Haiti: An Urgent Appeal

Jan 17, 2010
Addison Wiggin
Executive Publisher, Agora Financial

"The Haiti earthquake could not have been worse," according to our Byron King - who has a close friend in the middle of it all.

"A shallow fault zone gave way, almost directly below Port au Prince. The full force of the shock - at least 7.0 magnitude - transmitted directly into the foundations of a city that lacks even the rudiments of good building practices."

At last word, up to 50,000 people may be dead... and another 300,000 homeless.

The UN hasn't even calculated the number of injured, but the need is undoubtedly immense... and the quake destroyed many of the nation's hospitals within seconds.

That means the burden on the few remaining is overwhelming - including the Hospital Albert Schweitzer (HAS).

"HAS," says Byron, "was founded in 1954 as a joint project of the Mellon family in Pittsburgh and the legendary humanitarian Albert Schweitzer." Byron's friend Ian Rawson is manager at HAS. He writes: 

"We are far from the epicenter, but overnight [Wednesday into Thursday] we began to see more patients from areas outside of the valley, where two and three-story buildings are more common.

"The influx of patients is straining our resources, but has been handled calmly and efficiently by the all-Haitian medical and nursing staff. All available gurneys and benches are in use, our trauma protocol triage system has been implemented, and there is a steady flow of patients to the diagnostic center and the operating suite.

"The lack of communications has been a large psychological problem. All of our professional staff have families in Port au Prince, and all cell systems have collapsed, so people wait anxiously for news of relatives.

"Haiti has a long history of natural disasters; floods, mudslides, hurricanes, and more. Each one reinforces our awareness of the limitations of the formal infrastructure and the resilience of the informal system of family and community support."

Byron adds this: "Note the comment about 'trauma protocol triage system.' That means, they're picking and choosing who gets treatment and lives, versus who does not get treatment and dies."

So that gives you a picture of how urgent the situation is. 

Usually you turn to us for investment ideas - helping you sort through a bewildering array of choices. 

Likewise, maybe you've wanted to donate to the relief effort in Haiti, but you have no idea which organization is worthy of your dollars: After all, many of them waste huge amounts of money on overhead. You want to donate to folks who will put your dollars to work actually helping people.

Byron assures us, "I can vouch for the dedication of the staff, and their effective use of resources" at HAS.

"If you are looking for a good cause that can help relieve the suffering in Haiti, there is none more worthy than Hospital Albert Schweitzer."

Here's a link to the HAS website, where you can donate.

It's this simple: The need is immense. The time is limited. And these are the people doing the most good in a horrific situation.

-Addison Wiggin
Executive Publisher, Agora Financial

P.S. If you need a little kick in the rear to get moving on this, I'll make you a proposition: Email us confirmation of your donation and we'll credit you a year's worth of Byron's Outstanding Investments.

But do it now. Every little bit will help, and the sooner the better.

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