Haiti help

I learned something about 15 years ago and that is, anyone at any time can step up and help people in need.

I know, it sounds simplistic and it is, but until it happened to me, I had no clue that complete strangers can offer help in a variety of forms and actually just comfort you in a time of need and it will not matter that they never knew you before and will never see you again.

On Valentines Day 1995 our house burned. Everyone got out, the house was complete loss and for weeks I was a bumbling idiot in some sort of emotional shock. The day after the first my friend came to watch the children so we could shop for toothbrushes and clothes, I was still wearing the bloody pants I wore when we scurried from the house.

We stayed in a local hotel for a few days while insurance sharks circled. Since we had nothing, we needed everything. Imagine what it is like to lose everything you have, everything you use on a daily basis from clothes, to towels. In a matter of minutes they all disappear. We spent a lot of time buying stuff. But right after the fire, we were out looking for something, probably clothes for the kids and when we came back to the hotel there was a message for us to come to the lobby. When we got there we found bags of donated items, kids toys, games, toasters, pots and pans, sheets, towels, an awful lot of everything. I think I cried. It was shocking, not just how generous and caring complete strangers were in our time of need, but at that point I realized that anyone can help anyone. It was life changing.

You do not need permission to offer help. I have delivered blankets and food to people in need. Certainly I have donated money in national and international tragedies. This is what we can all do now. While I am sure the good people of Haiti could use blankets and pots and pans, what the aid workers could use right now is money. At this point in my life I just do not have a lot of money, but I am donating some, and so should you.

We are all citizens of the world and when tragedy strikes we can stand up and help those who need it. You can also help neighbors and people who live in your community, people who find themselves in tragic situations, but today, the people of Haiti need help. So click HERE and give something to a group that has already hit the ground running. Do something for someone else, do something for people who are suffering and dying because of a natural disaster that no one was expecting.