Jewish Alliance partner JDC aids in Haiti

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Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere and one of the world’s most impoverished countries, experienced its biggest humanitarian disaster since the 2010 earthquake when Hurricane Matthew hit the island on Oct. 4.

With the death toll estimated at 1,000, and predicted to increase significantly, health officials are concerned about stopping the spread of cholera, starvation and dehydration.

The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), a partner of the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island, supported by annual campaign dollars, has mobilized in response to the hurricane, specifically in Haiti. The JDC has a long-standing partnership with Heart to Heart International, which has three medical teams in the southern province of Haiti. The JDC will continue to support Heart to Heart with hygiene kits, water purification tablets, medical resources, and other needs.

Dr. Aryeh Pelcovits, of Providence, an internal medicine physician, traveled to Haiti in April 2015 to volunteer at a hospital in Port-au-Prince, the capital city.  “What struck me most was the lack of infrastructure in the hospital,” Pelcovits said. “The emergency room is literally a room, maybe 20 by 20 feet or so, open air, with four or five beds along each wall. … It felt like controlled chaos.” 

About the current devastation in Haiti, Pelcovits said, “Haitians have no safety net. They were still recovering from the 2010 earthquake so I can only imagine how devastating this most recent disaster has been.” 

The JDC is the world’s leading Jewish humanitarian assistance organization. Since 1914, the JDC has set an example that all Jews are responsible for one another and for improving the well-being of vulnerable people around the world. A percentage of contributions to the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island goes directly to the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee to help support its life-saving work worldwide.

For information about the 2017 Annual Campaign, the Jewish Alliance of Greater R.I. and its partners, or to contribute, contact Trine Lustig at tlustig@jewishallianceri.org, 401-421-4111, ext. 165, or go to jewishallianceri.org.

STEPHANIE HAGUE is the philanthropy officer at the Jewish Alliance.