Help Haiti!!

I'm sure anyone reading this has probably heard about the earthquake that hit Haiti on Tuesday. It registered 7.0 on the Richter scale, followed by multiple aftershocks, some measuring up to 5.8 in magnitude! The last estimate I heard of the death toll was 45-50,00 people, and is quickly rising. When I first heard about the earthquake, I went to MSNBC to get some facts. I watched the slideshow of pictures and was quickly overwhelmed by the tragedy and the sheer magnitude of the disaster. Here was a country already ravaged by poverty, and they get hit with this. What could I do to help? I went to twitter (my trusty source of information and all things trending) and clicked on Help Haiti, and lo and behold, was met with a tweet from the American Red Cross telling me that I could donate $10 simply by texting "haiti" to 90999, and the $10 would just get added to my phone bill. And all of the money went straight to the Red Cross - my cell phone carrier would keep none of it. :) So I did that, and felt a bit better.

What's more, CUA's response has been great - they've started the CUA Cares Campaign, and our president, Fr. O'Connell, wrote a novena to be prayed all over campus for the next nine days for Haiti. In addition, there was a mass today to pray for Haiti and show our support; committees are forming to fundraise and educate our campus about Haiti, and students are gladly donated their Starbucks and cigarette money to the cause. (To join in the effort or find out more info, click here) As devastating and heartbreaking as this tragedy has been, the response from the CUA and global community has been uplifting and hopeful - it's wonderful to know that our world really can come together in times of need. As for me, I'm gonna keep praying, and trust that God will provide. I found a great picture looking through the slideshow on msnbc today - great not because of the circumstances, but simply because of the message it seems to send - that even in the worst of times and the most horrifying of places, Christ is still present.

Peace and love. :)