Anne writes in…

Change for Haiti at Oakhurst Elementary a Huge Success!

The final total for the Change for Haiti collection is $2,320! We can purchase TEN Schools-in-a-Box to help set up temporary schools for 800 kids in Haiti. At Community Circle on Friday, March 12th, Oakhurst Elementary will present a check to a UNICEF representative. The UNICEF representative will bring a School-in-a-Box to show the kids exactly what they raised money for. Great job and tremendous thanks to all the kids and parents of Oakhurst Elementary for their generosity!

Following up from last month’s shopping event.  From the Decatur Minute…

Thank you to everyone who came out to support Decatur for Haiti night last month. We raised $4,500 for the cause with help from the following businesses: Cakes and Ale, Chick-Fil-A, Decatur Business Association, Decatur Downtown Development Authority, Fleet Feet, Hairwerks, The Iberian Pig, Little Shop of Stories, The Marlay, Mingei, Nectar, Palate Cafe and Bar, Peggy’s Boutique, Saba, and Yogurt Tap.

Anne writes in…

The students of Oakhurst Elementary are presently holding a change drive entitled “Change for Haiti” in which the funds collected will go towards UNICEF’S “School-in-a-Box” Program providing temporary schools for children in disaster zones. Each “School-in-a-Box”, which costs $232, contains enough school supplies for 80 children.

This idea grew from 2 of Oakhurst’s very own students who were wanting to do something for the children of Haiti following the devastating earthquake. The third graders are collecting and counting/rolling the change and using their knowledge of estimation, multiplication and money as they make real life connections all while raising money for a good cause. It also draws close a real world example of Empathy and Caring, one of the design principles of Expeditionary Learning. By last Friday, the end of the first week, Oakhurst had collected well over $1000!

“Change for Haiti” will continue until this Friday, February 12th.

Ellen and Ann at Mingei World Arts just sent out this alert…

On Thursday and Friday this week, Mingei will donate 10% of total sales to Partners in Health for earthquake relief. We will also be accepting cash and check donations which we will forward. This organization, founded by Paul Farmer and Ophelia Dahl, has been working in Haiti for many years. Please read about their work here.

With all the scams popping up out there, it makes sense to rely on your fellow residents with intimate knowledge and the right connections to make sure your donations are spent wisely.

If you know of other local businesses or organizations that are collecting funds to help the Haitians in Port-au-Prince, please post below.