Friends, I am passing this along with a recommendation, and as a special
notes for readers who are not in the US: the best way to support
Fonkoze from other countries, is to find a sponsoring charity, so that
it can be made tax deductible in your area. If you find a good one, they
may be willing to do a limited campaign in which they guarantee that
100% of funds are donated to Fonkoze, so that there is no charitable
graft going on.
January 29, 2010
Dear Friend,
On
behalf of the 200,000+ Fonkoze clients that touch approximately
1,000,000 Haitians, all of us in the Fonkoze Family appreciate your
prayers, phone calls, emails and especially the donations and pledges
that we have received in response to the devastating earthquake that
ravaged Haiti on January 12th.
Fonkoze staff in Haiti, led by
Anne Hastings, CEO of Fonkoze Financial Services, Carine Roenen,
Director of Fonkoze, and the rest of the Fonkoze management team
continue to amaze us with their ability to cope with yet another major
catastrophe.
We are now in touch on a daily basis with Fonkoze's
leadership in Haiti, where they have worked feverishly to contact and
account for all employees, establish a temporary headquarters, and enter
negotiations for permanent headquarters space. As of today, 37 out of
42 branches are operating and delivering essential services like money
transfers and savings deposits.
More importantly, they have begun
to assess and estimate what will be needed to assist and accompany
clients and staff, and the costs to replace branches and equipment
destroyed by this unprecedented natural disaster. In addition to the
central office in Port-au-Prince, management estimates that nine
branches will need to replaced and eight will require substantial
repairs.
We have been updating our website daily. So, please
continue to visit www.fonkoze.org for the latest information about the
situation on the ground with Fonkoze and to contribute to the "Relief
and Rehabilitation Fund."
Donations are urgently needed to serve
our borrowers and clients by helping them re-establish their homes and
families and their businesses. This will take time, but Fonkoze has a
wealth of successful experience in responding to disasters in the past
and has already made great strides in overcoming the latest disaster.
To
date, we have received a little over $1.5 million in donations. Staff
is feverishly working to determine how much financial support will be
needed to help our clients who have basically lost everything.
Please
make a donation now to our "Earthquake Relief and Rehabilitation Fund."
Please do it today by mailing a check to Fonkoze USA, 50 F St., NW,
Suite 810, Washington, DC 20001 or contribute online at www.fonkoze.org.
Sincerely,
Alex Counts, Chair, Fonkoze USA
John Mercier, President, Fonkoze USA
P.S.
Recent legislation has been enacted that will allow most U.S. donors to
deduct contributions to Haiti relief on either their 2009 or 2010 tax
return. Please consult with your accounting professional to confirm that
you meet the qualifications.
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