WHNT 19: Haiti Earth Quake Coverage

http://www.whnt.com/news/whnt-haiti-food-drive-011310,0,747190.story

Locals Collect Canned Food For Haitians
Rikki KlausVideojournalist January 13, 2010

HUNTSVILLE, AL - Huntsville-based organizations are doing what they can to help Haitians now in dire need. Local philanthropic groups and churches, as well as individuals, are joining forces to do whatever they can to help the relief effort. Some are collecting canned food. Others are sending locals to provide medical needs and fresh water.

"It hasn't sunk in yet ... ooh .. you know, the loss of life, it's beyond words, to tell you the truth," Simeon Nerelus reflected.

He's a native Haitian, with friends and colleagues he hasn't heard from since the earthquake devastated the small country that now has some pretty big problems. He's also in charge of HERO, or Haiti Emergency Relief Organization. Since the quake, he's gotten calls from the United Kingdom, Canada, and all over the United States. People want to know what they can do to help.

"We are a very philanthropic community, and I know that we're going to come through to help them in Haiti, the whole country, the United States. God bless us, and God bless them in Haiti who need it so much," Nerelus said.

Nerelus has teamed up with a couple Huntsvillians who are collecting food at HudsonAlpha Institute. Last time they collected canned food for Haiti was when a hurricane struck there more than a year ago. They filled two 18 wheelers with the donations.

One of the organizers, Troy Moore, is going next Thursday to help out in Haiti.

"When you go to Haiti, it's universally bad there," he said. "There's very poor infrastructure. People are struggling to eat. You have something like this, where it destroys what little infrastructure is there, I expect it to be just chaotic and people fearing for their very lives."

With a small local group, Moore will visit orphanages and schools, delivering fresh water and food. He says his team will also visit the small communities that are sometimes neglected in times like this. The men are accepting canned food donations like beans and rice at the HudsonAlpha Institute. They say all the food will go directly to the hungry in Haiti who desperately need it. To learn more about how to help, visit their website here.

Drop off your FOOD donation to HudsonAlpha
6900 Moquin Drive, Huntsville, AL, 35806
Make CHECKS PAYABLE TO TRINITY United Methodist Church
Times: 10am - 4pm Daily
Questions: email us at haitifooddrive@gmail.com
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