A Diva State of Mind

It was only a year ago when the 7.0 earthquake destroyed Port De Prince, Haiti killing over 200,000 citizens.  People from all over the world came together to support Haiti through online donations and aide supplies (food, water, etc).  Washington, DC did its part to help Haiti by hosting the DMV Helps Haiti Benefit Concert at the 930 Club.  Over 1,000 people came together to raise $37,000.

To commemorate the DMV Helps Haiti Benefit Concert, the team has organized the DMV Helps Haiti One Year Anniversary Community Initiative which will include a concert featuring some of the most talented Washington, DC area artists. The concert will be held at The Warehouse Loft (411 New York Ave NE, Washington, DC 20002) on Sunday, January 23rd. Doors open at 6pm and the show begins at 7pm.  

Concert performers include: 

• Fat Trel
• Kingpen Slim
• Greenspan
• Harmony Muzik
• Lola Monroe
• Bear Witnez
• DeAngelo Redman
• Amber Mimz
• Alison Carney
• Vince L
• Kyonte
• And many more!  

WKYS’ DJ Quicksilva will be spinning and tickets can be purchased at the door for $20.  100% of the proceeds will benefit Partners in Health, an organization that has been on the ground in Haiti since day one. For more information on the organization, please visit www.pih.org.

Chris  Brown released an album last year, but it’s easy to forget since it wasn’t really a hit.  Does anyone remember the single(s) he had out this past year????? Didn’t think so!

So it was refreshing to see such a great young artist back on stage performing again.  While Chris Brown’s personal life flashed all over the news last year, let’s not forget he can still sing and dance his butt off (please believe, I am not comdoning what he did at all).  It’s nice to see him back to performing and I hope his performance at the BET event was a sign that he’s back on the scene.  Are you ready for Chris Brown to make a major comeback?  

I know everyone has been watching the news non-stop to hear about the latest developments in the rescue missions taking place in Haiti.  Recently, 53 orphans were airlifted to Pittsburgh Children’s Hospital from Haiti; Jamie and Ali McMutri are responsible for making that possible.  Jamie and Ali McMutrie founded the BRESMA orphanage in Haiti and have been working non-stop to provide love, medical care and nutrition for Haitian babies and children in Port-au-Prince.   Each year, BRESMA hosts a fundraiser event in the US to raise $$ to provide basic necessities to the children of BRESMA.

Through their calls and Twitter messages, Governor Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania heard about these two young ladies and their orphanage and made arrangements for them to fly all 53 orphans to Pittsburgh.  Julie and  Ali were originally met with resistance to take all 53 children out of Haiti because some had not been matched with adoptive parents.  But after facing much pressure, the Haitian officials allowed Julie and Ali to fly to Pittsburgh with all 53 of their children.  46 children from BRESMA have been matched with adoptive parents.  As hard as these ladies have been working, I have no doubt that they will find a home for the other 7 children. You ladies are truly an inspiration to all of us!!

BRESMA doesn’t currently have a website, so for more information please visit:

• http://gimundo.com/news/article/53-bresma-orphans-from-haiti-are-airlifted-to-pittsburgh/
• thatchurch.com
• http://www.popcitymedia.com/forgood/bresmaorphanage1202.aspx

At this time, organizations are asking people to donate $$$ so they can buy basic supplies such as water and food to help those in Haiti. Below are a list of charitable organizations seeking your donation.

Doctors Without Borders

Doctors Without Borders is an international humanitarian organization serving over 60 countries.  The organization provides medical needs in countries threaten by violence, neglect and catastrophe.

To make a donation to Doctors Without Borders, please visit http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/donate/?ref=main-menu

Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund:

Musical artist Wyclef Jean created the Yele Haiti to support his native country Haiti.  In this time of disaster, his foundation has created the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund to support those who were effected by the earthquake. 

Please text “Yele” to 501501 to make a $5 donation to the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund.

American Red Cross

The American Red Cross is the premiere emergency response organization working to aid those in need of help during a state of emergency.

Please text “Haiti” to 90999 to make a $10 donation to the American Red Cross

UNICEF

Unicef focuses on providing help (healthcare, nutrition, water, education and emergency relief) to children all across the world. 

Please visit https://secure.unicefusa.org/site/Donation2?df_id=6680&6680.donation=form1

FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS ACCEPTING DONATIONS TO SUPPORT HAITI, PLEASE VISIT:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34835478/ns/world_news-haiti_earthquake/