By NAN Sports Editor
News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Weds. Oct. 12, 2016: Two Haitian-American footballers are on a mission to help build safe homes and a sustainable community in the homeland their parents left behind and which has again been battered by a major natural disaster.
With reports that almost 1,000 Haitians may be dead in Haiti following Hurricane Matthew’s October 4, 2016 hit on the island, Elvis Dumervil and Cliff Avril have joined arms with the San Francisco-based non-profit, New Story to build homes for poor Haitians.
Dumervil, the outside linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens, was born to Haitian immigrant parents in Miami’s Little Haiti. Elvis Clifford Samuel “Cliff” Avril, the defensive end for the Super Bowl-winning Seattle Seahawks, was also born to Haitian parents in Florida but in Jacksonville.
Each home costs only US$6,000, said the two.
“We hope people around the nation recognize the need for both short-term and long-term solutions as there are thousands of people still living in tents from the 2010 earthquake whose lives have been impacted by Hurricane Matthew,” said Dumervil, who is now the chairman of New Story Haiti, on the group’s website.
He said he is teaming with the group because it has a proven and transparent track record where 100 percent of all donations go towards building permanent homes and sustainable communities in Haiti and most of all donors will get video-proof guarantee of the build and can watch a family move in.
“The destruction in Haiti from Hurricane Matthew is significant. It’s our time to step up, lead, and help the people of Haiti build for the long term,” he said.
“Let’s do for some what we wish we could do for all. Please join me in supporting this Haiti rebuilding initiative and New Story,” added Avril.
The players say the aim is to hire all local workers and buy all local materials to build permanent homes so families have safe shelter for everyday life and future disasters.
Those interested in donating to The NFL Resilience For Haiti Community Initiative can log on here.
The move by the two NFL players come as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday, Sept. 10th announced the launch of a near $120 million appeal to fund United Nations aid activities in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew in Haiti, where the rising death toll coupled with the start of the rainy season has prompted the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to sound the alarm on the threat of waterborne diseases to children living in the worst-affected areas.
“Hundreds have died. At least 1.4 million people need assistance at this time. Some towns and villages have been almost wiped off the map. Crops and food reserves have been destroyed. At least 300 schools have been damaged, Ban told reporters at UN Headquarters while expressing his deepest condolences and sympathies to those affected by the hurricane, according to UN News.
