Responding to Haiti/Resources
September 10, 2009
Dear Brown student:
Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti and the families, friends, and communities who have been affected by the recent tragedy there. As we continue to learn more about the impact of the earthquake in Haiti and about the needs there, we want to provide you with some additional information.
We have made efforts to contact students, faculty, and staff who may have been affected by the earthquake. To the best of our knowledge, all students, faculty, staff, and alumni are safe. Members of our community have lost family and friends, and our thoughts are with them at this time. If you are concerned about the well-being of a friend or relative, the U.S. State Department and the Red Cross have websites to assist:
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/pa/pa_haiti_info_number.html
http://www.icrc.org/familylinks.
For information on the University’s response and ideas for supporting relief organizations soliciting funds, we have established a website for your reference at http://brown.edu/haiti-response. Currently we are advising that students do not consider traveling to Haiti because of safety and security concerns and because it is important to allow the immediate emergency rescue efforts to take place. As President Simmons reflected in her email to our community, this will not be an undertaking of short duration and we must be prepared to commit to ongoing efforts after the initial phase of relief is over.
On Thursday, January 21, at noon, the Chaplain’s Office is holding a prayer vigil in Manning Chapel for any students, faculty, and staff who would like to gather. We will hold another event for the campus community when the spring semester commences.
If any aspect of this distressing situation is affecting your plans for the spring semester, please contact Dean Maria Suarez, Office of Student Life, at 401-863-3800. If you would like to speak to someone at Psychological Services for emotional support, you can call 401-863-3476.
For student organizations that may want to plan initiatives to assist Haiti this spring, Ricky Gresh, Director for Student Engagement, will be collecting information about resources and efforts underway and can help you with planning.
We appreciate your interest in assisting in the response to the earthquake in Haiti.
Sincerely,
Margaret Klawunn
Vice President of Campus Life and Student Services