Background: On January 12, a 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti, leaving nearly 3 million people without water, food, and electricity, with estimates of 50,000 to 100,000 dead.

Effects Locally: This has hit home in Miami, with a population of 400,000 Haitians.  There has been desperation to reach relatives, send supplies and/or go to Haiti.  Our hearts have been very heavy for the people and country of Haiti, but also for our many Haitian friends here.  People have been mobilizing in all kinds of efforts to help and we have been trying to discern the best ways to do this.

The Plan:

Urban Resurrection is joining with the McCormicks, who have been serving in Haiti for three years with Fellowship International Mission, along with other local and national organizations to carry out a plan of action.

The McCormicks live only 10 minutes from the Dominican Republic.  They are proposing is to raise funds, enlist people to help them in the D.R. to round up supplies and bring them back to Haiti. There is an airstrip on the border where planes could be loaded and flown directly into Port-au-Prince (PAP). Alternatively, supplies could be trucked to PAP. The goal is to get the right aid into the right places, relatively quickly. A number of people in the McCormick’s community can also be employed to help shuttle supplies to their fellow countrymen in desperate need.

[excerpt from the McCormicks blog, “Highway to Haiti”]-
“As we begin to find our niche in the relief effort, I need to explain how your help is critical to make this effective. Right now in Port-au-Prince the US military is calling all the shots. They have been given control of the nearly impossible task of getting emergency help and supplies to residents.

Through various networks, we are connected to hundreds of ministries in and around Port-au-Prince. Prior to the earthquake these ministries provided essential services to people with all kinds of needs. Due to the magnitude of the destruction many of these caregivers and service-providers are on the brink of evacuation. But, these people are among those best situated to provide emergency care at a time like this. We should try to do all we can to help them keep their doors open and staff in Haiti—a nearly impossible task as well.

Probably the most difficult aspect of dispensing aid is injecting the right resources, in the right places, at the right times. This is our “niche” in the relief effort—we want to simplify the logistics as much as possible, so follow along closely.”

How You Can Help:

If you are associated with a ministry in Port au Prince (PAP)—like an orphanage, medical missionary, etc., you have probably been trying to contact them to find out what they need. The problem is that getting anything to them will be almost impossible for you. So, we are currently building a supply chain that starts in the Dominican Republic, routes aid items into northern Haiti, and flies them into PAP.

Here is how we work together: Find our what your ministry in PAP needs. Don’t guess; they need to tell you. Get specifics on foods, medicines, hygiene items, etc. (Use the form attached here) At the top of their list is probably water and fuel. Water is becoming available in Port-au-Prince, and fuel will follow on the black market. This brings up a very important aspect of our effort. Since banks have been wiped out, your ministry is probably running out of cash and has no way of getting more. We could transport cash directly to them. The only thing they would need to do is find a way to meet us at the PAP airport.

So, by supporting us, you’re in effect supporting your ministries in PAP. We cannot do this without your help! Find out what they need, tell us who they are, and get us funds quickly. We are working on generating a form for you to use to streamline the logistics. Additionally, we still need money just to keep the supply line greased. If you don’t know anyone in PAP and just want to help, please donate to the Haiti Relief Fund. Every dollar in this account will go towards facilitating what I explained above and be accounted for by FIM.

-You can donate immediately by:
-  Going to www.fim.org
-  Going to www.urbanresurrection.org
-  Mail checks to: Fellowship International Mission – 555 South 24th Street – Allentown, PA 18104 (memo: Haiti Relief Fund)
or
Urban Resurrection – 3158 Carter St. – Miami, FL 33133 (memo: Haiti Relief Fund)
-  Call Matt McCormick  at 011-509-3900-3105 and 011-509-3663-6520or  Michael and Erika Philip at 305-562-7714  and 305-562-7716 or email at Erika@urbanresurrection.org to give directly to them (which would get the money to Haiti the quickest)

-Commit to pray for the people and country of Haiti and all of those affected.  Please let us know if you want to be included in a regular prayer updates.

By supporting us, you’re in effect supporting your ministries in PAP. We cannot do this without your help! Find out what they need, tell us who they are, and get us funds quickly. Additionally, we still need money just to keep the supply line greased. If you don’t know anyone in PAP and just want to help, please donate, pass the word, and pray.

In faith and works,

The Haiti Relief Team; a joint venture of FIM, Kids Alive, and Urban Resurrection

Posted on January 16th, 2010 by Michael
Filed under: Community Development, Evangelism, Events, Family & Friends, News, VOICE