Help In Hati

It has been a week since a devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake shattered the nation of Haiti. The quake struck on January 12, 2010 at 4:53 p.m. It's epicenter hit just 10 miles west of Porte-au-Prince and its 2 million inhabitants. Over 200,000 people are estimated by the US military to be dead and nearly 3 million people affected overall, leaving 2 million hungry and homeless. Perhaps the sole bright side of this tragedy is that the international community has come together to help.

Help from around the world is underway stretching from China to Britain to the US; nations are sending waves of financial aid and troops. Within four days of the crisis alone, over $150 million was raised toward Haiti relief. The response has been even greater than that of Hurricane Katrina, for which $108 million was raised during the same period of time. Thousands of troops are estimated to occupy the region with 10,000 coming from the United States.

To date, the total amount of global donations is in excess of $200 million. The American Red Cross has raised the most money, with nearly $103 million as of Sunday evening and $22 million of that has come from their text campaign-"Text 'HAITI' to 90999 for $10 donation." The Red Cross raised more than $500,000 per hour during the NFL playoff games this past weekend because of its promotional messages featured on FOX and CBS. Corporate America has provided nearly $30 million in gifts between Twenty-two companies, including the likes of General Electric, Microsoft, and Coca Cola who have pledged more than $1 million a piece.

It is difficult to describe this tragic event with words. It is perhaps as difficult to appreciate how these events have moved the global community to help Haiti. Nations from all around the world have come together to provide aid. It has also moved me to write this with hopes to raise awareness and connect people to ways that they can help. I encourage each and every person reading this to continue to pray for these victims and find a place in your hearts to help and make a difference in any way that you can. It's times like these where we must challenge ourselves to reflect on the good in our lives and in turn do good for our community. In this case, that community is the nation of Haiti.

George Clooney, Wyclef Jean, and Anderson Cooper are slated to host a fund-raising "Hope for Haiti" telethon on MTV Friday, and donations will go to Oxfam America, Partners in Health, Red Cross, UNICEF and the Yele Haiti Foundation. To donate through the American Red Cross, go to RedCross.org, hit donate now button at top and then International Response Fund. As mentioned earlier, you can also can text "Haiti" to 90999 to donate $10 to the International Response Fund. The money will go directly to relief efforts in Haiti. Or call 1-800-Red-Cross.