Archive for January 15th, 2010

The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN) is accepting search requests for loved ones affected by the earthquake. For those who would like to put in a request that SATERN personnel attempt to locate a loved one, fill out and submit an online health and welfare information form at http://qso.com/satern/emailfrm.htm .  Approximately 300+ requests have already been submitted.

SATERN is a group of 4200+ amateur radio operators scattered throughout North America and the rest of the world who help assist with disaster operations by communicating via high frequency radio networks.

SATERN said there have been significant challenges to establishing searches and gathering information about Haiti because all communication lines within the country are down, preventing the radio operators from being able to take action on the health and welfare requests they’ve received so far. Any information they’ve received about the state of the devastated country has come from maritime ships and other nations around Haiti.

The volunteer organization has a radio operator heading to the country next Friday to set up a radio station, which will be the first step in establishing significant two way communication out of Haiti. There will also be two teams from the Dominican Republic and a medical team heading to Haiti within the week.

SATERN operator Pat McPherson couldn’t estimate how long it would take to get the radio station and an established line of communication set up. In the 21 years he’s been working with SATERN, he described the situation in Haiti as “the most challenging he’d ever seen” due to the massive devastation. He also noted, “Usually when something goes bad, there are operators around the area that was hit, but Haiti didn’t have very many amateur operators to begin with, and that’s part of the challenge.”

Thank you to all the SATERN volunteers who are working around the clock to help those who are looking for their loved ones affected by the earthquake in Haiti. For more information on SATERN, visit their website at www.satern.org.

Updates on Disaster Relief:

For more information on what The Salvation Army is doing in Haiti, visit our national website at www.salvationarmyusa.org or The Salvation Army Haiti at www.salvationarmyhaiti.org. You can also follow us on  Facebook and Twitter.

How to Donate:

To donate directly to the Salvation Army’s Haiti relief efforts , visit our secure online donations page. You can also donate by calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY, texting ‘HAITI’ to 52000, or sending a check or money order to: The Salvation Army World Service Office, International Disaster Relief Fund, PO Box 630728, Baltimore, MD 21263-0728 (*Please note that your donation is for Haiti Earthquake relief*).

Connor Howard may only be 9 years old, but the young boy isn’t letting that stop him from helping those in need in Haiti.

Deeply affected by the tragic footage covering the news, Connor immediately knew he wanted to do something. That’s when he came up with his own coffee can collection idea, where he will bring a coffee can to school at Boon Elementary in Allen, TX  and collect donations in it for The Salvation Army’s disaster relief efforts in Haiti.

Connor’s mother Christine wrote in an email to The Salvation Army:

“Connor and I were watching the news this evening about the earthquake in Haiti…

Before I realized it they showed a picture of a distraught man, tears streaming down his face as he carried the lifeless body of his baby daughter…

This one scene has had a profound effect on Connor and tonight when I put him in bed he fervently prayed for this man in-particular.

Even as an adult it’s hard to comprehend why certain things happen and why it seems sometimes that God allows them…

Questions that did not escape Connor…

In my futile effort to address these complexities of life, Connor on his own told me that he wanted to raise as much money as he could to help these people.”

Connor, way to go! Thank you for your compassion for Haiti and desire to give.  The Salvation Army applauds your efforts and we hope everyone will support Connor’s goal to raise money for the disaster relief efforts in Haiti.

If you don’t live in Allen, TX and are unable to contribute to Connor’s coffee can collection, you can donate directly to the Salvation Army’s Haiti relief efforts at our secure online donations page.

You can also donate by calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY, texting ‘HAITI’ to 52000, or sending a check or money order to: The Salvation Army World Service Office, International Disaster Relief Fund, PO Box 630728, Baltimore, MD 21263-0728 (*Please note that your donation is for Haiti Earthquake relief*).

For more information on what The Salvation Army is doing in Haiti, visit our national website at www.salvationarmyusa.org, or follow us on  Facebook and Twitter.

In the United States, hundreds of volunteers will be working through the weekend to prepare and package one million ready to eat meals to send to Haiti.

They will be diligently working from 12 noon – 10 pm Friday and 8 am – 8 pm Saturday at the El Dorado Convention Center in El Dorado, Kansas, to support Salvation Army relief efforts in Haiti.

These meals , courtesty of Numana Inc. (http://www.numanainc.com/), consist of rice, soy protein, freeze-dried vegetables and vitamins and can be cooked in boiling water. The one million meals will total more than 150,000 pounds once boxed! An additional 285,000 meals, also prepared by Numana Inc., are currently awaiting shipment from Des Moines, Iowa.

No time-table has been set for the delivery of the meals, but The Salvation Army is currently coordinating with other agencies to get these supplies where they are needed.

Thank  you to Numana Inc., and all our volunteers who are working so hard to help make this possible!

For more information on what The Salvation Army is doing in Haiti, visit our national website at www.salvationarmyusa.org, or follow us on  Facebook and Twitter.

You can also donate directly to the Haiti relief effort:
•     Online Credit Card Contributions or PayPal
•    Text ‘HAITI’ to 52000
•    Call 1-800-SAL-ARMY
•    Mail a check or money order to:
The Salvation Army World Service Office
International Disaster Relief Fund
PO Box 630728
Baltimore, MD 21263-0728
*Please note that your donation is for Haiti Earthquake relief*

Thank you, FedEx, for your support of The Salvation Army and other non-profit disaster relief organizations in providing aid to Haiti!

NBC affiliate WMCTV 5 interviewed FedEx Communications Specialist Shane O’Connor about their massive relief effort (Watch video HERE):

“With this particular response we are donating a lot of cash dollars, $425,000, in support to the Salvation Army, Red Cross and a couple other major organizations,” he said.

WMCTV reported that by teaming up with local charities and organizations, FedEx is hoping to ship the necessary food, medicine, and supplies to those in need.

With Haiti’s damaged infrastructure causing significant transportation and shipping problems, FedEx’s generous donation and participation will be a tremendous help to getting aid to Haitians more quickly.

If you’d like to donate to the Haiti disaster relief efforts, visit The Salvation Army’ secure online donations page.

For more news, visit our national website at www.salvationarmyusa.org, and stay up to date moment by moment on Facebook and Twitter.

Many people are asking how they can help relief efforts for those suffering in Haiti. Our most crucial need is monetary donations, which will equip our disaster relief teams with the funds they need to acquire critical supplies and resources. The Richards Group has put together a great PSA  about how you can provide much needed aid through your cell phone – just text ‘HAITI’ to 52000, and $10 will be donated directly to The Salvation Army World Service Office who has staff currently working in or en route to Port-au-Prince.

You can also donate through:
•    Online Credit Card Donations and PayPal
•    1-800-SAL-ARMY
•    Postal mail at:
The Salvation Army World Service Office
International Disaster Relief Fund
PO Box 630728
Baltimore, MD 21263-0728
*Please note that your donation is for Haiti Earthquake relief*

The Salvation Army’s initial assessment team landed in Haiti at Cape Haitian last night and is on their way to the capital city Port-au-Prince! You can read our latest press release at The Salvation Army’s national website HERE.

Major Tom Louden and his team drove three hours Thursday night on treacherous roads severely damaged by the earthquake, saying their car shook constantly as they could only travel on average up to 20mph on the torn up streets.

They reported having to dodge holes in the road the size of “semi trucks,” trying carefully not to get too close to the edge of the cliffs where there were no guard rails for protection.

Major Louden described Haiti looking as if it was hit by a bomb – houses are destroyed everywhere, and people are walking around aimlessly, spilling over into the streets and preventing traffic from being able to pass through. Major Louden said he has never seen anything like this in his life. Imagine – already seeing such destruction when he and the team aren’t even to Port-au-Prince yet, which was much closer to the earthquake’s epicenter and suffers even more damage.

As the team hopefully arrives in Port-au-Prince soon, another team from The Salvation Army left for Haiti from Ft. Lauderdale this morning at 7am, along with a plane full of cargo. We are praying they will be able to land in Port-au-Prince and administer aid and supplies as soon possible.  Art Stevenson from Ft. Lauderdale is serving as their pilot. We’re incredibly thankful for the blessing he is in helping to get our teams to Haiti.

To stay updated on what The Salvation Army is doing, be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

You can also donate through:

• Online Credit Card Donations and PayPal

• 1-800-SAL-ARMY

• Text ‘HAITI’ to 52000

• Postal mail at:

The Salvation Army World Service Office
International Disaster Relief Fund
PO Box 630728Baltimore, MD 21263-0728
*Please note that your donation is for Haiti Earthquake relief*