Suburban groups, charities rally to help Haiti
Bright Hope International, a Hoffman Estates-based charity, has already raised $20,000 for victims of the Haiti earthquake, and Barrington schoolchildren spent the day helping pack food aid in Aurora.
As local people look for ways to help, Craig Dyer, president of Bright Hope, said his group's goal is to raise $175,000, but that could increase depending on the need.
The conditions are horrific, and he's been in communication with those in Haiti through e-mail. He read one of those messages he received on Thursday, sent by a Haitian national.
"Bodies are 20- to 30-people high; no one is even stopping to pick them up because there's nowhere to take them," the e-mail read. "It's horrible."
Getting aid to those in need isn't easy. Bright Hope has already sent a donation, transferring it to a bank in the Dominican Republic, as the Haitian bank system is nonoperational. Bright Hope works with Haitian churches and a church member was able to travel and transfer funds.
The early focus is on immediate needs: water, food and shelter. Bright Hope is also looking for groups who will shop their local drugstores to make up medical packs full of personal hygiene and first-aid items that can be shipped. Details are at brighthope.org/group resources/medpacks.php.
But Dyer points out that basic supplies only help part of the problem. Counseling will be needed for victims who have been traumatized by horrific things they've seen as part of the tragic destruction.
"There are psychological, emotional traumas they are going through," Dyer said. "I think that's one of the reason that churches are the best places to give to the poor and the needy; they work to help people on the inside and out and their souls."
Dyer has been to Haiti six times and the lasting impression from the hurricane for him was the destruction of some Haiti's best-built buildings.
"I know that most people live in houses that are nowhere as well constructed as those buildings," he said.
Bright Hope works with Feed My Starving Children, a group that packs and sends meals to impoverished countries like Haiti. One of the organization's four permanent packing centers is in Aurora, where on Thursday 50 fifth graders from Grove Avenue School in Barrington were helping out.
The field trip was planned before the disaster, as permission slips from parents were due two weeks ago, said teacher Josh Rollins. He team teaches a world hunger course with LaDonna Cavicchiona.
The past two days, students have remarked on their surprise that it was possible that a country as poor as Haiti could be so geographically close to the U.S.
"They associate poverty with Africa," Rollins said.
The field trip offered a chance to show students they can volunteer locally, but still have an impact globally, he said.
"It brings it a little closer to home for them," he said.
The 14,472 meals prepared on Thursday won't all go to Haiti, as Feed Our Starving Children sends meals around the world. The group needs daytime volunteers to fill meal-making slots.
For more information or to make donations to the two faith-based charities, go to brighthope.org or fmsc.org.
And Dyer suggests checking charitynavigator.org before donating for quake relief to any charity you aren't knowledgeable about. The site evaluates charities and rates the job they do.
How to help Haiti Organizations accepting donations: Localbull; St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church: www.stapostle.org/index2.php?area=newsdata=detailid=4646bull; Feed My Starving Children: www.fmsc.org/Page.aspx?pid=276bull; Spirit of Truth School in Haiti, run by Ruth Caudle of Vernon Hills: www.haiti-world.orgbull; On Tuesday, Jan. 19, 100 percent of the money spent on dinner, lunch or cocktails at Meson Sabika, a restaurant in Naperville owned by Hossein Jamali, will go to the American Red Cross for Haitian relief. And the Naperville Rotary Charities has agreed to match the amount raised at Meson Sabika that day.bull; Naperville-based International Buddhist Progress Society at Chicago is helping through the Buddha's Light International Association to provide food, water, shelter, medical services and emotional support. Donations may be sent to the Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund (Account # 1005231), c/o American Metro Bank, 4878 N. Broadway, Chicago, IL 60640.Nationalbull; InterAction has a list of agencies responding and how to donate to them. Find it here: www.interaction.org/crisis-list/earthquake-haitibull; To donate $10 to the American Red Cross, text Haiti to 90999. The amount will be added to your next phone bill. Or, donate through the Red Cross' International Response Fund, www.redcross.org.bull; Former President Bill Clinton Foundation's Haiti Relief Fund: Text HAITI to 20222bull; To donate $5 to Wyclef Jean's Haitian Yele charity, text 501501. The money will be added to your next phone bill.bull; To find out how to help the International Rescue Committee, visit www.theIRC.org or call toll free, 1-877-REFUGEE.bull; To donate through Oxfam's emergency appeal, visit www.oxfam.org.ukbull; unicefusa.orgbull; doctorswithoutborders.orgbull; habitat.org/Haiti-Earthquakebull; salvationarmy.orgHow suburban students are helping:bull; Stevenson High School student clubs will raise money to help Haiti through Doctors Without Borders and Rotary International, starting next week. The Lincolnshire Rotary Club will match whatever money is raised and will use the money to buy portable shelters for the earthquake victims. The student club efforts include: Amnesty International club will conduct bake sales; Future Doctors of America will collect change during lunch; Print Media Club will design, print T-shirts to sell; and the Interact Club will work with the Lincolnshire Rotary on an unspecified project.bull; Prospect High School, under the auspices of its Service Club, will collect money for Haiti Tuesday, Jan. 19 until Friday, Jan. 29. A table will be set up outside the cafeteria during lunch hours.bull; Students at Hawthorn Middle School North in Vernon Hills have launched "Help for Haiti;" the student council has set up donation jars throughout the school for thrier fellow students and staff to give.Historic help through textingTexters jumped in almost immediately to send money to help people in Haiti. Verizon Wireless reports:bull; By Thursday midday, mobile texters in the United States had contributed more than $3 million to the Red Cross Haiti earthquake relief effort.bull; It marks largest outpouring of charity help via text in history.bull; Previous two biggest mobile giving days:- $400,000 collected in August 2005, after Hurricane Katrina, for Red Cross relief efforts.- $200,000 collected in December 2004 for tsunami relief efforts coordinated by CARE.Businesses, local charities step upbull; Discover Financial Services said Friday it is immediately donating $100,000 to the American Red Cross to help the people in Haiti, and is pledging up to $1 million more through a customer matching program. Transaction fees will be waived on all credit card donations to the Red Cross. The Riverwoods-based company will match donations make by card members of their Cashback Bonus to the Red Cross, up to $1 million. And it is matching employee donations dollar-for-dollar.bull; U.S. Foodservice donated $50,000 to the Red Cross's International Response Fund to help people in Haiti, the Rosemont-based company announced Friday.bull; Deerfield-based Walgreens is donating $100,000 to the American Red Cross for Haiti relief. In addition, the company will match employee donations dollar-for-dollar up to $50,000 and it is providing non-perishable food, water and medical supplies to the University of Miami Global Institute for Community Health and Development, which has set up clinics and triage units in Port-au-Prince.bull; Lake County-based Abbott will give $1 million in initial humanitarian aid for Haiti, including grant money and pharmaceutical and nutritional products.bull; United Airlines Foundation is matching up to a total of $50,000 in donations to the American Red Cross for Haiti for donations from customers and employees made through the Elk Grove Township-based company's International Response Fund at united.com.bull; ConAgra Foods Foundation pledged an additional $100,000 to the International Red Cross Relief Fund for Haiti.bull; The ATT Foundation is giving a $50,000 donation to Telecoms Sans Frontieres to support its relief work on disasters in Haiti and around the globe.bull; The Lake County Fielders and the Schaumburg Flyers, two Chicago area minor league baseball teams, are sending team garb to earthquake recovery teams in Haiti. "Just sending caps, shirts, jackets and the like will help give the adults some decent clothing during this horrific time for them," a spokesman said.Want to help victims of the earthquake in Haiti? Aid organizations need your assistance but warn that well-intentioned efforts like collecting bottled water and clothing on your own may not be the most helpful thing for a disaster-ravaged country that does not have the infrastructure to distribute them. Some tips from InterAction, a coalition of U.S.-based international non-governmental organizations:bull; Donating cash to established relief organizations is the best way to help because it allows professionals to get exactly what they need.bull; If you decide to donate supplies and not cash, contact an established relief organization before you collect anything. bull; People who want to volunteer should have previous disaster or international experience or technical skills and should work through a relief organization. bull; Be careful of scams. The Better Business Bureau offers the following advice to help Americans decide where to direct donations:bull; Rely on expert opinion when it comes to evaluating a charity.bull; Be wary of claims that 100 percent of donations will assist relief victims.bull; Be cautious when giving online, especially in response to spam messages and e-mails that claim to link to a relief organization. bull; Find out if the charity has an on-the-ground presence in the impacted areas.False20001500Mike Rutter, right, Bright Hope's director of partnerships, holds a child during his December visit to Haiti, while the group's project developer, Jepthe Lucien looks on. The charity is in the process of sending money and goods to the tragedy-stricken country.Courtesy Bright HopeFalse <div class="infoBox"><h1>More Coverage</h1><div class="infoBoxContent"><div class="infoArea"><h2>Photo Galleries</h2><ul class="gallery"><li><a href="/story/?id=351164">Friday images from Haiti </a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350898">Thursday images of Haiti earthquake </a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350616">Wednesday images of Haiti earthquake </a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350481">Images of Haiti earthquake </a></li></ul><h2>Local stories</h2><ul class="links"><li><a href="/story/?id=351064">COD professor heads to Haiti for U.N. <span class="date">[01/15/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=351058">Viatorian center in ruins; 400 Haitian refugees wait <span class="date">[01/15/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350795">Suburbanites rally to help devastated Haitians <span class="date">[01/13/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350767">Church hears from Glen Ellyn woman in Haiti <span class="date">[01/13/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350674">Vernon Hills couple say Haitian school they started collapsed <span class="date">[01/13/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350640">Missionary's e-mail describes damage to Haiti orphanage <span class="date">[01/13/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350716">Chicago group survives quake, helping in disaster <span class="date">[01/13/10]</span></a></li></ul><h2>National stories</h2><ul class="links"><li><a href="/story/?id=351133">Aid groups struggle to get food, water to Haitians <span class="date">[01/15/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350852">Haiti quake aid snarled; up to 50,000 feared dead <span class="date">[01/14/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350375">Thousands feared dead in Haiti quake; many trapped <span class="date">[01/13/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350576">Text of Obama speaking about Haiti <span class="date"[01/13/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350424">Obama says thoughts, prayers to Haiti, offers aid <span class="date">[01/12/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350431">U. of Wisconsin student group OK after Haiti quake <span class="date">[01/12/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=350463">UN says Haiti headquarters damaged in earthquake <span class="date">[01/12/10]</span></a></li></ul></div></div></div>