About
In response to the tragedy of the earthquake in Haiti, sustainability-minded citizens have banded together to create “Barrels of Hope” – a Haiti relief project with an aim to provide rain barrels filled with supplies to begin rebuilding permanent structures for the earthquake victims in Haiti. We are seeking community support to bring these desperately needed supplies to Haiti before the start of hurricane season.
Water distribution has long been a problem in Haiti, and many Haitians made use of concrete cisterns, which were damaged and contaminated by the earthquake. Bottled and distributed water has provided immediate relief for the Haitians lucky enough to receive it, but it creates waste and is not a long term solution.
Rain barrels can be delivered independently and will contain enough materials to begin building what is known as an earthbag house. These structures have already been utilized in Haiti, have proven to withstand the latest earthquake and they are relatively quick and easy to build – one family can be housed for a material cost of $300. Concrete waste from the earthquake can be recycled and re-used to aid in the construction of these shelters.
The following is a list of the supplies and services that Barrels of Hope is working to acquire: Barrels, Specific plumbing fittings, Tarps, Bundles of sandbags or plastic feedbags, Barbed Wire, Printing services, Small folding shovels, Crank radios, and High quality solar-powered lights.
Please consider “Friending” a Family, Street, Neighborhood, Village, or Town, or contact us if you have time to donate. We could use a hand. Barrels of Hope is initiated by the Heart of Florida Chapter of the US Green Building Council, The Sustainable Design Group, and INDIGOGreen BUILDING Solutions.
If you are interested in supporting or partnering with this effort, please contact Mary Alford at mary.alford@gmail.com, Liberty Phoenix Lord at liberty@indigogreenstore.com or Michael Amish at mike@indigogreenstore.com
Various sponsorship levels are available:
Sponsorship Levels Monetary Equivalent Benefits
Friend a Family (1 Barrel) $300
Name recognition; knowing that you helped shelter one family.
Friend A Street (5 Barrels) $1500
Name recognition & logo on website; knowing that you helped shelter a group of families.
Silver Partner: Friend a Neighborhood (16 Barrels) $5000 Name recognition, logo on website that links to sponsor; knowing that you helped shelter a neighborhood.
Gold Partner: Friend a Village (34 Barrels or shelter for approx.136 people) $10,000 All the above and logo on all advertisements recognized as Gold Partner Level; knowing that you helped shelter a small village.
Platinum Partner: Friend a Town $25,000 and up All the above and logo on all advertisements recognized as Platinum Partner Level; knowing that you helped shelter many, many people.
*please make all checks payable to: USGBC Heart of FL with “Barrels of Hope” in the memo line and mail to:
INDIGOGreen BUILDING Solutions
322 Southwest 4th Avenue Gainesville, FL 32601 Your donation is tax deductible.
In return for your generous tax-deductible donation and depending on your level of sponsorship your benefits will vary. We know that this effort will generate local publicity with the possibility for national and even international publicity as this project gains more sponsors and momentum.
Furthermore, our local community will be coming together to volunteer their time at a “Barrels of Hope Earth Bag Shelter Demonstration Day” at the Sun Center at the Hippodrome State Theatre during the Gainesville Environmental Film Fest’s Community Fair on Saturday, March 27th. This event will also generate even more publicity and will have all Gold and Platinum partners’ logos prominently displayed on all print publicity and official Barrel of Hope banners. Please visit our website at www.barrelsofhope.org, or friend us on Facebook at Barrels of Hope.
Thank you for your time and consideration on this sustainable humanitarian mission.
In Gratitude,
Mary Alford-USGBC President
Liberty Phoenix Lord- INDIGOgreen BUILDING Solutions Owner
Michael Amish-INDIGOgreen BUILDING Solutions Manager
Lara Miller- Barrels of Hope Intern