Haiti earthquake update

Lions Clubs in the British Isles have already donated £175,000, with a further Euro 76,000 from Ireland

Lions Clubs from across the British Isles and Ireland have continued their busy fund raising and making donations to our Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) to provide immediate response aid to the people of Haiti.

Simultaneously, the 45,000 Lions Clubs and their 1.3 million members across the world were also responding with US$ 2 million provided by Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF), which has ensured the immediate needs are met with supplies of water, food and medical supplies and distributed by Haitian Lions and Leo Clubs to a hospital and orphanage. The Lions Clubs of the adjacent Dominican Republic have also been making a major contribution by providing us with an additional logistical routing by ferrying contributed supplies across the border to Haiti.

Lions Clubs Haitian Zone Chairperson William Eliacin’s initial desperation turned to hope and gratitude for the people of Haiti when he learned of the great outpouring of support from Lions around the world. He said, “We want to show the Lions and the Haitian people in general that the Lions Club is an extraordinary organization, that we are here and that our motto is, “We Serve”. We serve our peers, we serve our brothers who are in need. That is why we are here. So I am appealing to you. You can count on us to achieve as much as we can with your contribution to help those who are in need.”

Haitian Lions have established three tent cities, each capable of providing accommodation for 1,200 people in Delmas, Blanchard and Carrefour-Feuille and have continued to provide the essential support to maintain them.

LCIF is also partnering with shipping company Maersk , to ship tents, donated by the Lions Clubs of Sweden, and food donated by the World Food Programme, to Haiti free of charge. Further discussions are in progress with other relief agencies.
Whilst currently focussing on immediate needs and the continued provision of supplies, Lions Clubs are also developing, together with Lions Club members from the local area, a long-term plan for reconstruction. Amongst projects being considered are building a school and an ophthalmic clinic.

LCIF Chairperson Al Brandel and Dr. Maureen Murphy visited the area in January to help deliver supplies and meet with Lions to develop a long-term plan. They returned on February 24 for a two-day visit, along with LCIF staff, of Port au Prince, Haiti. They will visit all three tent cities that Lions have helped established, view the devastated areas to assess needs, meet with several non-governmental organizations to discuss collaboration efforts and leveraging of resources, meet with the Mayor of Port au Prince and U.S. Ambassador to Haiti, and work with Lions to develop a long-term relief strategy.

Lions Clubs in the British Isles and Ireland have appointed a Disaster Response Committee to develop plans for our contribution to the overall long term needs, in conjunction with LCIF, by investigating and financing a specific rehabilitation project.

Donations can be made in confidence to LCIF, as 100 percent of every donation will go directly to Haiti relief, as administrative costs are paid by interest earned on investments. LCIF just recently received a four-star rating from Charity Navigator, the highest rating possible from the independent charity evaluator. In 2007 LCIF was named the #1 non-governmental organization to partner with, a title our Foundation still holds today. Our Foundation has been added to several lists of reputable organizations assisting the area.