By: Holly Sargent, Assistant District Governor,
RC of York
At the urging of DG Dick Hall, I am sharing about the actions being taken by the Rotary Club of York to assist Haiti. We hope some other clubs and/or individual Rotarians may find it useful.
We are all deeply concerned with the dual natural disaster devastation that Haiti is facing. We would like to DO SOMETHING, but the frustrating reality of government breakdown and rampant corruption can give us pause and dampen our enthusiasm.
The first is to give to Life and Hope Haiti. This is the organization that is a 501C3 registered in New York that cares for the Eben Ezer School in Milot, Haiti. Several Rotary Clubs have supported the construction and operation of this school over the last decade. It is ably led by Lucia Anglade. Amy Miller of South Berwick serves as the liaison with Life and Hope, helps lead the fundraising and visits our local clubs to keep us informed. Eben Ezer is a tremendous success story.
On Sunday morning, Amy reached out to Dr. Steve Jendejcek of York's Rotary to let us know that Life and Hope Haiti is mobilizing to help even though Eben Ezer School is not in the damaged area. Because of connections and channels that Lucia Anglade has, she has secured access and established a base of operations in the suburbs outside Les Cayes, the epicenter of the earthquake. This is an area of tremendous need outside the urban area. Life and Hope is sending the first of several medical teams with medical supplies and contributed funds to Haiti the weekend of August 27th. Jet Blue is providing free flights and unlimited baggage.
Because many of us have worked with Lucia Anglade on the ground and have complete trust in her, we are directing financial donations and medical supplies through Life and Hope. WE ARE CONFIDENT THAT IT WILL GET TO THOSE IN NEED.
If you want to make a donation, please go to
or mail a check to “Life and Hope” to Amy Miller, 37 Highland, South Berwick ME 03908.
Rotary Club of York’s second action was to send an emergency contribution to Shelterbox for their Haiti Relief. Shelterbox provides emergency shelter with rapid deployment and dependability around the globe. They are already on the ground providing a tent or a tarp when everything else is destroyed. Of course, many clubs support them on an annual basis.