wfn.org | CRWRC Raises $10 million for Haiti Earthquake Response

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

> IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Jacob Kramer, International disaster response team leader, 905-515-1720 or 
1-800-730-3490

Beth DeGraff, media contact, 616-648-7821 or 1-800-55-CRWRC

CRWRC Raises $10 million for Haiti Earthquake Response

MAY 19, 2010?This week the Christian Reformed World Relief Committee 
(www.crwrc.org) topped the
$10 million mark in giving for Haiti earthquake response efforts. The fund?s 
total surpasses amounts donated to the organization for either the 2004 Asia 
Tsunami or Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

CRWRC, which has had a presence in Haiti for 20 years, began emergency aid in 
the first few days after the January 12 catastrophe trapped and killed 
thousands, and left two million people homeless.

Since the disaster occurred four months ago, CRWRC has provided emergency food, 
water, shelter tarps, and basic living supplies to earthquake survivors in Port 
au Prince and the Leogane region, the worst hit area outside the capital. The 
agency has also installed water systems, built latrines, and begun a tool 
lending center to help residents clear rubble for future reconstruction.

As the rainy season loomed, CRWRC began building transitional houses to protect 
homeless families from the weather over the next two to three years. The agency 
is also addressing permanent shelter needs with hurricane resistant 
construction. Other agencies of the Christian Reformed Church in North America, 
Christian Reformed World Missions and Back to God Hour Ministries 
International, also helped address immediate needs through local church 
partners.

?The outpouring of support for CRWRC is overwhelming and humbling,? says Ida 
Mutoigo, CRWRC director. As the organization responds to the earthquake, 
Mutoigo says that CRWRC ?will continue to work alongside the Haitian people to 
build up local leaders and help rebuild the country together.?

CRWRC provides emergency assistance to communities and individuals only when local resources are insufficient or have been destroyed by natural and human disasters. CRWRC?s emergency aid supports regional markets by purchasing emergency supplies locally wherever possible. 
?Our supporters trust us to act on their behalf in a way that best benefits the vulnerable in times of need,? Mutoigo  says.

CRWRC?s development programs involve a long-term presence that strengthens the 
capacity of national and community organizations which make sustainable 
contributions to the social, political, and economic health of some of the 
world?s poorest countries.

?CRWRC plans on working in earthquake recovery in the Leogane area for several 
years,? says Jacob Kramer, the agency?s leader for international disaster 
response.  Simultaneously, he says, agency staff will begin again to help 
partners and neighbors in their communities with small business loans, 
agricultural inputs and training, job creation, primary health care, literacy 
and civic education, and leadership development.

CRWRC is supported primarily by individual donations, as well as funding from 
churches, government organizations, businesses, and private foundations. In 
responding to the Haiti earthquake, CRWRC is partnering with the ACT Alliance, 
the Canadian Foodgrains Bank, Canadian Churches in Action, and a number of 
church-based organizations from North America and Europe.

To view CRWRC?s three-month update on Haiti Earthquake response, go to 
http://www.crcna.org/site_uploads/uploads/crwrc/internationalrelief/HaitiEar 
thquake/April10/HaitiEQ_3MonthUpdate.pdf.

CRWRC would like to assist as many homeless Haitian families as possible with a 
permanent, earthquake-resistant house. The cost to build each home with 
volunteer labor is $5,000. To contribute to this effort, donate a gift of any 
amount at www.crwrc.org, or call 1-800-55CRWRC. To give by mail, make out your 
check to CRWRC and designate ?Haiti Earthquake 2010? in the memo line, and mail 
to: CRWRC, 2850 Kalamazoo Avenue SE, Grand Rapids, MI  49560-0600.

CRWRC is a non-profit agency of the Christian Reformed Church in North America, 
ministering

To people in need around the world with relief, development, and justice since 
1963.

> # # #

> -- Beth DeGraff
> CRWRC Media and Justice Contact
> 2850 Kalamazoo Avenue SE
> Grand Rapids, MI 49560-0600
> 1-800-55-CRWRC
> www.crwrc.org

Note that my email address has changed to bdegraff@crwrc.org.

CRWRC is a registered non-profit agency of the CRC-NA in both the U.S. and 
Canada.