Since January 12, 2010 almost every one of my Facebook posts/statuses/links has been about the devastating earthquake in Haiti. I'm sure it has become repetitive and I'm sure many of my friends have begun to tune them out. Please know that there is an incredibly good reason Haiti has overtaken my FB page.
For the past year and a half, my boss (and awesome office mate!), Mike, his amazing wife, Erin, and their two teenage children, Nick and Waverly, have been in the process of adopting a young boy from Haiti. Geoffrey is 3 years old, smart, adorable and wonderful. Less than two months ago they received word that the missing adoption document (which had caused a major delay in the process) had been issued. The adoption was official! All they needed was for the Haitian government to issue the passport, the US to issue the visa, and they would finally be able to bring their son home. Everyone believed this would be accomplished by the end of January.
On January 10th, Erin and several other adoptive moms ran the Disney Marathon in Orlando to raise money for an ambulance for The Heartline Women's Center in Haiti (http://www.heartlinerunners.blogspot.com). They surpassed their $60,000 fundraising goal and ran a marathon in 20-degree weather. These women are NOT to be taken lightly! After running the marathon, Erin flew to Haiti on Monday, January 11th to visit Geoff. Her intent was to spend a week with him before the passport and visa were finalized.
On January 12, 2010, a massive earthquake hit Haiti. Aftershocks continued for days. Destruction is massive and has only served to destroy an already decimated country. The official death toll is currently at 50,000, with an estimated 200,000 dead. Looting has turned violent. A country with scarce resources to begin with now has almost none. The poverty and despair they are dealing with is something we cannot even begin to imagine.
Thankfully, Erin and Geoff were together when the earthquake hit. The following is an excerpt from her interview with NPR –
"All of a sudden, there was a huge rumbling. Some of the people that I was with said they thought it was a bomb.” She said that she sat down immediately because she couldn't walk. The walls between the house she was staying at and the neighbor's house swayed like a snake, she said. "It was terrifying," she said. She said Geoffrey ran to her, and they sat together until the quake was over.
Had Erin not been with Geoffrey during the quake, they would not now be certain of his whereabouts or if he is safe. They would not know that he is in capable hands. And, of course, Geoff was able to have to his mother at his side during an incredibly traumatic event. A true blessing.
On Friday, January 15th, Erin was forced to make the incredibly heartbreaking decision to leave Geoff in Haiti and come home. The U.S. Air Force flew Erin by C-17 to McGuire Air Force Base, in New Jersey. However, she was not alone – she ferried 12 children with her to the U.S. and made sure they were safely on their way to relatives before she boarded her plane to Buffalo, NY.
Now, the problem lies with bringing Geoff home. Mike has spent the past week working with the staff of Senator Schumer, Congressman Higgins, Congressman Lee and Congressman King. His week has been filled with hours and hours of phone calls, dozens letters to elected officials and almost every level of government, along with many forms to fill out. In addition to this, he has given interview upon interview upon interview to the media, in the hopes of keeping this story alive so that our elected officials are compelled to continue helping. He has worked tirelessly at every juncture to bring his son home where he belongs. While things look more promising than they did at first, there is still a long way to go. I have never seen one man, and one family, more dedicated to bringing their son home.
Now that I have given you most of the story, here comes my main point: ALL of Haiti needs your help. I cannot stress this enough. Erin, Mike, Nick and Waverly need their son and brother home, yes. But there are literally millions of people in Haiti who need your help right now and I urge you to give whatever you can. PLEASE reach deep in your pockets and help a country that has been devastated by this horrendous disaster. I know that most of you (my friends) don’t make a ton of money. It’s okay; I’m not asking you to donate your entire paycheck. I am asking you to give what you can.
But please don’t stop there; please keep giving. In a few weeks, far too many people will have donated and figure they have done what they could, then stop there. HAITI’S NEED FOR HELP IS NOT GOING TO END IN A FEW WEEKS. Not even close. The donations, while plentiful, have already started drying up. Please help stop this. If you need suggestions, then I’m happy to provide them. Donate via cell phone and $5 or $10 will be charged to your bill. Attend a benefit concert where all the proceeds go to Haiti relief. Skip your latte and make coffee at home, bring your lunch to work instead of buying it, and then donate the money. With every paycheck, send $5 or $10 to the Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, Partners in Health, Heartline Ministries, Reach Out to Haiti, Yele Haiti, worldwidevillage.org, or any number of other organizations that are providing relief to Haiti. There are dozens of organizations that you can donate to. Your donation doesn’t need to be a big one by any means. And if you continue to donate, it will have a much larger impact.
Please consider this a direct appeal – the people of Haiti need your help. Please give now and give often. You can help, more than you know.
