January 25 Update |
Update on eagle.ca Haiti Relief Challenge
January 25, 2010 An amazing 16 ShelterBoxes for Haiti!
The logistics involved in getting the ShelterBoxes to Haiti and distributed in Haiti continue to challenge the ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) but they are making headway. More ShelterBoxes are being transported to Haiti each day and more are being deployed at hospitals, orphanages and at the many camps being setup throughout the Port-au-Prince area. Some of the folks who have responded to the eagle.ca Haiti Relief Challenge have asked "where does our money go and what is it used for?" The funds that eagle.ca has been collecting go to ShelterBox Canada, a registered Canadian charity managed by the Ladysmith Rotary Club in Victoria, BC. They in turn work with ShelterBox UK (the international coordinator) to assemble the ShelterBoxes which are then distributed from the UK. At any given time there are approximately 5,000 boxes in England and at strategic points around the world ready to be deployed. A ShelterBox costs $1,000. Over 90% of the money donated is spent on project expenses. Less than 6% is spent on fundraising and only 3.5% is spent on administration. Some charities spend as much as 25% on fundraising and similar amounts for administration. ShelterBox definitely provides a good return on your donation investment. Unfortunately, 2010 will see a bumper crop of ShelterBoxes distributed in response to global disasters. In 2009 there were approximately 14,000 boxes deployed. This year, in Haiti alone, it is expected that over 10,000 boxes will be distributed. ShelterBox was established in 2000 by a British Rotarian. They sent their first 143 boxes to the victims of the Gujarat, India earthquake in 2001. On Boxing Day 2004 ShelterBox was presented with its biggest challenge to date... the Philippine Tsunami. During the next year they sent more than 22,000 ShelterBoxes to help those in the Philippines and to help victims of Hurricane Katrina in the US and the massive earthquake in the Kashmir region of Pakistan. As you can see, ShelterBoxes play a significant role in providing much needed shelter and relief to those in need. The boxes will be used for up to six months, and remembered by those you have helped for much longer. If you haven't yet accepted our challenge, please start at the beginning and read my initial message of January 14 and the various updates since then (links above). Finally, give some thought to helping by donating or possibly creating your own fundraiser. It could be something as simple as a loose change drive at the office or challenging your suppliers and customers to donate. eagle.ca is coordinating the collection of donations for ShelterBox Canada. Cheques (made payable to ShelterBox Canada) can be dropped off at our office at 26 Chapel Street in Cobourg. We can also take your donations via credit card by calling 905-373-9313. We will issue a donation acknowledgement and ShelterBox will issue charitable tax receipts. I'd also invite you to take our short survey (4 questions) regarding Haiti relief. I'd like to thank everyone who has helped so far and to all who will help. We have been absolutely amazed by the overwhelmingly positive response we have had to our challenge. We'll keep the campaign going until at least February 5th. The need will continue for much longer so please help if you can. Cheers, -tom
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