Help Haiti.

Since Tuesday, when news of a 7.0 earthquake devastated the poor country of Haiti, my heart has been heavy. So very heavy. 

 

Over 100,000 people have died. 

Hospitals have been torn apart. 

Orphanages collapsed. 

Corpses of little children lay alongside the roads.

Families killed.

Children left without their parents. 

Adults left searching for their child … 

And for  a country that is already stricken with poverty  .. this is a blow that will set Haiti back hundreds of millions of dollars.

 

(Warning – some graphic images. Images from online new sources)

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I see these images and I cry. I feel so helpless. But I want to help and I want o do something! I’m sure you feel the same way – how can anyone know what is happening out in this world and not want to do something?!?!?!

Last spring, Tamara Perreira and I travelled to the Dominican to work on a photography project for La Tienda, a community, a village that takes Haitian woman off the streets off Haiti and develops working skills to change their lives. Instead of living out of dumps and using prostitution to make money to feed their children, Rachel Sticklee, La Tienda’s founder, teaches each woman how to bead, knit, sew and create beautiful jewelry and items that can be sold here in North America. The money goes straight to helping the Haitian woman live a changed life. 

As you can imagine, Rachel, a Canadian in her 20s, cannot just sit by after such a magnitude of disaster has struck Haiti. My heart just goes out to Rachel because here she is – single, alone, raising two Haitian children, she choose to give her easy life in Canada and move to life as a missionary in the Dominican in order to help the Haitians. 

Rachel will be traveling into Haiti over the next few days to start helping out and caring for the survivors. She NEEDS your help! If you haven’t helped out with the Salvation Army, World Vision or Red Cross yet – or even if you have – here is another way you can help the Haitian people …. 

Rachel needs to buy supplies to take into Haiti this weekend. YOu can help by sending a paypal donation to the La Tienda account. 

 

Go to paypal, send your donation to La Tienda (look for the paypal button on the bottom left hand side of the page) but make sure to write HAITI in the details or note about your donation. 

All supplies will be bought this week and taken straight over to Haiti…

 

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And please, pray for Rachel’s safety, for travelling mercies and for wisdom and emotional strength. She is a saint in a world of despair.

 

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Quick facts about Haiti:

Haiti is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere
95% of aid to Haiti has been reduced since the early 1990s
70% of Haitian people live in poverty-annual income of $400 per year
15% of all children in Haiti are orphaned or abandoned
200,000 orphaned Haitian children live in institutions (the rest are fostered, live with relatives, or are street children)
40% of the population is under the age of 15
A history of an extremely high maternal mortality rate contributes to the number of orphans
Child-headed households are becoming more common as potential guardians succumb to AIDS or other causes of death
January 18, 2010 - 3:40 pm

Rose:( Gillian…I can’t stop crying each time I see pictures of these people of God who are suffering deeply within their souls. Thank you for blogging information on how we can help out and know that the monies will get there and used immediately. Now if I can take some of those children who are alone, without parents, without love…..I would in a heartbeat! May GOD carry them in His arms. I am praying that the travel to Haiti is a safe one and she reaches out to as many people as she can, God Bless her!

January 15, 2010 - 3:17 pm

admin Pam, yes, that’s exactly right. Bless you guys for opening up your hearts. But you’re right again, Pam, …. how can we not?

January 15, 2010 - 3:15 pm

pammelah I can’t fathom the sorrow. Cant look at the pictures of wee twisted and broken bodies. God of mercy hear our cry. I hope I sent the funds to the right place, I went onto La tienda’s site and paypal’d it from there with Haiti in the instructions? will that work?

January 15, 2010 - 3:10 pm

Mom Gillian, thank you for the great job you have done in allowing us to be involved in this passionate outreach to the Haitian people. Really, you are so right …. Rachel truly is a sacrificing person, a Modern Day Saint! Hopefully much money comes in and Rachel is able to get there, safely and quickly. May the Lord protect her as she goes into this “house of horrors”. I am sure it will be life-changing for her. xo

January 15, 2010 - 2:57 pm

Mich This tragedy has been weighing heavy on my heart as well..thank you Gillian and Tamara for posting stuff on your site and Facebook to reinforce what we can do and provide another outlet to help. I am sending my donation to Rachel now with prayers for her and all the people she will be helping.

January 15, 2010 - 2:33 pm

Keri Kitto-Fast I’m speechless…. We’ll do what we can to help…. Our thoughts prayers to Rachel and the Haitian people…