How we Bahamians are helping
All right, enough responding to the inappropriate reactions of Bahamians to the Haitian earthquake. You know what the old people say: don't mind the noise in the market, just mind the price of the fish. So what the fish costing these days?
I thought I'd start a list of things that ordinary Bahamians are doing. As often happens, people involved in doing good are too busy working to make noise, and so it's easy to get distracted by the more vocal among us and imagine that we Bahamians are not giving or assisting. So I thought I'd make a list of what we are doing. I am absolutely certain that I will miss many people out, so I invite anyone who wants to add to this list. Let's make it as long as we can. (I've got a list over on FB too but let's push it here to the blog, where it can last for a long long time).
- The Tribune, Ways to Help Haiti
- Red Cross accepting non-perishable foods, water, blankets, sheets, towels, cots, clothing and packing boxes. Help will be sent to Haiti and Inagua (which is preparing to receive refugees)
- Salvation Army looking for medical personnel and accepting donations of goods and money
- New Providence Community Centre (NPCC) organizing mission trip and working through their connections in Haiti and Dominican Republic; accepting donations of money
- Christian Council overseeing and coordinating relief and maintaining contact with churches in Haiti to ascertain needs
- Grand Bahama Haitian Bahamian Society accepting donations through Jetta Baptiste's Multi-Service Centre, Freeport
- Haitian Embassy has opened up an account through Royal Bank of CanadaMore details available from the original article
- Rotary Clubs in Bahamas already sent in supply flightsMethodist churches in The Bahamas already have a team on the ground in Haiti to assist relief effortsBahamian government, through NEMA, is coordinating teams of doctors, counsellors and construction workers to go to Haiti in the days and weeks and months to come (in conjunction with CDEMA)
- Bahamian government established a Haiti emergency assistance fund
- CARICOM efforts in Haiti may to be coordinated from Bahamas Embassy in Port-au-Prince, which was not damaged in the quake
- Freeport and Nassau being used as ports of call for transshipments of goods to Haiti in conjunction with Florida
- Massive relief efforts ongoing in Grand Bahama
- Private pilots providing supply flights to Haiti
- Sky Bahamas airline organizing relief assistance
- Bahamas Society of Engineers working with Methodists to send assistance