Sail from Florida to Haiti or Dominican Republic to Help Non-Profit

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Therapy

307 organizations and all the millions and millions already there, and it is still such a ----hole.

Something is not working huh?

Don't get me wrong. I feel for the innocent but am having trouble with who that might be.

The ones not getting any aid... usually those not directly employed by the state... So the Army, Police and Admin are just fine Thank You...

[stevensc]

Posted by Old Jersey
"Even giving OP the benefit of the doubt on the good (honest? ) intentions – I would not wish to risk both boat and person in what is clearly intended as an illegal smuggling operation. (whether folk agree with the laws & practices that make it so is a separate thing)."

I agree! Even operating with the best intentions, and carying completely lawful cargo, this could be a route to losing your boat and winding up in the slammer.
Steve W.

[David_Old_Jersey]

To be fair to OP, he does seem to have taken onboard the concerns raised in this thread and is moving along the learning curve.

The piggy backing on what other NGO's are already doing seems a good place to start. And I hope we get to hear the end to the tale

[db7]

Originally Posted by swelldaddyo

The comments on this thread are amusing. How can one get so worked up over a question, especially if they aren't interested in being involved?

Back to the original reason for this post. The ports are problematic. Would like to get aid to the country. How can this happen?

From my perspective as a professional emergency manager some of the comments are indeed amusing.

I suggest you contact the folks at AidMatrix.
Supply Chain Management for Humanitarian Relief - Aidmatrix.org

A great not-for-profit founded by the former Governor of Wisconsin Scott McCallum.

They should be able to help you with logistics if anyone can.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, db7.

Thanks for sharing that relevant link.

[Libertyhere]

Hi swelldaddyo,

Contact me off-line at liberty.schooner@gmail.com. We lead two successful relief voyages to Haiti after the quake aboard our tall-ship and the schooner Halie & Matthew, and also have contacts of other sailors doing trips there. In addition I can connect you to the floating doctors. (www.floatingdoctors.com). Dr/Captain Ben is a good friend, and they are bound for Haiti soon. Finally, we can connect you with security intel for your voyage, and contacts on the ground in Haiti.

We believe it is a worthwhile effort.

Schooner Liberty Fan Page | Facebook

best regards

Philip

[pressuredrop]

swelldaddy -

is that you clayton?!
this is Ben, i met you on the beach in ft. lauderdale a few months ago when you were layed over on a flight home from Haiti...

anyways talk to this guy cameron if you are still trying to get stuff down there, he is in south florida now and will be heading down there again in a month or 2 if he can get enough stuff to bring... he was their last year and filled his 54' roberts with shoes and clothes and what not... so this isnt his first rodeo

his name is cameron, here is his contact info...
Contact Trans-Marine Boating Vessels Crusing

hope you guys can work something out, keep up the good work clayton

Ben

[Tom Stormcrowe]

Beware, I just got a security warning on malware on the linked site ("Where the stars still shine")and my AV blocked access.

[Canibul]

Captain Nichols and the 68 ft. cargo schooner "Star of the Sea" have been making trips to Haiti at least twice a year. I know this because they usually come by our house when they come through Providenicales. He takes donated supplies from his christian missionary base on the west coast of Florida to the orphanage on Cat Cay in the Bahamas. Then he sails from there to Provo, where he reprovisions and fuels up. From here he goes to Morton Salt on Gt. Inagua. They are bringing food down from the US for him on their returning-empty back to Gt. Ingaua for more salt. From Gt. Inagua he sails around to the far side of Haiti, where they offload the food directly to the people who need it. This bypasses the problems with the food that gets shipped in via "official" channels. In other words, it gets tied up in political red tape and sits behind fences to protect it. Who knows where it goes, evetually. I would suspect the government and military, but that's pure speculation on my part. Anyhow if you are interested, you should contact Bob Nichols. He might be able to make his boat available, or as a minimum, he can tell you the ins and outs of sailing down and "smuggling" vital supplies to the starving people in Haiti.

Check out:
Schooner Star of the Sea: June 2012

And I posted some photos of the boat coming through here several times. Some photos of the boat and crew in Provo are at:
2 Gringos in the Caribbean: "Star of the Sea"

there are other photos of the supplies being offloaded and transported and at the orphanage elsewhere in the blog. If you are interested you can click on the Star of the Sea category.

Capt. Nichols can speak from first hand experience, as he is just at the end of another trip. We last saw him here in June. He's one of those really cool people you meet from time to time. A rum drinking, schooner sailing, real life two fisted missionary.

[rognvald]

I always find it interesting how people assume the veracity of anything anyone says on the internet. You can be famous, wealthy, talented, philanthropic, educated, compassionate, intelligent with the click of a keyboard. Ossirail speaks the language of truth, wisdom and experience. There are some people who are trusting souls and others who are not. Your life will be the record of your awareness.

[Azul]

Try contacting Ed Redden who started Fish Ministries in Haiti. He has experience getting stuff into Haiti and has a lot of connections (he's my brother in law and a great guy.)

[Canibul]

trust but verify.

(Ronald Reagan)


I am often amazed at how many people seemingly strive to live their lives totally sanctioned by suspiciously wealthy authorities.

Anyone who has lived as a resident in a Caribbean or Central American nation well knows that there are numerous ways to get things done. And plenty of people willing to take your money.