Thank you to those of you who have already responded to help bring relief to the people who are suffering so much in Haiti. Below is an email from our friend, Terry Snow, the director of YWAM in Haiti, the organization partnering with Show Mercy International. You can see how your funds will be used. We will make sure that any donations sent are promtply forwarded to those on the ground who can make the most impact. Please read the email below and respond as you feel led.
Mike and Lori Salley
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"Dead lay in the streets, possibilities of mass burial sights talked about on the radio. People wandering the streets, city parks now filled with people camping out in them. The situation is worst than dreamed!
Yesterday we sent an investigative team to Port-au-Prince (PAP) to take a first hand look at the situation. I will not easily forget what Rodney Gephart and Wayne Snow said when they had returned; "The situation is worse than it has appeared on TV!" My heart sank and instead of crying I felt a numbness come over me as they began telling me of the dead, the buildings that had colapsed and then to hear that they could not find any information on who is doing what as far as cordinated efforts for immediate response and longterm recovery.
Our Leadership Team went late into the night trying to assemble all the data and strategies on how to begin with assisting the victims of the earthquake of 1/12/10. Praying for strength and wisdom from God! We know He has a plan. We have seen him take us through many floods and other situations that were greater than we could bare in the past and by GOD's grace, mercy and power we will see this through! How ummeasurable is His love! Nothing is impossible concerning Him!
Today's goals are;
-Establish Communication Hub- Focus (Connect with US Embassy, cordinate with any known releief teams, communicate with volunteer teams and individuals that are emailing)
-Establish routes to recieve and send aid (Money, Supplies and Volunteers)
-Check out and establish staging points to House and feed Volunteers (Probably need portable housing)
-Immediate Response - Look for opportunities to run street soup kitchens (Use street vendors to make hot meals to give to anyone who needs them, buy purified water for distro)
-Prepare for Security concerns (Yesterday the people were stund, today they will be starving!)
The ground underneath me just trembled once more as I close this email and I am 60 miles away! Many people have asked how they can help. We need funds to kick in quickly. Until the shipments of additional releif supplies get open money is all we can work with. We have connections to food whole salers in St. Marc that can assist us, but we also need to purchase vehicles to get mobile. Many vehicles were destroyed so we need to find and purchase quickly!"
You can also mail checks to:
Show Mercy International
PO Box 607
Albany, Oregon 97322
