Dunn Tire, customers raise $83,648 for Haiti quake victims
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Tire Business staff report
BUFFALO, N.Y. (March 11, 2010) — Dunn Tire L.L.C. and its customers have raised $83,648 to aid victims of the Jan. 12 Haiti earthquake.
On March 5 Dunn Tire Chairman Randall Clark presented the check to Hands On Disaster Response to support the nonprofit organization’s relief efforts in Haiti, where its volunteers are helping residents with such projects as clearing rubble of collapsed homes and building shelters and classrooms.
During its fundraiser, Dunn Tire contributed $5 for every tire sold between Jan. 16 and Feb. 14 at its 29 stores in western and central New York and northern Pennsylvania. The dealership also collected donations from the public and gave anyone who contributed $10 or more a free state vehicle inspection or a $10 discount.
About $10,000 came from public donations, some from customers and others from walk-ins who had heard the dealership’s radio spots promoting the fundraiser.
“When we say ‘Dunn Tire Cares,’ it’s not just words, it’s our fundamental corporate philosophy, and we translate our beliefs into actionable items and tangible results as often as we can. Our annual Breast Cancer Awareness campaign and holiday food drives are other examples,” Mr. Clark said.
“The stories of generosity from our community are heartwarming,” he added. “We had a 9-year-old girl come into one of our stores in Rochester (N.Y.) with her mom. She brought us all of her allowance money—$9—because she said she wanted to help the people that didn’t have homes anymore.”
CHILE: Earthquake Update
On Saturday February 27, 2010 an 8.8 earthquake struck Chile.
The United Nations confirmed Monday, March 1 that Chile had requested assistance and the UN was ready to help. Chile asked for mobile bridges, field hospitals with dialysis centers, satellite phones, electric generators, salt water purification systems and field kitchens, according to Elizabeth Byrs of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Megan Mattson said the Chilean government “has not yet accepted additional offers of assistance, pending the completion of an assessment of specific needs.” She noted Santiago’s airport remained closed to foreign aid.
At this time, based on HODR’s current engagements in Indonesia and Haiti, we are not planning to send an assessment team.
INDONESIA: Project Sungai Geringging Update – Week 18
The numbers
We’ve just passed our 100th day in the field! In that time we’ve completed deconstruction work on 95 homes and 4 school buildings – that’s almost one structure made safe for every day of project! We’ve also framed 7 transitional shelters (t-shelters), delivered Earthquake Safety workshops in 15 schools, installed 6 latrines and 10 water catchment systems, and put in over 25,000 volunteer hours!
T (shelter and transfer)
The t-shelter program has been providing transitional homes now for 6 weeks. Thanks to the hard work of volunteers Sinead and Aaron, prefabrication is completed at the HODR base and the wooden frames are going up seamlessly. An integral part of the t-shelter program is sharing the simple construction techniques with our beneficiaries while on site. To help strengthen this transfer of knowledge CARE has welcomed our beneficiaries to attend a community workshop they are hosting, in which safe permanent building techniques are demonstrated. The first workshop was held at the start of February in one of the few undamaged mosques in town, and everyone was eager to get involved in the “hands-on” session.
Rendering
We have 2 t-shelter rendering crews led by Michelle and Suzi doing some high quality work. The teams come in after the wooden frame is up to coat the mesh covered walls inside and out, resulting in a finished masonry look for the shelters. It took a few tries to find the perfect technique, but thanks to local volunteer and mason Arman, the rendering teams are making great time and are never far behind the framing team.
Ice Cream Fun
Painting crews are now putting the final colorful touches on the completed t-shelters. Most of the homeowners have chosen ice cream pink. Keep an eye on Flickr for updated photos of all the t-shelter work and especially the fun, new finished result.
Also, it’s great to see that less than three weeks after completion of her shelter, Zanibar and her husband Pa’i have built significant additions to their new home. Read the ReliefWeb report by TC to see what steps the family has already taken towards recovery using their HODR transitional shelter.
Decon 100
It is now five months after the 30 September 2009 earthquake and many families have worked hard to rebuild. It’s amazing to see that some of those we helped early in the project have already used the materials we salvaged during deconstruction to rebuild, with simple shelters and even new foundations popping up all around town.
So far we’ve worked on 95 homes and with six weeks remaining we’re pushing hard to top one hundred. Deconstruction jobs are led by Clare and Sean, the transatlantic super-duo that left the project and then returned to continue their work. Their skills along with their team members continue to impress our neighbors – there’s usually a curious crowd gathered for the final moment, where we safely pull the structure down by hand!
Earthquake Safety Training (+ first aid)
In January volunteers Neil and Laura started a Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) program, training school groups on earthquake safety and evacuation. The program was inspired by observations of children’s behavior during a tremor and has helped increase the awareness of proper safety procedures on the part of both teachers and students. Within days of leaving Project Sungai Geringging, Neil joined HODR in Haiti and has joined a team working on the same program for schools located near Project Leogone.
Volunteer Dhaniella, also inspired by observations while out in the community, put together a basic first aid training session aimed at teachers. We’ve combined the two trainings and the new ‘extended’ program is being delivered to schools throughout the area. It’s a great way to engage and inform both students and teachers, and is easy for local school staff to repeat throughout the year!
Village Photo Project 
One of the legacy programs that HODR frequently engages in is the Village Photo Project. Most families in our community don’t have access to cameras or the means to print pictures, so we are compiling a collection of images to hand out. After four months of work and play, HODR volunteers have accumulated an impressive collection of beautiful photos. Sharing these images is immensely rewarding during this time of rebuilding and new beginnings.
Upcoming
Families continue to feed us overwhelming amounts of fried snacks, ice tea, local noodle dishes and adoring smiles. In the coming weeks we will continue to welcome volunteers to help us build more transitional shelters and continue safe deconstruction of earthquake-condemned homes. While new volunteers arrive daily, we must also say goodbye to some who are making their way to join HODR in Haiti. As our volunteers carry their immense energy, dedication, and skills to the other side of the world to help the people of Haiti I wish them, all the others who join their efforts, and the people of Leogane the best of luck.
Come volunteer with us and see what all this is all about!
-Henri Fawcett
Project Coordinator
Project Sungai Geringging
HAITI: Notes from the Field 2/23/10
An update from David Campbell, HODR Executive Director:
Friends,
I have just finished my second trip to Haiti since the Jan. 12th earthquake, and am moved by both the breadth of the devastation and the enormity of the response effort. The challenge of providing an appropriate human response, in a poor island nation with weak infrastructure, after an event that hit the major urban area and seat of government, has been overwhelming.
Supplies of water, food, and fuel seem stable, and the port is now receiving container shipments. The airport has reopened to the first commercial flights since Jan 12th. Schools, hospitals, homes in the hundreds of thousands, have been destroyed. The official death toll is now reported at 230,000.
But the people are moving forward. In spite of the media reports I see busy streets, people working together to cope, initial steps to rebuild lives.
We’ve opened our HODR Project Leogane, in a large abandoned concrete building that sustained minimal damage; we’ve added water, kitchen, bunk beds, hired cooks and drivers, and opened for volunteers a week ago.
We’ve already cleared rubble from several homes to allow the families to start on the path back, and have a clear, safe place for tents and transitional shelter. In the future we’re planning to clear many more homesites, help build transitional shelters (normally about a 12 x 18 sq ft space), temporary classrooms, and help in every way we can. We expect 60 volunteers on site this weekend, and will ramp up to our full capacity of 100 volunteers each day in March.
Our expectation of an initial 6 month project cost is $500,000, our largest effort since Hurricane Katrina. Your support is essential by volunteering and monetary donations. The IRS has allowed any donations made by Feb 28th to qualify as 2009 deductions, so please use that extra incentive to send a donation to help now. Click here for details from the IRS.
To make a contribution today or volunteer with us in Haiti, use the buttons to the right.
Thanks,
David Campbell
SmarterTravel: Vacations with a Heart
Vacations With a Heart:
Voluntourism Opportunities Around the World
by Jaclyn Liechti, SmarterTravel.com Staff – February 11, 2010
What better time to show your love for the world than Valentine’s Day? Volunteer vacations provide a way to lend a helping hand, whether it’s across the globe or close to home. And with Disney’s new Give a Day, Get a Disney Day promotion, you can even earn a free ticket to a Disney park. Whether you want to spend a few weeks building communities, or just tack on an extra day to your vacation, you can make a difference by donating your time and efforts to places in need.
Disaster Relief
With the Haiti earthquake so fresh in the minds of people around the world, many are seeking to do more than donate money. Currently, most organizations are not taking volunteers for service in Haiti, but keep an eye out for announcements from organizations like the Red Cross, United Way, Oxfam, and others on ways you can help. One charity, Hands On Disaster Response, just announced Project Leogane, and volunteers can sign up to help remove rubble and eventually build transitional shelters. There is no fee to help out, but airfare is not covered by the organization.
Five years after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans is still trying to recover from the disastrous effects, and those interested in volunteering relief assistance have a variety of options. New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity provides opportunities for groups or for individuals with all levels of experience, and volunteers can serve for a minimum of one day, leaving plenty of time to explore the jazz clubs and cuisine of the city. The New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau lists several more opportunities for volunteers, including painting and landscaping with Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans; repairing homes with Beacon of Hope; gutting and rebuilding houses and mentoring with Katrina Corps; and many others. Tourists can also assist in the recovery of City Park by helping to plant trees and plants; although much of the debris has been cleared away, the park is still in long-range recovery to replace what was lost. Most organizations require a minimum of a half day or one day of service. Some of the groups request a small fee ($10 to $50) to cover equipment, insurance, and administration costs.
Indonesia is still recovering from the devastating earthquakes that shook the nation in September 2009. Hands on Disaster Response’s Project Sungai Geringging in Sumatra is accepting volunteers through April 2 to assist with salvaging materials, building transitional shelters, and more. The organization provides housing, meals, and tools at no charge, but travelers must pay their own transportation costs. There is no minimum time requirement, which means that those interested in seeing the rest of the country can drop in for a day before heading out to see the sights, or stay as long as there is a need for help.
The recent floods in Peru have displaced many people, including those in the Ccaccaccollo community, where Planeterra provides tours to a women’s weaving co-op through Gap Adventures. The organization is asking all travelers to Cusco, including those on its Cusco Kids Project and Project Peru volunteer vacations, to bring donations of blankets, sleeping bags, tents, and dried food to the Hotel Tupac Yupanqui.
Teaching
Although many teaching programs require long-term commitments, there are several organizations that offer shorter vacations for English speakers. Global Volunteers, a private, non-profit organization, offers volunteer vacations to teach conversational English in countries such as Ecuador, Ghana, Italy, Poland, and Vietnam. All that’s needed is a native level of speaking, and standard programs are two weeks, though shorter, one-week trips are also available. In Italy, for example, volunteers will teach middle and high school students for a standard 40-hour week, and have weekends free to explore the Puglia region. The trip costs range from $995 to $3,195, and include lodging, meals, in-country transportation, and a project donation; the fee is also tax deductible. Additionally, returning volunteers, families, and students receive a discount on the price.
Work & Volunteering Abroad (WAVA) also provides volunteers with opportunities to teach in other countries, either in a formal or informal setting. In Prague, English-speakers can spend three weeks with a Czech family assisting children with English skills. The cost of £490 (about $671, see XE.com for current conversion rates) covers meals and accommodations in a homestay. Or, volunteers can spend two or more weeks teaching in a secondary school in Uganda. For stays shorter than one month, guests can teach sports or painting to students. The program fee starts from £420 (about $575) and includes a project donation, lodging, and meals.
Environmental Conservation
Environmental voluntourism can take many different forms, from sea turtle conservation to hiking trail construction, and opportunities exist both near and far. The American Hiking Society offers six- to ten-day volunteer vacations year-round in several states, including Hawaii, Minnesota, and West Virginia. Volunteers can help eliminate invasive weeds in Alaska’s Chugach National Forest, repair the Shepherd Pass Trail in California, or help stop trail erosion in Virgin Islands National Park. Nonmembers can join the trips for a $275 ($250 if registered before February 28) fee, which includes meals, park fees, a crew leader, and often airport pickups. Accommodations for most trips are based on camping, and participants must provide their own tents, as well as airfare costs.
Sierra Club members can take advantage of service trips that help preserve public lands but still offer time to explore a destination. Its volunteer vacations are typically less expensive than its other outings, but still include plenty of time for leisure activities. Offerings this year include removing non-native plants at Point Reyes National Seashore in California. This week-long trip includes two days off for exploring the surrounding area, and the price of $595 includes meals, accommodations, and necessary tools. Members can also take an eight-day expedition to assist the U.S. Forest Service on various projects in Kentucky’s beautiful Red River Gorge. One free day and one day dedicated to boating in Mill Lake or hiking provide ample opportunities to explore this national natural landmark. The $375 trip price includes meals and necessary tools; participants must bring their own tents. Membership to the Sierra Club is available for a nominal $15 donation.
The Earthwatch Institute is a global program that offers expeditions around the world ranging from three days to two weeks. Participants can assist with archaeology, ocean health, and threatened animals. Trips for 2010 include assisting with research at the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Namibia; counting lizards or frogs, tagging vine species, and testing ways to sustainably manage tropical rainforests in Puerto Rico; and studying small mammals or coyotes in New York City. Prices and their inclusions vary.
Gap Adventures also provides opportunities to work with and protect endangered or threatened animals. Project China is a two-week expedition through Shanghai, Xi’an, and Beijing. Five days are spent volunteering at the Bifengxia Panda Center, and the rest of the time is used to explore the Terra Cotta soldiers, the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, and other Chinese sites. The trip costs $1,899, which includes orientation walks of Shanghai and Xi’an; tours of the Shaolin Kung Fu Display, the Terracotta Warriors, the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, and Tiananmen Square; the volunteer stay at the Panda Reserve; in-country transport; and accommodations. The 15-day Project Costa Rica tour includes five days on a Sea Turtle Conservation Project monitoring a baby turtle hatchery, counting and releasing baby turtles, and cleaning the beach. The remainder of the trip provides time to explore the Monteverde cloud forest and the town of La Fortuna. The $949 price tag covers a horseback riding excursion, a guided visit to the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, the sea turtle conservation project, some meals, in-country transportation, and accommodations.
Community Building
Habitat for Humanity works in many cities and towns across the United States, but it also offers volunteer vacations with its Global Village program, through which travelers help construct houses and spend a few days exploring an area. Trips range from far-flung destinations such as Kenya, New Zealand, Poland, and Brazil to U.S. locations, including Alaska, Mississippi, and South Carolina. International trips cost between $1,200 and $2,500, while U.S. trips cost between $900 and $1,900. Costs include room and board, travel insurance, and a donation, but airfare is additional.
Gap Adventures offers several volunteer vacations that promote community in different ways. The nine-day Project Ecuador Highlands includes five days helping an indigenous family with daily activities, volunteering at the local daycare and school, or working on the organic farm. For one person, the cost is $839, but groups of two or three can save about $200 per person. The price also incorporates guided tours to the equator, indigenous villages, and Peguche Waterfall and Cuicocha Lake; a visit to Otavalo Market; some meals; in-country transportation; and accommodations. During the 10-day Project Galapagos vacation, travelers will volunteer with the local community to build an eco-playground out of recycled materials, and have time to visit the Charles Darwin Research Station and swim, dive, and snorkel in the crystal-blue waters. The trip cost of $1,299 includes accommodations, but not meals or airfare.
Globe Aware, a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization, offers volunteer vacations around the globe, including Brazil, Jamaica, Romania, and Thailand. In Romania, travelers will spend a week improving a kindergarten, building homes, or working with needy children. The price of $1,390 includes meals, accommodations, on-site transport, administrative costs, and a donation. The Thailand expedition focuses on assisting Buddhist monks by helping at a nursery, teaching basic English, giving fundamental computer instruction, assisting the elderly, and other outreach activities. The cost for the week-long trip includes the same amenities as the Romania trip for $1,090.
Destinations
If you already have a vacation planned or have your heart set on a certain destination, it’s still possible to volunteer your time with local organizations. Many convention and visitors bureaus have a voluntourism section on their websites. For example, travelers to Aruba can sponsor a mile of beach on the third Wednesday of each month. In Colorado, visitors can spend three days building or re-routing trails with the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative. And if you’re heading to Vancouver for the Olympics, opportunities for volunteering include pulling invasive ivy with the Stanley Park Ecology Society on February 13 or 28 (contact the park for more details and further dates).
Your Turn
The opportunities for volunteer vacations are nearly endless, and I’ve only touched the tip of the iceberg. What trips sound like the most fun to you? Have you taken a voluntourism expedition? Do you know of any organizations or expeditions not mentioned here? Please share in the comments section below. [Visit this article at SmarterTravel.com to share your comments on their website.]
Help Build Homes & Hope In West Sumatra
Hands On Disaster Response (HODR) is building transitional houses in West Sumatra as part of Project Sungai Geringging, our Indonesia earthquake response. These shelters cost US$1000 each and will ensure a dignified, secure, and versatile space for families as they rebuild in the years to come.
Your donation makes a direct impact in the lives of families recovering from the earthquakes and the volunteers who support them. All donations will be used specifically for HODR’s Transitional Shelters in Indonesia. For more information and to donate, please click here.
Please help HODR build homes in West Sumatra by donating today.
HAITI: Project Leogane Announcement
Announcing Project Leogane, Haiti 2010, earthquake response project. This extraordinary disaster has had a devastating impact on the entire fabric of Haiti, and we are anxious to help.
The country has suffered over 110,000 lives lost; in Leogane, where we will focus our efforts, an estimated 90% of the buildings were destroyed. This will be a serious project, cooperating with other local and international NGOs, to help the community of Leogane recover from this massive event.
We are committed to a minimum period of 6 months, beginning February 15, 2010, when the project opened to volunteers. As always, we tailor our projects and work on the ground to the unique needs of each community and disaster. Since this event and challenge is so large, serious, and we’ve received unprecedented volunteer interest, we have established specific rules and structure for this HODR deployment:
- We will have a capacity for 100 volunteers at a time and therefore may not be able to accommodate everyone who is interested in volunteering.
- We will build up to this capacity over the month of February, and we will consider satellite projects later in the deployment, but not initially.
- We will not be able to accept drop-in volunteers.
- We will give some priority to:
- HODR alumni, particularly our Project Gonaives alumni
- Specific skills we enumerate; at the time licensed structural engineers
- The volunteer base will have no alcohol, strict curfew and lights out policies, with zero tolerance.
Our efforts will be under open scrutiny from the community, media, donors, and humanitarian world. It is an opportunity to demonstrate the special and direct impact that your volunteer efforts can make on a community in dire need.
Whether you are able to join us on-project or support our efforts with a donation, thank you for your continued engagement and commitment to the unique and effective HODR model and to supporting the people of Haiti following this overwhelming disaster.
David Campbell
Executive Director
Get Involved:
For more information about volunteering on Project Leogane, visit our Haiti Volunteer Page.
To support our efforts with a tax-deductible donation, click here.
Follow our teams on Twitter for daily notes & progress @HODRops
INDONESIA: New Project Photos!
If you haven’t been automatically redirected to our Flickr Photo page, please click here. Thank you for your interest & support!
HAITI: Notes from the Field 1/23/10
An update from David Campbell, HODR Executive Director:
Saturday AM, Jan. 23, 2010 from UN base, Port au Prince
HODR assessment team consists of me (David Campbell), Stefanie Chang & Jeremey Horan. Thanks to Barry Goldsmith, pilot Rick Link and the Ocean Reef Club for your support and assistance with transport to Santo Domingo. We arrived in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Wednesday January 20 at 2 PM, made it to Jimani, DR at the border by 11 PM, stayed in barracks there.
Found a vehicle, drove to Port au Prince (PAP) Thursday to PAP airport, added Jakob, Gonaives volunteer, to our team, and were picked up by Paul Fermo, with his vehicle. Have slept on the floor at his house in Puits-Bain PAP; neither satellite phone nor satellite internet link working, no cell communications, only email. Roads in horrible condition, and very congested, so a trip to UN base at airport ranges from 30-90 minutes.
Friday attended multiple “cluster meetings”; these are organized by UN OCHA (Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs). Activities are organized into 12 clusters, e.g., health, shelter, logistics, security; a typical meeting is held in a tent at the airport, with about 60 attendees from 40 or so different NGO’s (Non-Governmental Organization, like the World Food Project, Medecins San Frontieres, CARE, HODR, etc…). Information is presented, and requested; there is a tremendous challenge in gathering, integrating, and communication, in addition to the doing and planning.
Yesterday, in addition to the cluster meetings, we met with Habitat for Humanity International, to understand their initial planning thoughts; it is reasonable that we may cooperate on interim housing work if we launch a project. We visited prior contacts at Matthew25, a clinic/guesthouse in PAP, and exchanged information with several connections.
Saturday AM we are attending UN OCHA cluster meetings, listening to press conference, and planning a road trip starting tomorrow to visit affected areas west of PAP, toward Jacmel.
In the Press conference it was mentioned that there have been 12 aftershocks of 4.5 or greater; 2 on Thursday evening; we all slept outside last night due to the warnings. They also reported an estimated death toll of 75,000 – think of the impact of one death in your own life, then realize the impact in a close city of such a traumatic event.
We are focused on specific areas of need we could address with our volunteers, and finding an area where we could be productive and secure.
The damage is massive; entire areas of homes destroyed. There will not be an opportunity for general volunteers, for us or any other organization, for weeks to come. The medical situation seems stabilized.
We will try to keep updates flowing through Twitter @HODRops, and the www.HODR.org website.
Thank you to all the donors and interested volunteers for the support you’ve shown; we are proceeding on plan, and doing our best.
-David
——————-
The team spent 3 days in Port au Prince, over the weekend visited the areas of Leogane and Petit Goave, and is currently en-route to Jacmel as of 1/25/10.
For daily updates follow us on Twitter @HODRops
MEDIA RELEASE:
Important Message for Volunteers in the Immediate Aftermath of Haiti Earthquake
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 13, 2010
For more information please contact:
Beca Howard, Communications Manager
781.570.9412Beca@HODR.org
IN IMMEDIATE AFTERMATH OF TRAGIC EARTHQUAKE, HANDS ON DISASTER RESPONSE SENDS IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO THOSE INTERESTED IN VOLUNTEERING
CARLISLE, MA, USA 1/13/2010 – On Tuesday, January 12, 2010, a massive 7.0 magnitude earthquake followed by a series of strong aftershocks devastated Haiti. Initial reports indicate overwhelming damage in the capital city of Port-au-Prince, affecting an estimated 3 million people with as many as 100,000 lives lost. Hands On Disaster Response (HODR), a US-based 501(c)3 nonprofit, has launched an emergency appeal and assessment in response to the recent earthquake, and has created the Haiti Earthquake Recovery Fund to accept monetary donations to support these efforts. The seasoned volunteer coordination organization welcomes interest from volunteers, but cautions that search and rescue missions are still underway.
“We had an incredibly successful six-month project in Haiti last year, and are anxious to be of assistance again,” says David Campbell, Founder and Executive Director of HODR who plans to return to Haiti as part of the organization’s assessment team. “That being said, we are not a search and rescue or medical response organization. In the immediate aftermath of such a tragic event, we need to let search and rescue efforts do their work before any potential volunteer initiatives can be explored, and I encourage those interested in volunteering to be patient as emergency services take their course.”
The HODR assessment team is reaching out to local networks and agencies in Haiti and plans to arrive in Haiti next week. The organization will be meeting with local officials, visiting affected areas and evaluating the recovery needs in order to determine further involvement and the potential for volunteer projects.
Often, following large-scale natural disasters there is an overwhelming need for able and willing hands to help families pick up the pieces and move forward. HODR harnesses the power of volunteers to bring direct assistance to survivors of natural disasters in the US and around the world. The organization has responded to 13 natural disasters in seven countries, including a deployment in Haiti from October 2008 to March 2009 in response to Hurricane Ike and a series of other hurricanes. Those interested in volunteering, should HODR launch a project in the coming weeks, are encouraged to stay tuned to the organization’s website at www.HODR.org for the latest updates from the assessment team.
HODR programs are tailored to the unique needs of each community and range from debris removal to rebuilding homes and schools. In the organization’s hurricane response project in Haiti, volunteers assisted more than 5,000 families through programs such as “mud removal” (digging homes out from severe mudslides) and well masonry. HODR is actively engaged in a volunteer project in Indonesia in response to the September 2009 earthquakes, focusing on home deconstruction and transitional shelters.
To make a tax-deductible donation to the Haiti Earthquake Recovery Fund in support of HODR’s efforts please visit www.HODR.org/HaitiEarthquake today.
For more information on HODR and how to help, visit the organization’s website at www.HODR.org and follow our team on Twitter @HODRops
For media inquiries, please contact Beca Howard – 781.570.9412, Beca@HODR.org
For donation information, please contact Andrew Kerr – 919.830.3573, Andrew@HODR.org
About Hands On Disaster Response:
Hands On Disaster Response (HODR) is a MA-based, 501(c)3 non-profit organization that provides hands-on assistance to survivors of natural disasters around the world, with maximum impact and minimum bureaucracy. By supporting volunteers with housing, meals, tools, and organized work at no charge HODR is able to provide free and effective response services to communities in need. The organization welcomes both returning volunteers as well as spontaneous volunteers, people not previously affiliated with any disaster organization, but who are willing to help with whatever needs to be done – from clearing rubble to building homes and schools, from sanitation projects to children’s programs. Previous projects include: Indonesia (2009 Earthquakes – On-going project), New York (2009 Flooding), Arkansas (2009 Tornado), Haiti (2008-2009 Hurricanes), Iowa (2008 Flooding), Missouri (2008 Tornado), Arkansas (2008 Tornado), Bangladesh (2007-2008 Cyclone), Peru (2007-2008 Earthquake), Philippines (2006 Typhoon), Indonesia (2006 Earthquake), Mississippi (2005-2006 Hurricane Katrina), and Thailand (2004 Tsunami). For more information or to donate visit www.HODR.org.
