How do I help?

(Published Jan 18, 2010. Updated Jan 24, 2010.)

I cannot count how many times I have heard this question this week. How can I help? What can I do? What do you need?

I am so truly touched every time someone asks me these questions. I want to thank everyone for their amazing generosity over the last week.

That being said, these have become such difficult questions to answer. How can I help? What can I do? What do you need? I’m sorry for any delay in responses to your many generous emails, but I am going to try and answer everyone’s questions now.

How You Can Help: To the “broke” college student:

I know as well as anyone what it’s like to be low on funds. I myself am I student and I assure you, I feel your pain. Haiti Outreach Program student volunteer Katie Erpenbach answered this question today so simply that it was like she didn’t even need a second thought.

I’m a student so I don’t have a lot of money to donate to Haiti… But I do have my time.

Time! There are so many things you can do with a little extra time. Volunteer to help with a fundraiser such as the upcoming dress sale. At no cost to you, you can help collect dresses for Fierce & Fancy Formals Dress Sale, which will benefit our secondary school in Boucan Carre. Everyone has an old prom dress or two laying around, right? Gather your friends to go green and clean out your closets together! We’re collecting any gently used prom, formal, homecoming, bridesmaid, fancy dress you’ve got. Donations can be dropped off at any Prestige Cleaners location in Knoxville or CBBC Bank in Blount County. If you’re not in Knoxville, email us for more info on how to get your donations to town. Every penny of the proceeds from this event will go to the secondary school – giving the people of Boucan Carre the opportunity to become a student just like you! On top of that, the dresses are being sold at reasonable prices for girls who might not be able to afford one otherwise. It’s a win/win/win.

How You Can Help: To the person who likes to plan things:

Awareness is such a huge part of our mission in Haiti, and there are many things you can do to raise awareness without spending a ton of money. For example, you can organize a shoe drive in your church, school, or neighborhood. With a few drop-off boxes, some posters, and someone really interested in spreading the word, you can collect shoes for people who really need them. A simple pair of shoes can dramatically improve the health of people in Haiti by preventing infections from cuts on their feet. The Haiti Outreach Program ships hundreds of shoes to Haiti every year and if you can get the shoes to us, we can get them to Haiti. We also have a list of the items needed most right now in Haiti – you could collect any of these!

Water purification tablets, Mess kits, Meals ready to eat (MRE), Toothpaste, Toothbrushes, Deodorant, Tarps, Unopened gauze, Antibiotic cream/lotion, Antibiotic soap, Tylenol, First aid kits, Ibuprofin, Antacids, Tents

Maybe an item drive isn’t your thing? You could try hosting a potluck dinner in your community or organize a bake sale to raise money for emergency relief. Not only are you raising funds, but bringing Haiti awareness to people everywhere!

How You Can Help: To the person with no time:

To someone who doesn’t have a lot of time to plan an event or volunteer, there is always our emergency relief fund. Any donations collected through this fund will be sent to Partners in Health and directed wherever they are most needed. If you are interested in donating to the long-term commitment we have made to Haiti, there is a place for that too! On our website you can choose whether you want your donation to benefit the general fund, education, medical, or community. All of these separate funds are dedicated to not only helping Haiti now, but sustaining our role in Haiti’s future.

If you are someone interested in helping Haiti in a way that was not covered in this post, let us know! We would love to hear your ideas and offer suggestions to those who still don’t know what to do. Email katie.riley@givehaitihope.org for more information!