On Saturday 23rd January the two Rotary Clubs in Caterham –  Caterham  and Caterham Harestone, held a  joint collection for Shelterbox's Haitian Earthquake Appeal.  Over £2,500 was collected on the day.  Some of the donations were gift aided which means Shelterbox will get over £2,700 from the collection. 

Teams of collectors were stationed outside Morrisons in Church Walk, Waitrose, the NatWest Bank and the entrance to Church Walk from nine in the morning until four in the afternoon.   Many of the collectors have been involved in collections around Caterham before but had never seen such a willingness to give as on this occasion.  As one Rotarian said  "I've been around Round Table and then Rotary for over 30 years and I have never seen a response like this." He went on to congratulate the team of Rotarians from Caterham Harestone who had organised the collection in such a short space of time, including obtaining a display Shelterbox, street collecting licences, permission to collect in Church Walk, preparing display material and organising collectors for the day.  The Rotary Clubs would like to thank the people of Caterham for their generosity and also thank the Church Walk centre management team for their support on the day and the staff at Tandridge Council for granting a licence to collect so quickly. The money contributed should buy six Shelterboxes that provide a tent with room for ten people, along with blankets, ground sheets, water purification equipment, stove, tools and cookware as well as things to keep the children entertained. 

Shelterbox, a charity started by the Rotary Club of Helston and the Lizard ten years ago, have already despatched 3,000 boxes to Haiti (sufficient to house 30,000 people).  Most of the boxes have already arrived on the island and are being deployed to a number of camps that are being set up.  Some of the boxes have been used to create recovery wards at a couple of hospitals.  Shelterbox say this is the most complex deployment that they have been involved in because so much infrastructure has been destroyed.  However, they have been getting aid through to the island and more boxes are desperately needed.

If you missed the opportunity to donate on Saturday there is a chance to contribute online at www.justgiving.com/nick-drake.  This collection by Caterham Harestone Rotary Club has already raised over £1,200 including gift aid for Shelterbox.  You can give with a debit or credit card or using PayPal.