"Flight to Crisis" Volunteers Need Sponsors for Haiti

Medical professionals, engineers, security persons, clergy, social workers and therapists are responding to the call to serve two-week rotations on Flight to Crisis teams working with the Community Coalition for Haiti in Jacmel. These volunteers are finding Flight to Crisis through the Red Cross and USAID, through The Huffington Post, and through social networking sites. This is an international effort -- the first team members are coming from Canada, China, the European Union, and the United States. A second team is now forming. While some volunteers are able to pay their way, others need financial support. Financial assistance is also needed to ship donated medical supplies and equipment to Haiti.

One of the volunteers needing sponsorship is Jennifer Ruid. Jennifer lives in Tomahawk, a rural community of 3,770 in the northeastern part of Wisconsin. Jennifer is trained as an RN, and she has organizational skills in addition to her nursing skills. She has worked as a director of nursing, and she developed and managed a geriatric clinic. She speaks French, and she worked with Creole-speaking patients when she lived in Louisiana. She has seen and experienced the difficulties people face when they are dislocated by natural disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina. When she called the Wausau Red Cross to find out if she could volunteer in Haiti, she was told that the Red Cross was not sending volunteers at this time. The Red Cross recommended that she try the USAID website. There she found and connected with Flight to Crisis.

Jennifer wants to go to Haiti in order to contribute her organizational and nursing skills. She also wants to go on behalf of the community of Tomahawk, because her small community is one that cares deeply about what is happening in Haiti. As she said, "I would not be traveling alone. Any and all who support my presence in Haiti would be going with me. When I take my first step in Haiti, so will they."

Daphna Lewinshtein is another Flight to Crisis volunteer who needs sponsorship. She lives in Montréal, the home of the largest Haitian community in Canada. This artist works with adolescents and adults who have special needs. She is also an organizer who is committed to making a difference in the world. She has volunteered at orphanages in India, Korea and Nepal, taught English to Tibetan exiles in India, and worked in at a woman's vocational center in Ghana. Last December, Daphna collaborated with artists, art students, and The Afghan Women's Centre of Montr éal to organize a craft show and café to raise funds for the Rift Valley Children's Village in Oldeani Village, Tanzania and the Flying Kites orphanage in Uttarakhand, India.

Daphna is hoping to create a cultural collaboration between Canadian children in Montréal and Haitian children in Jacmel as a way to create a long-term global connection that will help keep relief efforts alive for the long haul.

If you'd like to sponsor Jennifer, Daphna, or any Flight to Crisis volunteer, or if you are able to assist Flight to Crisis in covering the cost of shipping medical supplies to Haiti, go to the Community Coalition for Haiti Web site at: www.cchaiti.org On the website, choose "Donate for Earthquake Relief." When you are routed to the secure server, choose "on behalf of" and then type in "Jennifer Ruid," "Daphna Lewinshtein" or simply "Flight to Crisis" to benefit other volunteers or to provide transportation costs for medical supplies. Donations of any amount are most welcome, and 100 percent of all donations are tax-deductible.

To donate frequent flyer miles to get volunteers to Miami, contact: [e-mail]

Note: For over 20 years, Community Coalition for Haiti (CCH) has been partnering with Haitian community groups who determine the priorities for their development and support needs. CCH then facilitates connections with international groups such as Rotary International. CCH's major emphases are medical care, education, economic development and agricultural training.