It’s hard to believe that a month ago I returned home from teaching in Jamaica with Great Shape Inc.’s SuperKids Literacy Project. My school, Revival Primary School, was in Westmoreland Parish, a 30 minute drive from where we were housed at Beaches Negril. On my last day at Revival Primary, my students asked if they’d would see me again and I said yes. I wouldn’t have ever imagined a month after coming home I’d be publishing a list of ways to help Jamaica and Haiti after Hurricane Melissa.

Jamaica and Haiti After Hurricane Melissa

Hurricane Melissa damaged critical infrastructure like roads, airports, and medical facilities, leaving communities and families stranded without access to food, clean water, power, and medicine in Jamaica and Haiti.

Haiti’s southern coast suffered the wrath of Hurricane Melissa first. Areas like Les Cayes that were destroyed by Hurricane Matthew in 2016 were subjected to the same thing all over again. Images of bent palm trees, structures without roofs, destroyed bridges, and washed-out roads were ones I saw with my own eyes after traveling to Les Cayes just two weeks after Matthew. The artisans that I met with in 2016 have reached out for help once again.

Hurricane Melissa made landfall near the parish border of Westmoreland, where Revival Primary is located. She brought 185 mph winds and tied the record for the strongest recorded landfall in the Atlantic basin with pressure and wind speed. Flooding, wind-damaged structures, washed out roads and bridges, possibility of landslides, and more plague the entire island.

Sav Primary, a school where GreatShape! Inc. volunteers taught last year, lost the entire roof off the second floor of the building. I’ve not yet heard any news about my school or students because they have no electricity and cell service is out due to downed towers. I have heard that it will be weeks before kids can go back to school. Residents in Westmoreland, where Revival Primary is located report that their homes are gone but are grateful to have life.

How to Help Jamaica and Haiti After Hurricane Melissa

It’s critically important to properly vet organizations to find reputable established nonprofits that are fiscally responsible and mobilized to help Jamaica and Haiti after Hurricane Melissa. 

Following the 2010 earthquake and Hurricane Matthew in 2016, I saw many organizations appear out of nowhere, pretending to be nonprofits and asking for donations for Haiti. This post comes from years of experience working in Haiti and knowing global organizations like the Red Cross spent 25% of 2010 earthquake relief donations on internal expenses when that $125 million was needed by Haitians to rebuild.

Here are reputable organizations who have teams on the ground and are working to provide relief quickly to communities most affected by the hurricane. I feel confident recommending them as ways to help Jamaica and Haiti after Hurricane Melissa because of their reputations for doing outstanding disaster relief.

Please know that no donation is too small. Every contribution counts and helps make a difference towards rebuilding efforts when you donate to these organizations.

GreatShape! Inc.

 

Last month I returned home from volunteering in Jamaica with GreatShape! Inc.’s SuperKids Literacy Project. The founders and fellow volunteers of have been my go-to source for information about the effects of Hurricane Melissa on Jamaica because they were on the ground during the hurricane.

Having just volunteered with Great Shape!, I can personally attest to the strong networks and resources they have on the ground and the heart of the organization. 100% of donations to GreatShape! Inc.s’ Hurricane Melissa Relief Fund will go to supporting Jamaica’s recovery process.

Great Shape! was founded on September 12th, 1988 when Hurricane Gilbert decimated Jamaica by dumping nearly 30 inches of rain, causing 45 deaths due to flash flooding, and more than $4.0 billion USD in damages. Co-founders, Myrtle Franklin, Georgene Crowe and Gretchen Lee jumped into action in Ashland, Oregon by throwing a Reggae party. They gathered supplies and arrived on the first plane allowed to land on the island after the storm. Great Shape! Inc. evolved from a duffel bag charity, to leading some of the world’s largest, international, humanitarian projects that brings education, dental and vision care to Jamaica and to many islands in the Caribbean.

Donate to GreatShape! Inc. here

Sandals Foundation

 While volunteering in Jamaica, Beaches Negril was our host thanks to GreatShape! Inc.’s partnership with Sandals Foundation. Sandals Foundation is a non-profit organization launched in March 2009 to help Sandals Resorts International make a difference in the Caribbean.

The Sandals Foundation has launched a special Relief Mission, responding quickly to offer support to those in need while partnering with local authorities and emergency agencies to lay the groundwork for recovery. Donations help families rebuild their lives, restore hope, and strengthen Jamaican communities. 100% of every dollar donated goes toward bringing relief and recovery to those affected.

Donate to the Sandals Foundation here

Community Organized Relief Effort (CORE)

With longstanding programs in Haiti and extensive experience responding to storms in the Caribbean, CORE’s emergency response team is rapidly mobilizing resources and community networks across both Haiti and Jamaica to meet urgent needs in the storm’s aftermath. With support from their partner LIFT, they’ve deployed air cargo ships of hygiene kits, tarps, and essential relief supplies to Jamaica. They’re also prepared to deploy critical resources in Haiti as soon as conditions allow, working closely with trusted local partners to reach families in need as quickly and safely as possible. 

Once on the ground, CORE’s emergency response team on the ground will focus on delivering support like:  

• Essential relief items like hygiene kits, water, food, generators, and tarps 
• Cash assistance for families to meet urgent needs like food, transportation, and medications 
• Long-term recovery resources to help families remove debris and rebuild homes and livelihoods 

Donate to CORE here

World Central Kitchen #ChefsForJamaica

World Central Kitchen (WCK) was born after Jose Andrés set up a kitchen to cook for families affected by the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. World Central Kitchen’s (WCK) Relief Team was already in Jamaica before Hurricane Melissa made landfall. Chef Jose Andrés landed in Kingston just after the storm and #ChefsforJamaica is working with local Jamaican partners to make and serve hot meals to communities impacted by the storm. 

WCK is always first to the frontlines, providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises. When disaster strikes, WCK’s Relief Team mobilizes to the frontlines with the urgency of now to start cooking and provide meals to people in need. By partnering with organizations on the ground and activating a network of food trucks or emergency kitchens, WCK provides freshly made, nutritious meals to communities impacted by disasters quickly and effectively. We know that good food provides not only nourishment, but also comfort and hope, especially in times of crisis around the world.

WCK has provided more than 500 million fresh, nourishing meals for communities around the world. Donations will be used to support our emergency food relief efforts. 

Donate to WCK’s #ChefsForJamaica here

American Friends of Jamaica (AFJ) Disaster Relief Fund

The American Friends of Jamaica was recommended by a friend with personal ties to the organization. They have established a $1 Million Matching Fund for relief and recovery efforts from Hurricane Melissa.

AFJ Jamaica is a not-for-profit 501 (c)(3) organization dedicated to supporting Jamaican charitable organizations and social initiatives working to improve the lives of Jamaicans through systemic development in the areas of education, health care and economic development. They work closely with the Jamaican Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), Global Empowerment Mission (GEM), Food For The Poor Jamaica, and the Sanmerna Foundation to ensure aid reaches the most vulnerable communities quickly and efficiently. Efforts focus on both rapid response and long-term recovery following the storm.

Donations to the AFJ Disaster Relief Fund helps deliver life-saving food and water to families displaced by flooding, landslides, and storm damage and helps AFJ sustain its emergency response and rebuild efforts in the days and weeks following Hurricane Melissa.

Donate to the AFJ Disaster Relief Fund here

The Best Ways to Help Jamaica and Haiti After Hurricane Melissa

Right now monetary donations are the best kind of donations since they can be allocated to meet specific needs. After the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, the country was inundated with donated items like clothes and shoes and tailors and cobblers were put out of business. If you know someone traveling to either country who is planning to bring relief items, make sure they check to see what is truly needed.

For example, if they plan to visit a school, have them check with the school to see what they need. If you donate books when they really need cleaning supplies, or you donate cleaning supplies when they really need books, it creates added challenges for affected communities. The best thing to do is to reach out to contacts to offer help and ask what is truly needed by the community to save time, money, and energy.

I volunteered with GreatShape! Inc. and personally paid for my flight, program fee, and teaching materials to donate to schools in Jamaica. No compensation was received for this post and organizations mentioned are ones I have personally seen working in working in the field after Hurricane Matthew and the 2010 earthquake in Haiti or trusted friends have recommended to me.