OHHS Haiti Relief Effort Gains National Attention
At the Haitian embassy, from left to right OHHS Students Joshua Dandridge, Tranell Clark, Jasmin Blake, Reggie Watts, and Alexis Anderson, with Ms. Hyman and her son Michael.
February 3, 2010 • Carina Arboleda
Filed under News
On Tuesday, January 12, 2010, Haiti was devastated by an earthquake ranking a 7.0 magnitude on the Richter scale. The natural disaster caused severe damage and casualties in the Port-au-Prince area. Approximately twenty thousand commercial buildings and two hundred twenty five residences were reduced to rubble in the already impoverished Caribbean nation of Haiti. According to the Red Cross about three million people were affected and a hundred seventy thousand bodies have been counted said Haitian President Rene Preval. Among those who lost their lives in the earthquake were two of Dr. Cadet’s cousins.
On the morning of January 13th Oxon Hill High School announced that donations were being accepted for our own Haitian relief. Students circulated through the classrooms and asked for spare change people were willing to donate for the cause. The school demonstrated overwhelming support and three thousand dollars were raised in only 24 hours by faculty and students.
Twenty five percent of ticket revenue from the Friday night basketball game was donated to the relief effort, making the total of monetary donations over six thousand dollars by January 15th.
The Haitian relief effort received national attention and was featured on ABC World News with Diane Sawyer (click for link). In the segment “Americans Open Their Hearts to Haiti,” Dr. Cadet and senior Jazmin Blake were interviewed about the relief efforts at Oxon Hill High School.
Among the community contributions were thousands of items including clothing and boxes filled with canned food, water, medical supplies, and more. All donations were taken to the Haitian Embassy in Washington, D.C., over the January 16-17 weekend with the assistance of around twenty students. Ms. Hyman, one of the leaders of the relief project, said, “It was an exhilarating experience to be in the middle of such an outpouring of love and support for the earthquake victims. I shared the experience not only with my students but also with my son, all of whom will remember this experience and the importance of giving and community service. It was a lot of work to lead the relief effort, but I’d do it all again in a heartbeat.”
Dr. William R. Hite, Jr., Prince George’s County Superintendent, encouraged students to join in the new statewide fundraising campaign – Maryland Kids Care Campaign: Operation Haiti.
To donate to Oxon Hill High School’s relief effort, call 301-749-4300 or make monetary donations in the main office.
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