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Red Cross and Catholic Charities Head Haitian Relief Efforts
NFL pledges $2.5M to aid Haiti earthquake relief efforts. This week the National Football League and the NFL Players Association pledged $2.5 million to aid in relief and recovery efforts in Haiti to assist victims of the earthquake
Photo – Haitian Women
Her world lies shattered
A Haitian woman emerges from rubble after a magnitude-7 earthquake crushes Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Jan. 12. The temblor rocked the Caribbean nation, causing widespread destruction.
Catholic Relief Services - www.catholiccharitiesusa.org
Lifesaving supplies from Catholic Relief Services are reaching desperate survivors in quake-shattered Port-au-Prince, Haiti. CRS is distributing food and water from its warehouses in the Haitian capital and the city of Les Cayes. Additional aid is on the way from CRS' warehouses in the Dominican Republic.
CRS is increasing its original $5 million funding commitment and is planning an emergency response with an expectation of raising $25 million from its generous supporters for its relief effort.
Two Web Sites to Give Donations
www.catholiccharitiesusa.org
www.redcross.org
The NFL and NFLPA will contribute $1 million through their Disaster Relief Fund to the American Red Cross and Partners In Health ($500,000 each). In addition, the NFL and its network partners will run pregame and in-game messages during this weekend's games valued at $1.5 million to promote donations. In addition, NFL owners and players are making their own personal donations. The NFL is working with its teams, players and media partners to raise money and promote awareness of the recovery efforts. A national PSA will air during each playoff game this weekend driving viewers to www.redcross.org, where they can support the recovery efforts.
The PSA will feature New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma and San Diego Chargers defensive end Jacques Cesaire, two players with Haitian-born parents. There will be pregame and in-game messages on both CBS and FOX promoting the Red Cross' text-to-give line (text "HAITI" to "90999"). NFL Network programming, ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown, and NFL radio broadcasts also will promote the text-to-give line. NFL.com will have banner ads driving to the Red Cross to donate funds.
Other NFL players with Haitian ties include Stanley Arnoux (New Orleans), Cliff Avril (Detroit), Gosder Cherilus (Detroit), Antonio Cromartie (San Diego), Louis Delmas (Detroit), Elvis Dumervil (Denver), Pierre Garcon (Indianapolis), Rashad Jeanty (Cincinnati), Ricky Jean-Francois (San Francisco), Max Jean-Gilles (Philadelphia), David Joseph (Tampa Bay), William Joseph (Oakland), Steve Octavien (Dallas), Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie (Arizona) and former players D'Antonio Batiste, Vernand Morency and Jonal Saint-Dic.
Created in 2001 to assist organizations directly and indirectly affected by the events of September 11, the NFL-NFLPA Disaster Relief Fund is a collaborative endeavor of the National Football League and the NFLPA. Its goal is to improve the quality of life and help rebuild communities affected by large-scale tragedies. Since its inception, the NFL-NFLPA Disaster Relief Fund has provided aid to those affected by the events of September 11, 2001, the 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia, Hurricane Katrina and the 2007 San Diego wildfires.