COVID-19 is on all our minds. However, as this disease spreads to developing countries COVID-19 will have even deadlier effects, beyond the contraction of the virus itself. More people are likely to die from hunger than from the virus. So many people live hand to mouth with no savings. They are now confined to their houses and are unable to work and feed their families. Our Rotary Club received a call this week from CREAMOS in Guatemala City. Their families are facing starvation and they need our help. The International Committee is starting a fundraising campaign for “COVID19 Hunger Relief Guatemala”. We have already sent $6,000 from our committee but need to raise the balance through personal appeals for donations.
Rotary is ideally positioned to help because all the money raised goes to the cause and we work directly with people on the ground who see the need daily. People want to help. We raised $3000 in 24 hours through one member sending emails and texts to his contacts. It is easy to raise the money if we demonstrate the need and give them a trusted vehicle. Therefore, we have launched a new button on our WebSite to allow people to give to our Rotary Foundation online via Canada Helps.
We are asking each RCOT member to write a note that they can send to all their contacts through all forms of social media. People want to help.
Our goal is $15,000. We can do this. We just need to be fearless in our asking our friends for help. There is no better organization to help and the need is great. Please get this message to your friends and family today. ( Hint; you may need to send it today and remind them tomorrow)
Here is some suggested wording:
I am sending this note to my family and friends in the hope that you will help us solve a very dire situation.
Covid19 is on all our minds. However, as this disease spreads to developing countries Covid19 will have even deadlier effects, beyond the contraction of the virus itself. People are likely to die from hunger than from the virus. So many people live hand to mouth with no savings. They are now confined to their houses and are unable to work and feed their families.
Our Rotary Club received a call this week from CREAMOS in Guatemala City. CREAMOS is an organization we have helped for a number of years. It is training women who live in a slum and were picking garbage in the garbage dump to sew commercially. These women are some of the most marginalized we have worked with. Now the Coronavirus has dealt them a severe blow. The Government of Guatemala has cancelled all but essential services and has instituted a curfew throughout the country. The result is that these women who are paid to be on our training program cannot come to class nor can they pick garbage at the dump. These women are living day to day. They do not have a savings account. They are now without work and they are running out of food.
CREAMOS is setting up a program so that these families don’t starve during this crisis. We need your help to fund this program so that these 200 families can weather a month of quarantine. It only costs $19 to feed a family for 1 week!
Our goal is to raise $15,000. With your help this is doable. I am asking each of my friends and family to donate $100. I will lead with a personal donation of $200. You can make a tax deductible donation to our Rotary Club at the following link Guatemala Hunger. Our Rotary Club will forward 100% of all proceeds to Creamos in Guatemala.
I will be sending updates on our programs success as we go through this together with our friends around the world.