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Help for Haiti
Sign up for virginians4haiti’s trip to aid the earthquake-battered islanders
By Lisa Schaffner
Pack your bags! I’ve got the trip of a lifetime for you, and it’s all in the name of Giving Back.
The group virginians4haiti is visiting the poverty-stricken country in late October to provide medical and humanitarian assistance. (The exact date had not been determined at press time.) The Richmond group has made more than a half dozen trips since a 7.0 earthquake decimated the country in January 2010. Even though it’s been nearly two years, the needs of Haitian citizens are as great as ever.
“We’ll be working with orphanages and with pediatric patients. Our emphasis has always been on the children from the very first trip 10 days after the earthquake,” explains virginians4haiti Founder and Executive Director Allan B. Harvie Jr. For the 10-day trip, Harvie says the group needs everything from volunteers and medical supplies to donations and cash.
Volunteers for virginians4haiti have included doctors and nurses, but you don’t have to be medically trained. “It’s the ‘grunt work’ that needs to be done,” according to Harvie. “Manual labor is needed to help build structures like a chicken coop, putting up a fence or tilling the ground. The challenge now is doing projects that allow Haitians to be self-sustaining.”
Up to 16 volunteers will make the trip to Haiti, and each must pay his or her own airfare, which has been around $600 and $700 in the past, and should bring some cash for personal expenses. Before departing, volunteers must take care of medical issues such as insurance and shots. But don’t let that scare you. With so many trips under his belt, Harvie’s group carefully walks each volunteer through the process. Once volunteers arrive in Haiti, virginians4haiiti supplies food, tents and sleeping bags.
If you cannot make the trip, you can still support the group through donations. “The greatest need is money,” Harvie says. “Sometimes virginians4haiti needs to buy medications or other necessities, such as nebulizers and Enfamil.” Harvie tells me two Richmond companies, Patient First and Pfizer/Wyeth, have been instrumental in donating much-needed medical supplies. Capitol Pediatrics has given not only supplies but also its doctors and other medical and non-medical staff have volunteered on several trips.
Virginians4haiti has accomplished a lot in a short time. Harvie, the former owner of the Richmond Renegades hockey team, estimates virginians4haiti volunteers have treated thousands of patients the last two years and have provided an equal number with medical supplies, toys and assistance. As a news broadcaster, I always admired Harvie’s uncompromising love for his hockey players, and now he gives that same enthusiastic support to virginians4haiti. Contact Harvie at
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if you’d like to volunteer or make a donation – and you can “like” them on Facebook at virginians4haiti.
Lisa Schaffner, a former WRIC-TV anchor, is public relations and marketing director for UNOS. Contact her at
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SPARC’S FIRST 30 YEARS
SPARC is celebrating 30 years, and it’s inviting boomers to join in the fun. The School of the Performing Arts in the Richmond Community has taught more than 10,000 kids ages 4 to 18 to sing, dance and perform. Some of those first SPARC students are boomers and the community-based performing arts group wants to reconnect.
“We’d love to hear from them, whether they’re past students or parents,” says Kathy Messick, SPARC development and executive assistant. You can reach out to SPARC through Facebook or visit sparconline.org.
SPARC volunteer Susan Hudgins doesn’t need to sign up. She’s been actively involved since her oldest child first enrolled in a class 29 years ago. “SPARC has been a huge part of my life,” she says. “All four of my kids have been a part of the program.”
Hudgins says her volunteer hours were a real treat. “The pure joy I’ve received by being a part of SPARC outweighs anything I’ve given. I’ve seen kids blossom. I’ve seen great theatre. It’s been a gift to watch the shy children blossom on the stage so they later asked for solo performances.”
Hudgins’ volunteer hours add up to the equivalent of two years of fulltime work, so it’s easy to understand why SPARC eagerly cultivates its volunteers. “We channel our volunteers where they want to be in their areas of expertise such as computer and organizational skills,” Messick says. Contact her at
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or 804-3393 ext. 223 to volunteer.
Giving Back to SPARC is also easily accomplished by attending the Sara Belle November Educational Theatre dedication Nov. 17 at the SPARC Center. The evening includes the opening night of SPARC’s production of Smokey Joe’s Café. Tickets and additional information are available at sparconline.org.
– L.S.
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