Runners and walkers are being asked to register and sign up sponsors for the four-mile event in Central Park on April 10. The race starts at 9.30 A.M.
"The story of the January 12 earthquake that hit the country has been fading from the headlines, but the needs on the ground remain enormous. The scale and complexity of the problems are overwhelming," said Siobhan Walsh, Concern's Executive Director.
"Seeing the chaos in one of the city's many camps after a night of heavy rain was a hard, cold recognition of what a long road these people have ahead of them," said Walsh, who just returned from spending several days in Port-au-Prince.
"Amidst all the tragedy," she said, "what gives the local community and Concern staff hope are the Child Friendly Spaces we are setting up in the camps and in the slums. They provide a haven for children-they are the only places where I heard singing and laughter."
Concern has opened three Child Friendly Spaces so far, and more are planned.
Concern has been active in Haiti since 1994 and has a current staff of almost 250, mostly Haitian nationals. Its emergency efforts focus on water and sanitation, health care-with special attention for malnourished children under five-shelter AND camp management, cash distributions and cash-for-work programs.
Full details on the fun run at www.concernusa.org.
