health of the people in Ethiopia!

To help continue to support this amazing work, please donate via link in our bio or visit www.fullifefoundation.com.au 💜

08/07/2024

An update from one of our project partners and 💜
So proud of the work our partners are doing under our joint project which focuses on supporting the government of Ethiopia to eliminate hepatitis.

05/07/2024

📣 Exciting Update from Fullife Foundation! 🌍✨

Today, our board gathered in Melbourne for our biannual in-person meeting. We reviewed our finances and strategy for the upcoming financial year to ensure sustainable support for our ongoing projects.

A big shoutout to Ian, who once again claimed the Fullife Foundation trophy for scoring the highest during our director education session—by just 1 point! 🏆 It was a tight competition. Well done, Ian!

We’re committed to making a difference, but we can’t do it without your support. Please consider donating to help us continue our mission of aiding women and children in Ethiopia.

👉 www.fullifefoundation.com.au

Together, we can create a brighter future. Thank you for your generosity and support! ❤️