HAITI RELIEF PROJECT - PHASE II (see February 5th Update).

February 26th 2010 Update

Today we submitted our declaration form to CIDA documenting our total donations eligible for matching by the government.  We are pleased to announce that $37,002.24 of your hard earned and generously donated funds will be matched, and that we have raised $43,022.75 so far (donations from businesses are not eligible for matching).  Phase II is going strong - continuing to provide water, food, tarps and supplies to our Haitian pastors to distribute within their community to those in great need.  The picture here shows the bags we put together (see Feb 9th update).  Thanks for your continued support!

February 9th 2010 Update

February 5th, 2010 Update

Careforce, along with Unto Inc. (an American organization) have enabled the Lighthouse School in the Dominican Republic to deliver 118,000 bottles of water, a truck and a half of food, some 100 large tarps and 100 small tarps. The tarps are used by the homeless to construct temporary shelters.


Our original plan was to deliver 100,000 bottles of water in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake. We projected it would take two weeks and cost us $30,000. Careforce raised money for water and UNTO raised the funds for the food and tarps. Our initial response - Phase I if you like - is over, so what now?

As always, the media has begun to move on to other stories, the "State of the Union” address, the US budget, Wall Street and let’s not forget the Super Bowl. Haiti continues to be a major story but you can only show pictures of devastation so many times before people become numb to the images.

The initial crisis response teams are beginning to pack up. The search dogs, the firemen and medical teams all are planning their departure dates if they’ve not already left. Camps for the displaced Haitians are being set up, estimated at over one million people and the US military are in charge of distributing food, at least for now.  And people now begin to realize the scale of the next task, the rebuilding.  Cristian met a journalist in Haiti this week to gave him this link to some photos which capture quite uninhibitedly the current state of Haiti.  Please note, you may find some images disturbing.

The only catastrophe in recent times that comes close to what has happened in Port au Prince was the destruction of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. There you had arguably the richest government in the world responding to the devastation of one of its own cities. Engineers, city planners, social workers, the bright, the intelligent and the committed, resources were virtually unlimited, and yet, four years later much of the city remains in ruins and the government in Washington is telling city fathers to move on without their help. So what chance Haiti?

Right now, these are the questions being asked:
1.    "What’s the plan?”
2.    "What gets rebuilt first?”
3.    "What resources are available and how are they going to be allocated?”
4.    "How are we going to rebuild?”
5.    "What is the priority; people who’ve lost their homes, businesses, government?”

The answers for Careforce re simple; we will continue to respond as long as we have the resources to do so (our answer to Q1). We will continue to set what we believe are achievable short term targets (our solution to Q2). We will only work with and through local partners. Right now our partners are the leadership at the Lighthouse School in Dominican Republic and through them, church pastors in Port au Prince (our answer to Q4). Our immediate priority is to feed and provide shelter for people gathering at the churches (our answer to Q5).

So what’s the answer to Q3? Together with UNTO, our plan is to fund more truck loads of water, food and to provide more large tarps. Cristian said that thousands of people are living at and around churches of our Haitian partners.  Many of them without shelter at all, certainly waterproof shelter.  All together, we need to raise another $25,000. We believe this is difficult but achievable goal. Right now we are looking for individuals and groups who will take on the challenge of raising funds for this phase of the response, Phase II.

Do you think you, your youth group, your church or small group, your company or your hockey team could raise $1,000 or $3,000 or $5,000 dollars? If you need help or advice or simply want to talk about it with someone, contact us at Careforce and we’ll provide the help, ideas, to help you make things happen. And remember, any funds sent to Careforce before February 14th will be matched one for one by the government of Canada.

UPDATES: News from Dominican Republic on Relief For Haiti

January 27th, 2010 Update

This past Sunday Cristian once again accompanied the trucks of water that brought more than 40,000 bottles across the border into Haiti bringing our total to more than 70,000.  Cristian said:

"It looks like that thanks to your generosity, we will able to accomplish our goal of taking 100,000 bottles of much needed water over there, by the end of the week.  This last trip was much more touching/emotional than the last trips as we went again right into one of the areas that was hit the hardest. It’s incredible/absurd/inconceivable that after so many days bodies are still laying on the side of the road in this area. I can tell you that these Haitian pastors that we're working with are confident that God has reunited Haitian people as one through this tragedy. They are looking forward to the birth of a new Haiti where people know God as their source for everything."

We are $5000 short of reaching our initial $30,000 goal for $100,000 bottles.  Donations received at Careforce are also being matched by the Canadian government in their Haiti Relief Fund, so every dollar goes twice as far.  Thanks in advance.

January 22nd, 2010 Update

Yesterday at 3am a second truck carrying an additional 18,000 bottles of water left for Port au Prince.  Five staff from the Lighthouse School, along with one of the Haitian pastors we’re partnering with, left in the early hours of morning for the border.  At the border they met with more pastors, transferred the water into Haitian trucks and were escorted into Port au Prince.  Although they did not encounter any problems, they were saddened to see bodies in the streets, and witness fighting over rations.  They were also told that no other help has yet been brought to the area where they delivered the water.