Help For Those Who Got Battered By Ike (And Gustav And Hanna)
After bracing for Ike for a week, South Floridians got really lucky and had to deal with little more than a few canceled events. Residents of Hispaniola and Cuba weren't quite so lucky; Haiti was flooded by Gustav and then got more rain when Ike skirted by. Cuba is still dealing with Ike; the eye of the storm is hovering over Camaguey and moving right over the length of the island.
Both islands, Haiti especially, need food. Lots of it, and quickly. After the jump, how you can help.
There is a Haitian National Red Cross Society currently working to get aid to victims of the hurricane, but it's unclear how to get donations directly to them. Your best bet, if you want to go the Red Cross route, is to give through the Caribbean Red Cross, which accepts money donations through its website.
The Miami Herald lists these more Haiti-specific charities that are looking for donations of food and/or money:
• Catholic Charities of Miami wants to provide monetary assistance. Checks may be made payable to Catholic Charities of Miami with a notation in the memo line designating the donation for either Tropical Storm Fay or Hurricane Gustav or both and mailed to: Catholic Charities, Storm Aid, 9401 Biscayne Boulevard, Miami Shores, FL 33138. Donations can be made online via a secure internet site by accessing http://www.ccadm.org clicking on Donate Now, followed by designating the amount to be contributed and the donation option.If you're looking to help Cubans in need, Babalu's Ziva has a few recommendations:• Cross International, a Christian aid organization, is seeking to bring food. To provide donations call 1-800-391-8545 or visit www.crossinternational.org and click on the emergency hurricane support link.
• Food for the Poor, an international and development organization based in Coconut Creek, is asking for donations to purchase additional building materials for repairs to homes. Log onto www.FoodForThePoor.org/Gustav or call 1-800-487-1158.
• The Pan American Development Foundation has set up a website called Pan American Relief (www.PanAmericanRelief.org) to collect donations.
MONETARY DONATIONS: JEWISH SOLIDARITY, a 501.C.3 not for profit organization with a license to secure donations for Cuba relief. You can send your donation check to: JEWISH SOLIDARITY, attention: Maricusa, 100 Beacon Boulevard, Miami, FL 33135. Check should be marked "humanitarian relief".Other Babalusians noted that many times, aid packages to Cuba are diverted to other countries, and some noted that there have been instances of donations of perishables being sold in Cuban stores for dollars. Does this mean you shouldn't donate? I don't know. I do feel like we (as in those of us who know the havoc that a hurricane can wreak) should do something, especially since we were so lucky this time around.CATHOLIC CHARITIES/Caritas Cubanas, a not for profit agency of the Catholic Church who also holds a license to provide aid to Cuba. Checks should be made out to Catholic Relief Services and sent to Catholic Relief Services, P.O. Box 17090, Baltimore, MD 21203-7090. Checks should be marked: "For Cuba Gustav Relief".
ITEM DONATIONS: For those of you in the Miami area who would prefer to take food items in lieu of a check donation, you can do so by taking these to The Daughters of Charity at 500 NW 63 Avenue in Miami. They also have a license to send aid to Cuba and are sending two containers in the next few days. The organization has particularly identified the following high-need items: powdered milk, evaporated milk, canned little hot dogs, lentils in packages, black and red beans in packages.
How to help Haiti [Miami Herald]
Help for Hurricane Victims [Babalu Blog]
