Amistad International: Haiti

Webpage of this email: http://amistadinternational1.blogspot.com/

January, 2010

An update from Karen on our Amistad project in Haiti:

Scott Nelson has been working with Amistad for a number of years - since he was a little boy and came with his parents, Peter and Suzanne Nelson, on Amistad mission trips to do dental clinics. Now he's a surgeon and an Amistad partner, who spends a lot of time operating in the Dominican Republic. Here's an update I just received from Scott, who was working in Santo Domingo at the time of the quake:

"I felt the quake fairly strong here in Santo Domingo. It did not hit with a hard jolt or shake windows as we have all felt in California. I just suddenly felt like I had vertigo and then noticed the furniture rocking back and forth and it went on for about 20-30 seconds. We are about 160 miles from Port au Prince. I have been there multiple times, but the city where I usually work is Cap Haitien about 80 miles to the north.

"The lack of infrastructure and grinding poverty in Port au Prince under normal circumstances is appalling. It is difficult to imagine decimation, suffering, and chaos that is going on at the moment. By land Port au Prince is about a 5 hour drive. We are standing by to help and will likely mobilize as soon as it is possible to travel with the security and infrastructure of an organization.

"Obviously they need our prayers and help. I am leaving the Dominican Republic for Haiti as soon as possible, with a small team."

Karen adds:

By now, Scott is on his way to Haiti, or en route. He wrote again to say that they are preparing their equipment for amputations (this is the most likely scenario - possibly even amputating people out of where they're trapped.) We are collecting money for his team right now. He will be coming back to gather a larger team, so at that time they'll need money for more medicines. (Fortunately, they just got a big donation of medicines yesterday from an agency, that they can take with them right now!)

If you want to send a donation for Dr. Scott Nelson, we have a special Amistad fund set aside for his surgery team. The easiest way is to follow this link, and click on the yellow "Donate" button. Make sure you mark it for Haiti. Call me if you have questions!

Gratefully,

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