Tuesday January 12 a disaster struck the capital of Haiti and surrounding areas where 2 million people live. Red Cross staff on the ground report collapsing buildings and aftershocks that have forced terrified people into the streets. The people of Haiti need our help.
Immediately The American Red Cross pledged $200,000 in relief services, and increased it by January 13 $1 million – to provide food, water and other relief to people impacted by this earthquake, knowing the first 48 hours are absolutely critical to save lives.
Please make a donation now to the International Response Fund to help victims of countless crises like the earthquake in Haiti. Your gift will provide immediate relief and long-term support through supplies, technical assistance and other support to help those in need.
We must be prepared to take further action as local responders continue to assess the situation. Red Cross volunteers have worked throughout the night to reach survivors trapped in their homes. And based on the needs they find, the American Red Cross will provide additional support, including relief supplies from our global warehouses.
Your donation of any size could help save the day by providing food, water, temporary shelter, medical services and emotional support to someone in need.
Help provide hope amidst destruction and give the gift that saves the day:
http://american.redcross.org/hait
If you prefer to donate by phone, call 1-800-REDCROSS (1-800-733-2767) or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Mailed donations may be sent to the American Red Cross International Response Fund, P.O. Box 37243, Washington D.C. 20013.
We would also be happy to accept monetary donations at our office, 115 E. Pennsylvania Avenue in Southern Pines, and we will then see that 100% of those donations are forwarded to national headquarters for the Haitian disaster relief efforts. We are not accepting donations of clothing, food or other items.
Thank you again for your generous support.
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Here are some answers to most the commonly asked questions regarding how to assist Haitian disaster victims:
The American Red Cross is not recruiting volunteers or accepting household items for Haiti relief. At this time what we need the most are financial contributions – whether by check, online or phone. A $100 donation can provide one family a basic kit that will provide a month’s supplies.
Things like clothes are not helpful right now because there is nowhere to store them, no one to sort them, and it would be difficult to transport the items to Haiti. However, if you would like to offer supplies or to travel to Haiti, please visit interaction.org for a list of organizations accepting this type of support.
Medical personnel can register at Center for International Disaster Information, an independent site that matches organizations with offers of goods and services at cidi.org/incident/haiti-10A.
The International Committee of the Red Cross is also helping to reconnect separated families within the country. They have established a special Web site enabling persons in Haiti and abroad to search for and register the names of relatives missing since the earthquake: www.icrc.org/family/links <http://www.icrc.org/family/links> . Within 48 hours of its launch, more than 13,800 visited the site looking for loved ones and about 1,100 people from Haiti have registered on the site to inform loved ones that they are safe and well.
Why should someone donate to the Red Cross? The Red Cross is the largest nonprofit organization with permanent presence in Haiti and plays an important coordination role among other humanitarian groups within the country. Our more than 97 million volunteers worldwide – and hundreds of local responders from Haiti – give the Red Cross the expertise, scale and scope to manage catastrophic disasters from the moment they strike. Please consider supporting your community’s needs by volunteering with your local Red Cross. Visit us at 115 E. Pennsylvania Avenue in Southern Pines or call 910-692-8571.
Meg Finnin
Office Manager
American Red Cross Moore County Chapter
910-692-8571