Oregon Communities See Beyond the Headlines for Haiti

Hundreds of boxes from Oregon will be shipped to Haiti to aid in the devastation.

Oregon Haiti fundraiser images courtesy: Alysha and Stephen Atma

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - With no end in sight, Haitians continue to be challenged by the devastation of January’s earthquake, the rains and the forthcoming hurricane season. Many are just trying to survive today and hoping for tomorrow. Recently many of us have watched the devastation of earthquakes in Chile, Turkey, Japan and Indonesia, and in an effort to make sense of the senselessness we begin to compare the magnitude of devastation. Is it possible; do death, destruction, grief and survival have a comparison? How do we continue to give and help when it is happening all over the world? How do we fix the problem?

The easy answer to the above is found within the eyes, ears and hearts of all those that just continue. We don’t fix - we just become part of the solution. Our hearts connect - our students and communities continue to reach out in the effort to fulfill a sense of inclusion and well being and to extend the sentiment; you are not alone.

After the international lens ceases to communicate the impact and need required by the Haitian people, many communities continue their efforts even after the headlines fade. When the world stops reporting, the realization of the destruction begins to settle in, and the desolation grows, rather than subsiding, for the people of Haiti.

The need for continued commitment has not been lost to so many students and small communities in the Portland area. The need has driven these communities to stand up and provide a little more comfort, after many have proved inconsistent in the long haul. As a result, the impact has been great, and the students have been deeply affected and influenced by the efforts and results that have been achieved through the drive for Haiti.

One generous participant says:

We've really made an effort to work on hygiene for Haiti; it’s our way of giving back to the community. My main job throughout this process was, and still is, to raise awareness in Clackamas neighborhoods as well as contact the dentists' offices around the area to ask for hygienic items.

I now see how selfless some people can be; those that I've had the opportunity to work with are who I aspire to be like. Hygiene for Haiti has really been an outstanding way for us to prove our worth as fellow human beings. This whole experience has really changed my perspective on life and what I can do to help others in need. – Ceili Smythe, CHS Senior

Another young volunteer adds:

So far, we have collected twenty-two full garbage bags of clothing in all! I was amazed at what we had raised. I had contributed by doing a clothing drive in my neighborhood, asking for clothes and toiletries to be donated to go to Haiti. At one of my neighbors’ houses, they gave three garbage bags full! I felt good about making a difference for Haiti. You can make a difference too! Even donating one thing can make a difference! - Kimberly Allen, 6th Grade

Another youngster adds:

In the Cafe we had a visitor named Alysha. She told us information about Haiti and we started the clothing drive. We donated 22 bags to Haiti. I felt great that we helped those in need, and I will always remember what we did for a hurt country. Noah Michael Gruger, 5th Grade

And another:

The earthquake in Haiti was devastating. It was like getting hit by Jackie Chan.” Tyler Hoang, 6th Grade

Oregon Haiti fundraiser images courtesy: Alysha and Stephen Atma

As the awareness and commitment continues to grow, so do the donations; resulting in the continued support of the business community and the encouragement given the students by those around them. During the third work party, February 28 at Clackamas High School, the van pulled up with many dozens of bags and a dozen students ready to help. This resulted in over 100 boxes packed and ready to send to Haiti. 100 boxes filled with clothes and hygiene products. The students then looked and said let’s do this again. What began as packing and filling some boxes has turned into the realization of their impact; a way for them to own their solution to the senselessness they saw in Haiti.

Stepping up with a “carte blanche” commitment to help in our Haiti efforts, and a new partner in this endeavor, is Mr. Tim Evans of Swartz and United Van Lines in Portland, Oregon. Tim has pledged all current and future storage requirements, as many boxes as required to get the items packed and ready to ship, and is currently lobbying on our behalf for end-to-end transportation to our port of origin. He has an intriguing and commendable commitment to helping out on all levels in the community, and we thank him and greatly appreciate his commitment to our cause for Haiti.

“Most overwhelming and why we do the things we do is to see our community members join together in a common effort, it makes us feel like we are part of something bigger.” Julie Leahy, Manager, Starbucks Milwaukie Marketplace. Starbuck continues to have boxes filled with many hygiene products; again they have overwhelmed our efforts by collecting 450 tubes of toothpaste, 51 bars of soap and 55 toothbrushes. The total effort over the last month will help us to deliver one tube of toothpaste and toothbrush to every orphan that we expect to meet while in Haiti.

If the International community does not continue to support Haiti, they will have no other choice but to rebuild in the way they always have, with very few resource and finances. The Haitians are strong, resilient people, but they do need our support. The clothing and hygiene drive are just small contributors, please help in whatever way works for you.

Most importantly, Haiti needs us not to forget and move on, but to continue to support and believe in their future; help them get past surviving for today and help them move toward sustainability.

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Alysha Atma spends many hours working on projects that support and benefit the beleaguered people of African nations who spend way too much time off the western media's radar. This writer explains that she is a culmination of all her experiences, most importantly knowledge she says, and all that she still needs to learn; lessons of love, laughter and the extraordinary giving of both young and old. She says she has the enormous fortune of learning from the best; every person around her, and the amazing strength and fortitude of those she has never met but will always strive to listen to. "I continue to work and write because I believe in the power of community and the power of one, both contradictory to each other and yet can move together in a very powerful way. I feel a responsibility to use my place, freedoms and connections here in the US to stand up and yell for those who need my voice and actions. I have seen such strength in my fellow humans that I cannot even begin to comprehend, they have traveled distances, have gone without food, water, shelter and safety for days and weeks at a time. I have a responsibility as a fellow human to put our common humanity before anything else. Everyone deserves to look towards tomorrow, to dream of a safe future and to have a peaceful present." You can write to Alysha Atma at: alyshann78@comcast.net