The photos and video coming out of Port-au-Prince are unbelievably sad. I shake my head and sip my coffee, wondering what one homeschooling mom in Minnesota can do.
I can pray, certainly, though at times like this that doesn’t seem enough.
I can donate to Catholic Relief Services, and I will after talking to my husband. (Here’s the link for that: Donate to Catholic Relief Services)
And I can wonder, as I always do, why is it “them” and not me? I look around my house and see a mess that is of my own volition and a clutter that, though overwhelming at times, is neither unsafe nor unsanitary.
I have water and I have power.
I know where my loved ones are.
How are you dealing with the tragedy in Haiti? If you have other ideas on how to help, please share them.
My brother works at the US Embassy in Haiti. He is okay – but the reports we are getting are sketchy. People he knows have died – including children. He spent six hours digging neighbors out of their collapsed house.
I just keep praying – and I donated money to Catholic Relief Services.
This tragedy is too big to really grasp, I think. My brother says it's a nightmare and he'll never forget the things he's seeing.
Keep praying.
Thank God that your brother is safe, Christine. Yes, we keep praying–for the souls of the dead, yes, but just as much for the succor and strength of the living!
I found comfort in the Prayer after Communion from today's Mass:
Lord, you have refreshed us with the one bread and the one cup. Help us to offer our love and friendship to strangers and to all in need, that we may be united one day with all your people in the land of the living.
We ask this through Christ our Lord,
Amen.
About 80% of Haitians are Catholic. May they be strengthened by their faith and by our prayers.
Seems trivial to blog today. I ask the same thing "Why not us?" We are so blessed. When will it be us? "Why them?"
Pray and do what we can. I'll talk to my hubby, we usually give to the church, I'm sure they will have a collection for this.
we are sponsoring a boy in Haiti in memory of Ben. I have been wondering with a heavy heart when we will be able to find out if he and his family are safe.
Other than prayers and giving our monetary support to CRS, I don't know what more this mom in Virginia can do.
Here is some information on the Sisters of Charity's Orphanage in Haiti which my brother who is a priest and a few of my other siblings have visited and volunteered their time. I am forwarding an email that I received from my sister:
Update 1/13: Missionaries of Charity Compound at Delmas 31 rue 6 de Larnage. The babies and children are ok as well as the sisters and volunteers. Damage to the structure like cracks on the walls. Asked on the properties around and they say no major damages. No casualties that they know. Thank God and let's pray for those we dont know yet. Will keep you posted. Hope this helps.
1/14 Joyce and Dale Grabarkewicz Minn. residents who are at the volunteer houseare fine. I've gotten reports that Fr Tom Hagan's home, around the corner from the sisters place, was destroyed but he is alive and well. Also, Fr Rick Freschette was not in Haiti at the time of the quake but is now on his way back.
Thank you for all your prayers, thoughts and kind words for Haiti, the MC sisters and my connection to them!
There is much work to be done, bodies need to be buried and many orphans will be coming to the sisters…..
People are asking what they can do to help. Money is the easiest resource to send at this point to allow the sisters to help the people directly.
I have a mailing address for the MCs in Port au Prince that goes first to their house in Maimi. The letters are then flown by private carrier to Haiti which is a much more reliable system than Haitian mail. They only accept letters due to the pay by weight fee.
If you make the check payable to Missionaries of Charity in Haiti, marking the check's memo line "for Haiti relief" will get the funds into their hands sooner, rather than having to go to Calcutta first.
Missionaries of Charity
Att: Sr Genova, Delmas 31
PMB 800 – C104
6800 SW 40th Street
Miami, FL 33155
If you'd like, you can mail them to me by the end of the month and I will combine them to make one mailing.
My address is:
Patricia Decker
40 Conger St #509B
Bloomfield, NJ 07003-3345
I must be on the fast track to hell. It is incredibly sad, but I can find as many individual heart breaking stories close to home. Just because a heartbreak does not take place as part of a huge catastropic geological or meterological event does not make it any more heartbreaking. Haiti will have billions in aid pouring in, but what about the local homeless shelter? In the sub-zero temps of january in the north?
This may not be much, but this woman makes tshirts and sells them, and she makes pattern donations to an orphanage in Haiti. She was running a contest and was going to send some of her clothes there. Maybe we could all purchase some of her clothes for her to send in addition to her donation, or see if we could get the orphanage address and send things of our own to the children there? Once the mail starts back up of course. That's all I can really think of. It's so terribly sad.
http://lilblueboo.blogspot.com/
In response to anonymous:
There are of course sad stories and tragedies all over the world – on any given day. Luckily, on most days – these tragedies are isolated enough that a local community can step in and offer the help needed. When a family loses a house to a fire, the local churches and schools will step up and have fundraisers to help that family. And that is true with so many different things that happen.
What happened in Haiti is a tragedy of such immense proportions that the world has to be the community to step up and help.
I find it heart-warming to hear the stories of the number of countries sending aid; of the number of individuals volunteering to go; of the amount of money that has been donated by individuals to help.
People, of course, can not forget the local tragedies. They can not ignore the local homeless shelter. But a homeless shelter denotes that people have a place to go to get warm and safe; even if it isn't ideal. That is more than the people in Haiti have right now.
While we always have to be aware of the help we can give locally, it doesn't change the fact that sometimes our 'neighbors' live in a different country.
Margaret, I heard on the radio this morning that there may be opportunities for volunteering at places like Feed My Starving Children and Samaritan's Purse. FMSC already provides food to Haiti, and I think they might be doing something extra because of the earthquake. But I don't know much about SP … My daughter is going to FMSC tomorrow as a field trip to pack food. Perfect timing, I thought!
Food for the Poor has been in Haiti a long while and is reported to have an excellent ratio of its funds going directly to the poor, rather than salaries or administrative costs.
http://reiserrelief.com/
Father Reiser, founding father of Ephiphany Catholic Church in Coon Rapids, does relief in Haiti.
Also, please pray for Minnsota families that are adopting from the Missionaries of Charity's orphanage.