The outpouring of support for Haitians is inspiring. People from all walks of life and from all corners of the globe are making gestures large and small to support those suffering on the island nation.
I am among the hundreds of thousands who contributed ten dollars via my cell phone. I text “Haiti” to 90999. Perhaps you did, too.
Emails began to arrive in my inbox early yesterday morning with lists of organizations accepting contributions. I continue to receive more emails today from sources as disparate as radio stations and U.S. Senators. Here is the list of charitable organizations I received from Denver radio station 850 KOA. I plan to direct my contributions to the American Red Cross.
I also am proud to be a Rotarian. Our club like many others supports a program called Shelter Box which provides people with emergency shelter and other basics immediately after a natural disaster.
My children and their friends are fired up, too. We have a good family friend whose youngest daughter was born in Haiti. They adopted her just a few years ago.
Her sister and her classmates (including my son) were motivated to action immediately when they heard the news of the earthquake. They made speeches to their class. Asked the student council for help and talked about ways to enlist members of other clubs to which they belong.
Their goal is to organize a garage sale and raise at least three hundred dollars. They plan to send the funds to the Haitian orphanage where our friend’s daughter lived before she became part of our community.
There are all kinds of planning conversations in the works among these elementary and middle school kids. Where can we put collection boxes? Where will we hold the garage sale? Did you talk to the student council again? Can we send out a flyer in school folders? They are even in the process of setting up a blog to keep their friends advised about their plans and results.
It is not only inspiring to watch these young people work to help others it’s a tremendous learning opportunity, too. My children, and many others I am sure, feel more connected to the world than they do on most days. We spent breakfast this morning studying maps in the newspaper and looking up earthquakes on the internet.
The challenge for these young people will be to sustain their enthusiasm to help. It’s the same challenge we all face.
We are at our best when we witness large scale disasters. We witnessed similar outpourings of support after the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami and Hurricane Katrina. We open our wallets. We open our minds. We set aside our prejudice. We give to those in need. We act instinctually.
We even pause for a moment giving up our political bickering. We celebrate our public institutions and non-governmental organizations. We are glad that our President is able to call on our military to offer aid. There is a certain pride that our country can send a Navy hospital ship to Haiti. We are pleased that the U.N. exists to coordinate international aid.
The challenge is next month. The need in Haiti won’t end soon. Will we remember then?
In our own communities, will the Haiti disaster lead us to turn outward? Next month, will we be inspired to look for the needs that exist all around us every day and consider how we can help?
It’s hard to stay energized for a sustained period of time. We get caught up in day-to-day life. Appointments to keep. Tasks to complete. Deadlines to meet. The next thing we know it’s next month, next quarter, next year.
As we race on our respective treadmills, let Haiti inspire us to look up from time to time. Let’s not wait until the next earthquake.
Thank you to all those who are offering support to the Haitians and to those in your own backyards.
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Picture Credits: American Red Cross on Flickr.