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This past Saturday morning (August 14th), a magnitude 7.2 earthquake hit southern Haiti. To make matters worse, a tropical storm is headed that way which will complicate search and rescue. If you are moved to donate money in the face of these tragedies, I’d like to recommend a reliable non-profit called “Live Beyond.”

The one time I visited Haiti, it was clear that a lot of the money donated by good-hearted Americans never makes it to the people who need it. I will refrain from providing the details, but if you want to understand how philanthropy goes wrong, read, When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor . . . and Yourself.

It’s fair to say that philanthropy goes wrong so often in Haiti, it’s easy to think the situation there is totally hopeless. However, if you want to know how “helping” can be done right, read the book Live Beyond, written by my long-time friend, Dr. David Vanderpool.

He and his amazing wife, my childhood friend, Laurie, have lived and worked in Haiti for many years. I can attest to the fact that any money donated to Live Beyond will go directly to the people who need it, including providing free medical care at the hospital they built, food distribution, clean water, nutrition for pregnant and nursing women, job training and many other things that can transform a community, at the core of which is transforming hearts.

Find out more:

About | LiveBeyond | Transforming Communities through Faith

–Caroline

The opinions, comments, and content expressed or implied in my statements are solely my own and do not necessarily reflect the position or views of Intellicure or any of the boards on which I serve.