Tag: Haiti

Earthquake Aftermath: One Boy's Happy Ending

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Photo taken by Mary Peterson and edited by Rachelle Boyer
Photo taken by Mary Peterson and edited by Rachelle Boyer

While we must be careful not to minimize the sad truth of all that was lost on January 12, 2010, I want to end my blog with a story of hope for the future. For so many children living in Haiti, that day changed their lives forever, and this is no exception for one orphan boy named Will. However, the difference for Will was that the change brought on by the earthquake was for the better, not the worse.

Beth Peterson had decided to adopt Will a year before the earthquake hit, after meeting and falling in love with him at her parent’s orphanage in Haiti. However, as is often the case with foreign adoptions, the adoption process was moving very slowly and Beth and her husband were not making much progress. A week before the earthquake, Beth was thinking they still had two more years before Will would be allowed to leave.

However, after the earthquake hit, the orphanage where Will lived was damaged and all the kids, like so many others in Haiti, began sleeping outside in tents. Beth knew the conditions for Will were growing worse and decided to act right away. Luckily in the wake of this disaster, she was able to work with US agencies, the American Embassy in Haiti, and Haitian government officials to bring Will home safely after only a week.

Will’s case is a happy, however, uncommon one for the thousands of orphans still living in Haiti, and as time continues to elapse, it’s important we remember those still feeling the effects of the earthquake. This blog has helped to open my eyes to all that is needed in order to ensure a happy ending for not just Will, but all of Haiti.

Slideshow of Will and his new family.

Video of Will’s Story

A Personal Story Straight from the Heart of Haiti

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Fabien Vorbe
Fabien Vorbe

In my last post, I introduced Fabien Vorbe.  All my previous posts have all dealt with professional athletes contributing to the relief efforts in Haiti; however, Fabien’s story allowed me to get an inside view from someone who was directly affected by the earthquake.   

Although we are not professional athletes here at Furman, we did more than enough to help one of our fellow mates.  On January 22, 2010, Furman held a soccer tournament that included all the athletic teams’ girls and boys, as well as coaches and staff. 

Overall, Fabien informed me that the tournament raised nearly $15,000 for him and his family.  Through all the trials and tribulations he and his family have faced over the past couple months, Fabien still puts himself second behind all those who were injured or killed by the earthquake.

 He informed me that his immediate family and relatives are safe and living at his uncle’s house that survived the quake.  Fabien was very appreciative and grateful for the prayers and support from the Furman family. 

Hopefully, with the relief efforts continuing to grow, Fabien, his family, and his beloved country can return to peace as soon as possible. 

For more please check out my interview with Fabien.

What does the average college kid think?

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Well, I’ve asked some Furman students what they have thought of the United States government’s response to the disaster in Haiti and most are positive responses:

  • “Although the U.S. was not the first to respond– they’ve done a good job helping out” – Furman Sophomore
  • “The United States is participating in Haiti now however it will be interesting to see what they do in the long run.” – Furman Senior

I sat down with Furman sophomore, Sophie More, to discuss: Sophie Interview

Although students may have different opinions on the U.S. government’s role in Haiti, most have shown their support by wearing Haiti t-shirts that were sold during the Furman Men’s soccer tournament that took place to raise money for Haiti.

Haiti Shirts

It’s refreshing to know that college students have an opinion on issues such as the US government’s role in Haiti. Not only do they understand what is happening outside of Furman’s campus but they also show support in fundraising and “Haitian Spirit”.

Lending a Hand to Haiti, No Matter How Small

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Symbols of local efforts to help raise money for Haiti
Symbols of local efforts to help raise money for Haiti

In my previous posts, I have talked about the government or big organizations helping raise money for the Haitian relief effort, but there are many other efforts going on, on a much smaller scale that desreve to be mentioned as well. Younger adults especially, who have ties of their own to Haiti have done what they can to get the word out and rasie support for the Haitian people.

I myself, with my parents and siblings living in Port-au-Prince Haiti, have raised money be going around and talking to the sororites and fraternities on campus.  Another haitian student here at Furman, Fabien Vorbe, who also happens to be on the varsity soccer team help set up a fundrasier for Haiti as well. When I asked him how about this soccer extravanza put on to raise money for the earthquake relief he said,

“It was nice seeing how many people actually came out to support the cause. It was fun and helped out my people a the same time. Even though I can’t be in Haiti right now helping, I feel like this is helping too. “

Students playing soccer during Haiti Extravaganza (media credit: Stephen Meyer)
Students playing soccer during Haiti Extravaganza (media credit: Stephen Meyer)

Other students from schools all over have held similar events, telling their own personal story of their connection to Haiti and getting their friends and classamtes to help out. One of my friends who attends school in New York had T-shirts sold and printed with all proceeds going to Haiti. Another one of my friends went around and spoke to local businesses asking for donations and raised over $2,000. 

There is no requirement for lending a hand, and no donation is too small. Haiti needs help and everyone can do something.

Rachelle Audio bite

Earthquake Shakes Chile

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Aid comes in many different forms.
Aid comes in many different forms.
Chile is shaken after an 8.8 magnitude earthquake sent shock waves through the country early Saturday morning, February 27th.  The epicenter was located 70 miles from Concepcion, Chile’s second largest city.  The earthquake is the fifth largest on record in the world and the strongest in almost a century.  The death toll, estimated to be more than 700, does not even compare to the 200,000 killed in Haiti in January. 

 

For Chile, earthquakes are nothing new.  (In schools, children learn to seek shelter from the tremors before they learn to read.) 

 

The earthquake has exposed fault lines of a different kind. 

 

For one, US intervention—whether militaristic or monetary—is not always welcomed in Chile, especially since the Pinochet revolution in 1973.  The recently declassified “Pinochet Papers” show how the Pentagon was extremely influential in overthrowing Chilean leader Allende and was guilty of atrocities in human rights.  Chile, as well as much of Latin America, has not forgotten—or forgiven—the U.S. for meddling in their political affairs.

 

Secondly, the quake exposed Chile’s great economic divide between the rich and poor.  It was the poor communities, living in the margins of society, which were hardest hit by the disaster.  They do not have the financial resources to rebuild. 

 

So what has the US done to help?  Not nearly as much as what they did for Haiti.

 

President Obama pledged “help if they ask for it” and USAID has sent approximately $11 million in relief.    

 

Some U.S. companies have even sent money for the relief efforts:

 

Even so, it appears economic aid from the U.S. to Chile in this crisis has not—and will not—cover over years of unwanted involvement.

A woman holds her child amidst the rubble. A man waits in a makeshift hospital. (inset: US companies that have sent aid)
A woman holds her child amidst the rubble. A man waits in a makeshift hospital. (inset: US companies that have sent aid)

Bad Soccer Played for a Good Cause

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Fabien Vorbe, U-17 Haitian National Team, Furman University Paladins
Fabien Vorbe, U-17 Haitian National Team, Furman University Paladins

Recently I had the privilege to interview Fabien Vorbe, a Furman student-athlete, who was born and raised in Haiti. 

He came to Furman University with great anticipation as a highly touted soccer recruit.  At the young age of 17, Fabien became a prominent player for U-17 Haitian National Team, competing against countries from all over the globe. 

He was named captain for the team and helped them reach the U-17 World Cup in Korea in 2007.  Fabien hails from one of the most notable footballing families in Haitian history so it was no surprise when Fabien exhibited splendid prowess out on the pitch. 

Fabien brought this prowess to Furman by starting at forward as a freshman.  This past winter, like most college students, Fabien returned home to visit his friends and family for Christmas break. 

On January 10, he left his native home to come back to school.  The Haiti he left drastically changed the day he got back.  A disastrous earthquake ravaged his home in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on January 12, 2010. 

Fabien received word that his family made it out alive but his house was destroyed.   Some of his closest friends and teammates died in the earthquake.  Also, he was devastated to find out that his Haitian National Team coach lost his life along with 30 Football Federation members. 

To help raise money for Fabien and his family, Furman University held a school-wide soccer tournament on January 22, 2010.  I had the honor in participating in the tournament and felt honored to help out. 

It was great to see students, fellow athletes, and coaches donating to help Fabien and his family.  The story was covered by the Greenville News. 

Check out the interview with Fabien in my next post and also check out these pictures of Fabien.

What does Idaho say their "Heroes"?

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Those law-breaking Americans I talked about a couple of blogs back have finally been released!

But….

The Americans were imprisoned for three weeks for trying to smuggle children to the Dominican Republic
The Americans were imprisoned for three weeks for trying to smuggle children to the Dominican Republic

What does Idaho say about the Baptists’ return? According to one article, most public opinion was pretty negative. Like me, a lot of locals still don’t really think their argument makes what they did OK.

Furthermore,  media wasn’t allowed to ask the the newly released Americans many questions that have been on the minds of many in the US. Without the media being allowed to do their job, how will the general public develop an opinion on the story of the Americans imprisoned in Haiti?haitian-children

Honestly, I think that not answering questions will only hurt the Baptists. No one in their hometown thinks that what they did in Haiti is OK and the media has followed public opinion quite nicely.

The fact that Americans do not agree with what the 10 Baptists did in Haiti makes me feel more confident in what America stands for. It seems that the media has facilitated the dialogue between the accused and the public. Silence almost speaks as loudly as words in this situation…. where will the media take it? View more photos.

Blogs Bash on Remake

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Coming together to bring awareness to Africa in 1985
Coming together to bring awareness to Africa in 1985

During the Opening Ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, the remake of “We Are the World: 2010” premiered for everyone to watch. Its intentions were to bring awareness to the damage done in Haiti and give viewers the capability of donating.

As I watched the remake, I had no image of what the original video looked like. I wasn’t alive in 1985. But, as I watched this community of celebrities, I was moved by their array of musical style and talent. I recognized many of the well-knowns that popped up on the screen and everyone seemed to be emotionally attached to the cause. But in today’s world of interactive media, everyone is able to voice their opinions.

A week after the debut of the heartfelt remake, bloggers are posting in response to articles and news sites. Most comments are negative toward the 2010 version stating:

  • “They should have gone there and helped personally!”
  • “Straight gabbage.”
  • “As an aside, during the 1985 version, I really felt like the celebrities were doing it for the right reason, and it seemed non-political. This time, however, it seems like they are doing it for self-promotion, and to somehow promote a liberal agenda.”
  • “The remake is so bad, they should be giving US money to listen to it”
Coming together to help Haiti in 2010
Coming together to help Haiti in 2010

Pretty harsh words for people who are trying to help raise money for Haiti.

I love the fact that the United States gives its citizens enough freedom to speak their minds so openly and easily, however; I oftentimes don’t understand why some comments are made.

Without interactive media, like blogging, there would not be a collection of American voices of opinion that I could sift through to see what others thought of the remake.

In the end though, these celebritites came together to remake a beautiful song that they believed would bring generations together for a cause. I do not understand why the rest matters.

Photo A and Photo B

Sending the "Right Message"

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haiti text

It should come as no surprise that one of the most effective ways of raising money for the victims of the earthquake in Haiti, has been through text donations. Leading the group on money raised via texts is American Red Cross who has already raised over 22 million dollars from texts alone with that number growing every day. The way it works is you send a one word text from your phone to a specific number (for example texting “HAITI” to 90999 for the Red Cross) and a certain amount (usually $10 ) is added to your phone bill at the end of the month. Its simple, easy, and quick, but it makes a huge difference for the people in Haiti who really need it.

While The American Red Cross leads in the amount of money donated via texts, it is certainly not the only organization using this tactic. Other popular numbers for text donations include:

  • Yele Foundation (By texting “YELE” to 501501)
  • Clinton Foundation (By texting “HAITI” to 20222)
  • World Vision (By texting “WORLD” to 20222)
  • Salvation Army (By texting “HAITI” to 52000)

Through these groups and many others there has been a huge and successful response to this national texting campaign, with money continuing to be raised daily. And other communication mediums are being widely used as well to bring in donations as well. Commercialscontinue to run on TV and play on the radio encouraging people to donate to various relief efforts and many messages are being sent online as well, through websites like twitter and facebook, adding to the donation totals.  American people seem to really want to help the people of Haiti during this time of crisis and through all the different types of donation tools avaliable they should be able to find a way to.  For the Haitians, every dollar counts and every message sent can help to rebuild there country and provide for its people.

So, have you sent the right message yet?

To see photos of relief efforts going on in Haiti click here.

Singing "Hope for Haiti"

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What do you get when you mix major broadcast networks with major celebrities for an international Television event? One of the biggest showcases America has seen thus far, put on to help with the Haitian Earthquake relief effort. On Friday Jan 22nd, beginning at 8 pm ET, 11 American networks along with over 2o musical artists and many other celebrities joined together in a worldwide telethon entitled “Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief”  to help raise money for the victims of the earthquake. The Event was hosted by Haitian-born entertainer Wyclef Jean in New York, along with George Clooney in Los Angeles, and CNN’s Anderson Cooper live from Haiti. The charity event included appeals for donations from many Hollywood A-listers and performances from major artists such as:

  • Bruce Springsteen, Jennifer Hudson, Shakira, and Sting in New York City
  • Alica Keys, Dave Matthews Band, Justin Timberlake, Stevie Wonder, and Taylor Swift in Los Angelos
  • Coldplay, Bono, Jay-Z, and Rhianna in London

It was quite the star studded event and the results of the telethon speak for itself. Through this international broadcast Hope for Haiti charities have reportedly raised over 58 million dollars and are still continuing to take donations. This amount sets the record for money raised by a disaster relief telethon. However, the broadcast was about much more than the performances and the money raised, it was about showing to world the great need of the Haitian people, and through the low key presentation (there was no audience present and no applause at the end of each song) this goal was achieved.  The focus of the night was not the music but  videos showing the destruction in Haiti and stories talking about how the Haitian people continue to grow and find hope through it all.  So while the concert definitely lived up to its title, bringing hope to the Haitian people, Americans watching the program took something away from it as well:  a sense of sheer admiration and sympathy for the Haitian people.