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Haiti Earthquake Response

May 2010

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Update: Direct Relief Increases Healing Hands for Haiti Grant to $275,000

May 26, 2010

Following meetings at Direct Relief International's headquarters yesterday and today, the organization has increased grant funding to Healing Hands for Haiti International (HHHI) to $275,000. This partner's excellent work in caring for people in need in Haiti and its loss of facilities during the January earthquake have inspired the increase in grant funding, which will support the operation of temporary facilities for a year while permanent facilities are rebuilt. For details on the project, see below.

Direct Relief International Grants $160,000 to Healing Hands for Haiti

May 25, 2010

Reflecting a strong commitment to long-term recovery in Haiti, Direct Relief International is granting $160,000 to Healing Hands for Haiti International (HHHI), whose facilities were damaged or destroyed during the 7.0-magnitude earthquake in January.

The grant will allow HHHI to operate a temporary facility for a year while it rebuilds its facilities. The temporary space will be fully functional to support care for pre- and post-earthquake patients, and will house an emergency-response clinic, an administrative office, medical examining room, physiotherapy gym, occupational therapy room, classroom, and storage space. Existing volunteer guesthouses, pharmacy, and storage will support the temporary facility.

Specifically, Direct Relief’s $160,000 grant will fund:

  • Rent, electricity, maintenance, telecommunications, and other necessities for operating the safe and sanitary temporary facility;
  • Necessary equipment, including an industrial back-up generator, examination tables, physiotherapy equipment, and occupational therapy equipment;
  • Salaries and benefits for needed personnel, including a clinic manager, administrative staff, security personnel, a driver, a translator, and housekeeping staff.

Since 1998, Healing Hands for Haiti has treated over 25,000 patients, outfitting them with more than 1,000 prosthetic and orthotic devices and 1,000 donated wheelchairs.  The not-for-profit, nongovernmental institution operates with no religious or political affiliation.

Healing Hands for Haiti is also collaborating with Handicap International to set up prosthetic fabrication to assist the estimated 4,000 new amputees and other Haitians disabled in the earthquake. Direct Relief shares this commitment to supporting the long-term recovery, with a particular emphasis on prosthetic and orthotic services for the disabled.

Direct Relief International Teams Up with Music for Relief to Fund Small Haitian Nonprofits

May 21, 2010 

Music for Relief has teamed up with Direct Relief International to provide grants of up to $25,000 to small Haiti-based nonprofit organizations working in education and reconstruction in Haiti. The funds will allow groups working in their communities long before the earthquake struck to continue to serve the people in greatest need.

Direct Relief has been supporting hospitals and clinics in Haiti with medicines and medical supplies since 1964 and has provided more than $42.5 million (wholesale) in medical aid since the January quake. With cash support received in the aftermath of the earthquake, Direct Relief established a $500,000 grant program to provide Haitian groups with funds to continue their work. To date, Direct Relief has dispersed $150,000 to five organizations, which will:

  • Rebuild a library and community center in Carrefour-Feuilles;
  • Enable the Haitian Community Hospital to provide free care for three months;
  • Start a psychosocial support program for youths in St. Raphael;
  • Reopen a medical clinic and outreach program in Delmas; and
  • Conduct a community survey and needs assessment of every family in the Carrefour Feuilles community.

Music for Relief (MFR) was founded in 2005 to bring the music community together to support victims of natural disasters and help mitigate damage from future disasters through environmental programs. In early 2009, MFR launched a campaign to support long-term recovery in Haiti following the 2008 hurricanes and floods by funding clean water, food, and reforestation programs in the Central Plateau and La Gonave areas. Following the earthquake in 2010, MFR launched Download to Donate for Haiti, which has raised $250,000 for the emergency response, including such critical needs as the delivery of food, water, and sustainable housing for affected families.

Music for Relief is creating a second album of songs by mainstream and independent artists to reignite support for earthquake recovery in Haiti. This exclusive compilation will be available to fans after making a $10 donation at www.musicforrelief.org/ this summer.

Together, Direct Relief International and Music for Relief will provide more funding to a greater number of deserving groups working at the grassroots level in Haiti.