By Jaime Feather, The Leader
Being the poorest country in the western hemisphere and one of the poorest countries in the developing world, Haiti is in need of help from other countries. Approximately 80 percent of the rural Haitian population lives in poverty and over the past decade, it has only been getting worse.
According to the World Bank website, life expectancy there is 57 years and only one-fourth of the population has access to safe water. As the Haitian population continues to grow at an estimated 200,000 people per year, any assistance would be a positive step towards bettering the country.
Photo shows Joyce Harvard Smith with student volunteers.
“There is no starvation here mind you, but the extreme poverty of many means only the essentials are covered,” said president of Manutech and Fredonia alumnus Lance Durban, ‘70. “[That includes] basic food, substandard lodging and clothes that are quite frequently Salvation Army cast-offs that end up sold on the streets. There are few public schools and private schooling is a luxury that many cannot afford. Toys and seasonal gifts are things that poor families can’t even imagine.”
Manutech, Inc. is a company in Haiti that manufactures electronic components. There are approximately 450 employees and while all of them are employed, they also have friends, family members and neighbors who are considerably less fortunate.
Students taking an Active Roles in Service (S.T.A.R.S, formerly the Social Work Club), together with Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, Student Association, the Volunteer and Community Services Office and Disney Hall are helping the people of Haiti. They have organized “Project Shoebox,” a worldwide project designed to aid the families that need it the most in Haiti.
“It’s not that hard for students to put the time and resources in and if you can do anything to help, why wouldn’t you?” said S.T.A.R.S. president Delaina Fico.
Continuing through the end of March, all sponsors will be collecting items in three different categories: toys, school supplies and toiletries. Toys include small cars, balls, dolls, stuffed animals, plastic kazoos, yo-yos and slinkys. School supplies include pens, pencils and sharpeners, crayons, coloring books, paper or writing pads and solar calculators. Hygiene items include toothbrushes for the whole family, toothpaste, soap, combs, washcloths and hand towels. Other items might include hard candy, lollipops, mints, gum, sunglasses, flashlights with extra batteries, socks, hair clips and t-shirts.
“I think it is definitely a great idea for students to want to help families in need. It is a wonderful project to get involved in. S.T.A.R.S. has been [especially] instrumental in helping develop the project,” said Volunteer and Community Services Office coordinator Joyce Harvard Smith.
According to “Kids for the Kingdom,” an organization dedicated to changing the living conditions and spiritual lives of children, especially in third world and war-torn countries, thousands of shoeboxes have been put together and donated. In the last five years, Kids for the Kingdom, along with its German sister organization CHILD-International, have collected, shipped and delivered over 20,000 shoeboxes full of supplies all over the world, including places such as Russia, Zambia, Nicaragua, Cambodia, Guatemala, Romania, Philippines and India.
After all items are collected, volunteers will organize them into shoeboxes, donated by the local TJ Maxx, and prepare them for shipment overseas. Manutech’s Social Activity Committee will be involved in distributing the boxes. According to Durban, all employees will be encouraged to identify a child from a family that is poorer than their own to whom they can give their gift boxes.
There will be a table set up from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday, March 2 in the Williams Center, for donations. Look for posters or contact Ms. Smith at 716-673-3690 to find out where donations can be made after that.
