500 Safe Birth Kits Destined for Haiti

MAY 16, 2014

Major crises tend to put a spotlight on areas of quiet need that would otherwise have gone unrecognized.  The devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake of 2010 briefly put Haiti on the public’s mind but once the media attention waned, thoughts drifted elsewhere.  Not so for Sunshine Girls Charities nor our friends at Konbit Sante who have been dedicated to improving the health care system of the most impoverished nation in the Western Hemisphere.  Thanks to your incredible support, we were able to partner with this organization to make an impact where it is needed most.

Haiti isn’t a world away.  It’s about 560 miles from Florida - closer than New York City is to Chicago.  They remain a country in considerable poverty despite being our own neighbor.  71% of the population lives on less than $2 per day making access to even the most basic healthcare nearly impossible.  Haiti’s infant mortality rate illustrates this sad fact.  According to the World Bank’s 2012 estimates, 57 babies out of every 1,000 live births died before reaching the age of one.  Compare that to the United States‘ rate of six out of every 1,000 and it takes your breath away.               

When we saw such staggering hardship, Sunshine Girl Charities knew we must find a way to help these children.  Enter Konbit Sante’s ongoing project to distribute 300 safe birth kits per month to expectant mothers.  Each kit contains indispensable items that aid in a successful home delivery like soap, newborn clothing, and sterile exam gloves.  Your extraordinary support in the form of donations and gifts from our Amazon wish list, directly enabled us to exceed our goal of a month’s supply of safe kits.  In fact, we were able to assemble 500 kits that will be in the hands of Haitian mothers-to-be this summer.   

Sunshine Girl Charities put the spotlight back on the children of Haiti and now 500 infants’ chances are already brighter because you turned your attention to that light.  Thank you!