Hundreds more boxes arrived last week and thousands more are being packed and shipped from Shelter Box headquarters in the UK. Working with local Rotarians in Haiti and Red Cross personnel, Rotarians from the States and the UK are setting up sites for Shelter Box deployment and have been training the trainers to put up the equipment quickly and properly.

Shelter Box is an international emergency housing imitative headquartered in England that responds instantly to natural and manmade disasters by delivering boxes of aid to those who are most in need. A Shelter Box is an emergency housing unit packed in a rugged, green plastic container that when filled weighs between 110 and 130 pounds (50 to 60 kg). It holds necessities for an extended family of up to 10 persons and includes a tent and a range of other equipment that could include thermal blankets and insulated ground sheets, waterproof ponchos, a multi-fuel stove that can burn anything from diesel to old paint, cooking pans, utensils, bowls and mugs, collapsible water containers and water purification tablets, food rations, a basic tool kit , and even a children’s pack containing drawing books, crayons, pens etc., to sustain the family for up to six months while they are displaced or homeless.

The concept was the idea of ex-Royal Navy search-and-rescue diver and Rotarian Tom Henderson, a member of the Helston-Lizard Rotary Club in England.

Highly trained Shelter Box Response Teams from the US and the UK Teams are in Haiti distributing boxes on the ground, working closely the Red Cross and Rotary clubs. Since its inception in 2000, Shelter Box has firmly established itself at the forefront of international disaster relief, providing emergency shelter for the people who need it most on every continent.

Shelter Box expects to ship 10,000 units to Haiti, with a 1000 expected to come from Canada. The Rotary Club of Westmount’s initial donation will purchase 25. The Club is taking donations for Shelter Boxes. Visit the Rotary office downstairs at The Manoir, 4646 Sherbrooke Street West or phone Roberta at 514-935-3344 or emailinfo@rotarywestmount.org The donation will be receipted and will be matched by CIDA’s dollar matching program. Or go to www.shelterbox.ca and donate on the secure "DONATE NOW" button. Call them at 1-800-677-0990 to donate directly or if you have any questions. Shelter Box Canada is located at 1272 Mysty Woods, Victoria, British Columbia. V8Y 3G6 Phone1-800-677-0990. E-mail: info@shelterbox.ca