Mary, as a mother, must feel a deep pain in her heart to see the desolation, loneliness, helplessness, pain, poverty and destruction of a country that until now had been forgotten by many. What wouldn’t a mother do for her child?

Mary, as a mother, must feel a deep pain in her heart to see the desolation, loneliness, helplessness, pain, poverty and destruction of a country that until now had been forgotten by many. What wouldn’t a mother do for her child? A mother would give her own life to see her own child´s needs safeguarded.

Let us ask Mary, with all our hearts, to cover, embrace, comfort and provide with what may be necessary for each and every person who has suffered this tragedy.

We can provide material or spiritual support. For those who are able to provide material assistance there are a number of agencies to which a monetary contribution can be made.

For all those who wish to provide spiritual support, please raise your hearts in prayer to our Mother, Mary of Guadalupe, to guard and protect our brothers and sisters in Haiti.

Suggestions for monetary donations

You may obtain information or make a donation directly at any of the following websites:

Caritas Internationalis

http://www.caritas.org/

Catholic Relief Services

http://donate.crs.org/site/PageServer?pagename=mg_emergency

Catholic World Mission

http://www.catholicworldmission.org/site/pp.asp?c=9dJHJLPwB&b=2494

Brief account 
"This is the worst disaster that Haiti has ever lived," said Joseph Villarson Jonides, chief of emergency, Caritas Haiti, to describe the situation in the country following the devastating earthquake of January 12. "Many people have died in Port au Prince. Their bodies are lying everywhere on the streets of the capital. A lot of people are still under the rubble. Hospitals are overwhelmed with the dead and wounded. The risk of epidemic is greatest,” he related in a letter sent to the Caritas International network via email, the only communication with the island possible at the time.

"The streets and squares are full of people who do not know where to go. We fear outbreaks of violence may happen if the situation persists, since police presence is barely visible."

"The president of Caritas Haiti, Bishop Pierre André Dumas, made appealed by radio for calm and solidarity.” Jonides informs. “The most urgent needs are tents, blankets, clothing, potable water, food, first aid goods, flashlights and batteries, as well as psychological support to victims." 

 As confirmed by the brief reports submitted by Caritas Haiti, the chaos that prevails in the whole country is absolute, especially due to the breakdown of telephone communications and most land routes.

Call for mobilization 
Caritas Internationalis president, Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, has appealed to the international community "to join his efforts to help" Haiti.
“It´s a very poor country that needs all our support," said the cardinal, who also recalled how "we have been warning for some time about the lack of development in Haiti, their extreme poverty and how the precariousness of the infrastructure made it more vulnerable to natural disasters.”

Cardinal Rodriguez Maradiaga said that "now that one of the world´s poorest countries will become the focus of media and the priority of humanitarian action as a result of this natural disaster, it is possible that the solutions and necessary commitments to alleviate the misery of the Haitians and the structural poverty of this beleaguered nation may be sought."

Pilgrim Queen of the Family
That is why we propose that we unite in prayer for our brothers and sisters in Haiti, so that together as Church, we may follow the example of Jesus who always careful to attend to the needs of the poorest and neglected in their bodily and spiritual needs.

print

send