Helping Haiti a tradition for organization

MUNSTER | In the last 10 days, volunteers have helped the nonprofit organization Children of Abraham Inc. fill three 40-foot cargo containers with tons of medical supplies, medical equipment, food, water, health care kits, tents and generators bound for Haiti.

Children of Abraham, which has an office in Hammond and a warehouse in Munster, was formed in 2004 with the principal mission of providing free medical supplies and equipment to areas where the need is critical, said Champ Merrick, the group's executive director. The organization's name comes from its volunteers, who include Christians, Muslims and Jews.

Most of the medical supplies and equipment are donated by a dozen hospitals and clinics in Northwest Indiana.

"They provide us with items that are surplus to their needs or equipment that they have replaced," Merrick said.

The organization is no stranger to helping people on the island nation, which was devastated by an earthquake Jan. 12.

Last year, Children of Abraham connected with Friends of the Orphans Midwest, the fundraising arm of Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos International, which has established orphanages and hospitals in nine Latin American and Caribbean countries, including Haiti.

Children of Abraham regularly shipped containers of medical supplies and equipment to St. Damien Hospital and an orphanage near Port-au-Prince before the earthquake with the help of John Shattuck, of Frankfort, Ill. Shattuck is a volunteer for Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos and vice chairman of the Friends of the Orphans Midwest.

"The day after the earthquake, John came into our offices to ask if we could help," Merrick said. "We usually have six to eight people who regularly come in to volunteer. On loading day, we had 40 people."

Bob Brown, of Munster, is the "loadmaster" who determines where everything is put in the cargo containers to ensure safety.

"The first container we shipped after the earthquake contained a generator," Brown said. "The people responded so well to this generator, so we shipped eight with the next container."

Like the first two, the next container will be shipped via rail to Miami and loaded aboard a ship, Shattuck said.

"We take the container to the Dominican Republic," Shattuck said. "Many people are shipping directly to Haiti, but that doesn't work. I'll meet the container in the Dominican Republic, and we'll be escorted to Haiti and St. Damien Hospital."

Heleine Van Dyke, of Munster and a native of Haiti, has translated all the documents into Creole, one of Haiti's major languages, and has helped box items for shipment.

Children of Abraham welcomes donations of supplies. To date, thousands of basic survival kits have been included in these shipments. These kits include toothpaste and toothbrushes, toilet paper, bars of soap, flashlights with batteries and a can opener.

"People have said, 'Don't donate clothing.' But we'll take anything," Shattuck said. "It will be needed at some time in the future. Until then, we'll stockpile it."