Please Donate!

I have been heartbroken over the reports, pictures, and video coming out of Haiti. I can't describe to you the sickness I've felt for the helplessness I have been overcome by. I can't imagine what these people are going through. My heart breaks for each and every one of them. Empathy is my Achilles heal, but I can't imagine feeling any other way then I feel now. It reminds me how lucky we all truly are. We all have our problems, and so many are going through financial struggles, but even at the worst, we should all be thankful.

I don't care where you donate, but PLEASE, have some compassion and donate, even if its $5, you can't imagine how much that can do. Please make sure your donations are made to a reputable organization. Below are some tips listed on MSNBC to help recognize scams:

• Ignore unsolicited emails, and do not click on links within those messages.
• Be skeptical of individuals representing themselves as surviving victims or officials asking for donations via email or social networking sites.
• Be cautious of emails that claim to show pictures of the disaster areas in attached files, because the files may contain computer viruses. Open attachments only from known senders.
• Decline to give personal or financial information to anyone who solicits contributions.
• Make contributions directly to known organizations, rather than relying on others who claim in emails that they will channel the donation to established groups.
  

I'm donating to Doctors Without Borders. The reason being, this organization is already set up and assisting the injured. Over 1,000 people have received treatment thus far in tented facilities they have set up near the building they were previously set up in. They have several planes ready to send more medical supplies, including an inflatable hospital with two operating theatres. They have 80 additional staff members, including surgeons and anesthetists, ready to go. And after doing the little research I'm able to do, lets be real, we don't have a lot of time here, the money you donate can go far:

Your Donation-What It Can Provide

$35-Two high-energy meals a day to 200 children

$50-Vaccinations for 50 people against meningitis, measles, polio or other deadly epidemics

$70-Two basic suture kits to repair minor shrapnel wounds

$100-Infection-fighting antibiotics to treat nearly 40 wounded children

$250-A sterilization kit for syringes and needles used in mobile vaccination campaigns

$500-A medical kit containing basic drugs, supplies, equipment, and dressings to treat 1,500 patients for three months

$1000-Emergency medical supplies to aid 5,000 disaster victims for an entire month

$5500-An emergency health kit to care for 10,000 displaced people for three months
Pray for these people and their nation.

We may not personally know anyone from Haiti, but it shouldn't matter, we are all children of God!