FriendsOfTheOrphans

How Can I Help?

Friends of the Orphans is deeply grateful to anyone willing to help those affected by this terrible tragedy. We support Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos/Nos Petit Frères et Soeurs (NPH/NPFS, Spanish and French for "Our Little Brothers and Sisters"), which has homes and outreach programs in nine countries, including Haiti. Despite sufffering severe damages to its facilities and tragic losses of staff, volunteers and family members, NPH/NPFS Haiti is providing care to thousands of people at its St. Damien Hospital and through outreach.

Right now, the greatest need is for monetary donations. All donations received will be immediately utilized for our most pressing needs, including assisting the network of first responders in locating and treating victims, purchasing necessary medical supplies and providing food and water to those desperately in need. By making a monetary donation, your money will immediately be put to use where it is most needed. For more information, click here. To make a donation, please click here, or you can call 1-888-201-8880 if you prefer to donate via phone.

Donations to Friends of the Orphans, Federal Tax ID#65-1229309, are tax deductible as provided by law. Per the IRS, monetary donations for Haiti relief made between 1/11 and 2/28/2010, may be deducted on 2009 tax returns.

What if I would like to donate supplies instead? How do I go about doing that and what is most needed? (Updated January 28, 2010)
Friends of the Orphans Midwest Regional Board of Directors Vice Chair, John Shattuck, is coordinating the collection and shipment of basic needs kits. Please click here for details.

If you would like the complete current list of needs, please e-mail info@friendsus.org.

I would like to travel to Haiti and assist with helping those in need. Can you help me arrange that? (Updated February 12, 2010)
The initial response for medical personnel was phenomenal. Many lives were saved due to the swift reaction of those who travelled to help at St. Damien’s Hospital. Now that the situation is settling down, we need far fewer foreign volunteers. St. Damien’s has always had an almost entirely Haitian staff, and soon that will be the case again as the hospital begins to employ people who worked at facilities that were destroyed.

While we no longer need a lot of foreign volunteers, we do need Physical Therapists. If you are a Physical Therapist who may be interested in volunteering for at least two weeks, and ideally speak some French or Creole, please contact us at volunteers@friendsus.org. Our volunteers must be ultimately flexible and patient, fully vaccinated, and up for the challenge of working under rough conditions.

If you would like to volunteer for the year-long program in Haiti, please visit the Volunteer section of the NPH Web site. There you will find the application, testimonials, job descriptions and a short video. We urgently need a Home Correspondent and Physical Therapists who can serve for a year.

What can my child’s school do to help the effort?
As we have said, the biggest need right now is for monetary donations, so Friends of the Orphans encourages school, church and community groups to come together to plan and execute fundraising events for our efforts. For fundraising ideas, please click here.

I sponsor a child in Haiti. How do I know if my Godchild is OK?
Friends of the Orphans is working very diligently to ascertain the whereabouts and safety of all of our NPH/NPFS children, staff and volunteers. We have received reports that none of the children from the St. Hélène orphanage in Kenscoff were injured and are currently safe.

NPH/NPFS supports more than 240 children who live with extended families and in student housing in Port-au-Prince. The homes of at least 75 have been destroyed and the children are now living at St. Hélène.

We will bring you additional information as it becomes available.

Click here to read the January 27, 2010, Godparent Update

I am interested in adopting a child from Haiti. Can you help?
While we appreciate your interest, Friends of the Orphans cannot help you with an adoption. NPH/NPFS is a permanent home for orphaned, abandoned and disadvantaged children. Children are not placed for adoption. Instead, they are welcomed with their brothers and sisters and become a part of the stable and secure NPH/NPFS family. We give them a chance to focus on education and personal growth, knowing that a loving support system will always be in place for them. This enables them to grow into caring and productive members of their communities.

If you are interested in connecting with one of the more than 3,300 children we are raising, we offer a sponsorship program, which gives an individual an opportunity to provide support and develop a relationship with a child. For information about sponsoring a child in Haiti, please click here.

If there is a need, I would be interested in hosting some of the children from the NPH/NPFS orphanage at my home in the United States. Is this possible?
Thank you so much for your interest and your offer to help. At this time, we believe the children at NPH/NPFS home in Haiti are safe. NPH/NPFS is a permanent home for orphaned, abandoned and disadvantaged children, so we do not believe that we will need to place any in the United States. We will keep your contact information on file in case we hear of another organization that does need help placing children.

If you are interested in connecting with one of the more than 3,300 children we are raising, we offer a sponsorship program, which gives an individual an opportunity to provide support and develop a relationship with a child. For information about sponsoring a child in Haiti, please click here.

I am trying to locate my loved ones/family/friends in Haiti and have not been able to do so. Can Friends of the Orphans help me do this?
Because of limited communications and infrastructure in Haiti at this time and Friends of the Orphans dedicating its resources to confirm the safety and status of our volunteers, staff and the facilities of NPH/NPFS, we are not able to fulfill that request. If you have not done so already, we suggest calling the U.S. State Department at 1-888-404-4747. In addition, CNN has set up a Web site for missing loved ones at: http://www.cnn.com/haitimissing.

Whom should I contact if I have further questions?
Please e-mail us at info@friendsus.org or contact your regional office.

Related Information:
• What Does Friends of the Orphans Do in Haiti?
• Earthquake in Haiti Fact Sheet
• Haiti Initiative
• Helping in Haiti Report
• NPH Hait Fact Sheet/Visitor's Guide
• Latest Earthquake News

top