PROVIDENCE – A Roger Williams University professor and two members of the Class of 2014 plan to bring aid to Haitian victims of recent Hurricane Matthew, a Category 4 storm, according to a news release issued by the school last week.
Autumn Quezada de Tavarez, RWU associate professor of history, along with Bernard Georges and Omar Bah, will deliver money, medicine and food to those in need through their on-the-ground connections.
Quezada de Tavarez, Georges and Bah are high-level members of the coalition, New Bridges for Haitian Success Inc., which provides services through community-level assistance and cultural orientation among Haitians and Rhode Islanders. Georges, founder and executive director, immigrated to Rhode Island from Port-au-Prince and attended Providence’s Central High School. A former journalist, the native Gambian Bah is the chairman of the organization’s board. Quezada de Tavarez teaches modern Latin America courses at RWU and has taught in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic in study abroad programs.
The trip was planned in light of a report, which found after Haiti’s 2010 earthquake the Red Cross raised nearly $500 million, yet built six permanent homes. While the Red Cross claims the money funded multiple humanitarian aid projects, Georges said there is still skepticism on both sides of the equation.
“A lot of international aid [organizations] do not report how the money is spent,” said Georges, who added that all expenditures made by New Bridges for Haitian Success will be documented.
Bah, who received a master’s in public administration from RWU, added: “We don’t want to send a container to the family of a political leader. We want to make sure we are handing over the donated items to families that need them.”
The organization has set up a GoFundMe page and is accepting cash donations, as well as bottled water, canned goods, batteries, hygiene products and first aid items. As of Tuesday, the team said it planned to leave in November, but no specific date has been set for departure.
