Connections

Natural disasters happen every year, and while some are larger than others, they all impact people's lives. The 7.0 earthquake that happened yesterday in Haiti hit a bit close to home for me... One of my friends was in Haiti on a humanitarian vacation, working with children of the impoverished country. She was on the top floor of her building when the earthquake hit, and was luckily pulled out of the rubble after the building collapsed, suffering only broken bones and bruises (thank god for Facebook that I can know all of this only a day later!). Yet, there are thousands more that need rescuing and emergency health care, thousands more who have died or are dying, and once the immediate triage has been completed, there is still the matter of rebuilding a desperately poor country.

This tragedy has hit me as something that I both can and must help with. I encourage anyone who can to donate to the American Red Cross or any other organization to help with the cause(here is a list of 7 reputable charities), because, as another friend has pointed out, prayers do not set up relief centers, provide drinking water, or rebuild homes and hospitals.