As the news came pouring in about the earthquake in Haiti and the thousands of lives affected by the disaster, Douglass St.Christian felt compelled to take action.
The associate professor in Anthropology knew he would be faced with questions from his students about how to help the people of Haiti after an earthquake struck the impoverished nation on Jan. 12. Aftershocks have continued to cause damage.
Deciding to set an example of how one person can make a difference, St.Christian donated a day’s salary to Partners in Health.
“I wonder if working one day for Haiti – for the desperate and the dying – is too much to ask,” he says.
Now he is challenging friends and others in the Western community to make the same commitment to an organization helping to support the relief effort.
“I realized it had to be both about giving and making a sacrifice,” he says. “I have been asking my friends: ‘Will you give one day to Haiti?’ I’m not keeping track, but I do know that friends the least able to give up a day’s pay have been the first to step up and do it.
“As I looked at the news out of the region and what countries like Guyana were accomplishing, I figured there needed to be more each of us individually can do.”
Guyana has raised more than $240,000,000 (GYD) for the cause.
St.Christian is hopeful Western employees will make a contribution to support those affected by the earthquake and to help rebuild the country. Donations to Canadian agencies in Haiti will be matched by Ottawa.
“A goal for something like this is hard to calculate but if each of our faculty and staff donated the equivalent of one day’s wages to a charity current providing relief in Haiti, I think the potential total would make my Guyanese friends smile.”
In addition to his donation, St.Christian has been connecting several schools in Perth County with transportation so that aid materials – blankets, bandages, splint kits, etc. – can be delivered. “I’ve been trying to make my social role as a public intellectual worth something,” he says.
A list of agencies accepting support can be found at https://communications.uwo.ca/haitirelief.
Other groups on campus are helping to raise funds and awareness.
Volleyball teams host White Out Night Jan. 29
The Western Mustangs men’s and women’s volleyball teams will host a fundraiser for Haitian relief on Friday, Jan. 29 when they host the Windsor Lancers at Alumni Hall, beginning with the women’s game at 6 p.m.
Fans are asked to wear white as part of the “White Out” night and will receive admission by donation.
All funds raised will be directed to the Red Cross’s Haitian Relief Fund.
Concert for Haiti Jan. 30
Theological student leaders at Huron University College and St. Paul’s Anglican Cathedral are hosting an ecumenical benefit concert at St. Paul’s Cathedral on Saturday, Jan. 30.
The concert will feature musicians and artists from around the region. The event will be held from 1-4 p.m.
“We’re excited about bringing together regional artists for such an urgent and important cause,” says Andreas Thiel, co-ordinator of the event and third-year Theology student at Huron. “We’ve seen the generosity of our communities many times before and I know we will come together to help the people of Haiti.”
Local musicians, artists and luminaries will come together in this concert to raise money for immediate disaster relief, which will be channelled through the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund/Huron Hunger Fund. In solidarity with the people of Haiti, attendees can express their care and concern, as well as donate.
More information will be released soon as details are confirmed. Performance queries may be made through Paul Grambo, St. Paul’s Cathedral Communications Officer at 519-697-8309 or by e-mail at webmaster@stpaulscathedral.on.ca.
St. Paul’s Cathedral is located at 472 Richmond St. in London.