How to Support the Haitian Earthquake Relief Effort

Financial Donations

The best way to help is by donating to American Red Cross International Response Fund Online: www.redcross.org *

* Please note that due to the overwhelming generosity of our supporters, we are periodically experiencing a lag-time in donation processing; transactions may take up to 12 hours to process.

Phone: 1-800-RED-CROSS
1-800-257-7575 (Spanish)

Mail: Make check payable to International Response Fund and send to American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013 OR bring your donation to the office located at 527 N. Patterson St. (corner of Webster and Patterson, 2nd floor)

Text: Text "Haiti" to 90999 to send a $10 donation to the Red Cross.

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In-Kind Donations

The Red Cross does not have the capacity to accept in-kind donations of items. Though well intentioned, they pose a number of problems:

• The cost of processing and transporting these types of donations often outweighs the cost of the donated items themselves.
• We cannot ensure that the donated products will be appropriate for the relief effort or that there will be enough of a particular item to distribute them equitably.
• Shipping donated goods is costly and particularly difficult in the aftermath of a disaster. Routes into disaster sites are often damaged or impassable and can be clogged easily with shipments of non-priority items.

The American Red Cross is providing relief by sending trained staff and volunteers, financial support, and releasing pre-positioned supplies from our warehouse in Panama.

**Please go to this website ikdunit@usa.redcross.org, for information on In-Kind donations. This will help us ensure we respond to all offers in a timely manner. If you have a donor that is interested in giving in-kind, please let them know that our international services team is reviewing offers of large, bulk quantities. Donors should be ready to provide the following information:

• Current Location of Product
• Ability to Transport Product Within the US and/or Internationally
• Timeframe Product is Available
• Detailed Description of Available Supplies
  • Quantity (i.e., Total number of units available)
  • Size of Individual Unit (e.g., 8 oz, 1 gallon)
  • Packaging (e.g., Shrink-wrapped, Palletized, etc.)
  • Product Expiration Date

We also have an in-kind hotline, 1-800-7-INKIND where donors can leave a detailed message about their offer.

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Volunteering

We appreciate the interest in volunteering but we are not able to accept volunteers for the Haiti disaster. Only highly skilled volunteers experienced in Catastrophic International Disaster Relief and who are also fluent in Creole or French are being sent.

Blood Donations

The American Red Cross is meeting the needs of this tragedy through current supplies. Blood has been shipped to aid victims taken to the US Navy Hospital in Guantanamo Bay and to Haiti.

At this time we do not anticipate the need for a special donor appeal to support our efforts. As always, blood donors are encouraged to call 1-800-GIVE LIFE or visit us online at redcrossblood.org to make an appointment.

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Locating Loved Ones

For US Citizens living in Haiti: If you are concerned about a U.S. citizen living or travelling in another country, you may call the U.S. Department of State at 1-888-407-4747 for assistance.

For US Citizens and non-US citizens living in Haiti: The International Committee of the Red Cross has also established a family linking Web site, enabling persons in Haiti and abroad to search for and register the names of relatives missing since the earthquake.
www.icrc.org/familylinks