CRS in Haiti

(Community Matters) Catholic Relief Services’ Caroline Brennan (senior communications officer) just returned from Haiti and was in Austin meeting with donors today.  With our HelpHaiti grants committee chair Phil Siegel and Chris Earthman who chairs Catholic Charities, met earlier today with Ms. Brennan and Diana Orren.  Wonderful pictures and stories of courageous Haitians, life seems to be returning to these people, though a very very tough life living in tents and mud floors during the rainy season.  It’ll be hurricane season almost as soon as the rains top.  HelpHaiti made a $50k challenge grant, against which Catholic Charities raised $88k in Central Texas.  We feel good about CRS’s spend, though given their raise of $140mm to date, unlikely we’ll be sending more.  Our priorities are mostly among more botique npos with specific programs we deem most valuable and for which monies from our $1.3mm would be critical – especially if we can help them leverage it with additional funding through match grants or other strategic partnerships.