The Truck of Hope is back on the road, this time with the aim of helping to reinforce the image of the Algarve as a safe destination this summer.
The main streets and beaches of six towns in the Algarve - Portimão, Albufeira, Olhão, Tavira, Lagos and Lagoa - will be playing host to the
Truck of Hope until 14 August, a humanitarian initiative geared to diagnosing Covid-19 and consolidating the information available on the disease in the most popular region in the country among tourists from all over the world in the holiday season.
The Truck of Hope team provides advice on good public health practices, conducts screening tests and runs a free nursing station for the entire population.
Arising from the joint efforts of Galp, TVI, Radio Comercial, the Algarve Tourism Board and the six Algarve towns involved, in addition to the support of several partners, this Truck of Hope mission implemented in the Algarve region aims to prevent and contain the spread of the new coronavirus, while promoting and striving to restore the Algarve's image of excellence as a destination committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all visitors.
On weighing up the first Truck of Hope mission, which involved 30 days on the road, more than 3,000 kilometres driven, 21 towns and cities visited and over 2,500 tests conducted on the population, in order to combat the spread of covid-19 in some of the areas with the greatest mobility-related difficulties in the country, we should thank the front line team for their dedication and effort and everyone else involved in the Truck of Hope´s charitable journey.
Praising the contribution of all those involved “to a response that demands the action of everyone” to this major challenge to public health, Sandra Aparício, from the Galp Foundation, highlights the “impact” caused by the Truck of Hope, “not only with regard to health, but also from an emotional point of view, by encouraging and supporting the community”.
A gesture can change everything, and Alexandre Marques, the coordinating doctor on the Truck of Hope, says that this initiative has marked him due to “the gratitude of the people in the places we passed through and the manner in which we were welcomed”. After all, as Joana Silva, a nurse with the Truck of Hope, recalls, “the truck provides those most in need with a little more hope every day”.
