How You Can Help Haiti, Even If You Have No Spare Cash

This post is updated from a post on Katrina a while back. Most of the ideas then can be updated and applied to Haitian relief efforts, and most of them can be adapted and applied to any situation where you wish to help out somebody less fortunate than you- and there is always somebody less fortunate than you.

Some of this is just plain old brainstorming. Not all of it will work for every person in every circumstance. I was reminded of this post when I read a Tweet insisting that 'everybody' could donate five dollars if they just skipped Starbucks one time, but I personally do not remember the last time to Starbucks. Nor is it helpful to be told 'just skip eating out once' when you haven't eaten out in months, and the last time you did, you bought a dollar burger and a dollar fries, and split the fries.

For those of us who have no disposable income to continue reading about the devastation and need for help may a bit discouraging or frustrating, or an exercise in hopeless frustration. I know how that feels. We've been there, when every single penny we had was already spoken for, and not a single cent went for anything other than necessities. There was no way to pare the budget as it was already as thin (and about as strong) as wet tissue paper.

It's true that in Haiti most people survive on a dollar or two a day, and so it seems like we ought to be able to afford to do more- but sometimes, either through bad choices or hard circumstances we cannot alter, there just isn't any spare money- every penny is already allocated to one bill or another. It's hard to want to help but to have no money, and it can be discouraging and tempt us turn our faces from tragedies when there is nothing we can think of to do. I want this post to be encouraging, and to spark some creativity in some of you. If you can find ways to help out even when your last dollar is already gone and you won't get paid for two more weeks, share your ideas in the comments and I will repost them here. Here are some ideas I have:

For those of us who are believers, people of Faith, Prayer, of course, we know about. Get more specific in your prayers. Look at some of those heartbreaking, stomach wrenching photographs and pray specifically for each of the people shown, for their friends and relations, their neighbors. Pray for their safety. Pray that they will also find ways they can help. Pray for their encouragement and reassurance. Pray that their basic needs will be met. Pray for yourself, that God will open up your eyes to any way of assistance that you might have missed, that He will help you think of something creative to do, that if there is something you can do that you have not thought of, He will bring that opportunity before you.

Change in the street- I could recommend putting all your change each day in a jar and donating that to Haitian relief efforts- but let's imagine that I am writing to people who do not even have spare change (I have been there, done that). I was told once of an old lady who had very little income, but who wanted to help missionaries. She made it her goal to pick up all the change she saw in the street, to check phone booths and vending machines for dropped coins. She kept them separate from her own funds, and put them in a jar at home. Once or twice a year she took it to the bank and got out a money order to send to missionaries. The people in Haiti are going to need a sustained amount of help, and unfortunately, most of us are going to forget about them later. A project like this, while small, could be one way to continue offering some small token of assistance long after the immediate drama is over.

You could extend this project- partner with a relieve organization, and if you know of a business, a library, a cafeteria- any area where people congregate and might be expected to have a few extra cents, ask if you can put out a jar collecting money for relief efforts.

Have a yard sale- let your friends and family know that you are doing this for relief for Haiti, and accept donations. Put up a jar with a large sign saying that this is for Haitian relief efforts. People will let you keep the change for a good cause. This is not one of my favorite methods, because there is something that sort of bugs me about the idea that people donate more if there is something in it for them, but maybe there's no point in kicking against a basic human reality, especially if adhering to a principle here means less money for those in dire need.

Go to yard sales and pick up items for resale- most of us homeschooling on one income already do this. But this time pick up a couple items specifically for Haitian relief efforts- sell it on ebay, or let your church and friends know, again, that you are reselling some items for Haitian relief. I once picked up a stack of stickers at a yard sale suitable for scrap-booking and resold them at 4 times what I'd paid to benefit a local missionary. People gave me extra to send, as well.

Donate time or goods locally: Right now all the Haitian charities I know of are expressly stating that they need dollars more than they need anything else, that, in fact, right now, they really cannot use anything else. Maybe later they will be able to use other things. But there are charities, local ones, that need other things. In a round about way, donating items to them may be contributing to Haiti as well, by freeing up other resources elsewhere. It's possible that local organizations will see their own charitable donations go down as people redirect their charity dollars to the more immediate, in your face needs of Haiti. So perhaps donating your own time or materials locally will help Haiti indirectly- of course, it will certainly help out local charities directly.

What can you do? Do you know somebody who travels a lot with his or her job? Do you travel? Yes, you can be poor and still have to travel (my husband did when he was in the Air Force). Collect toiletries from hotels to give to shelters, shelters for the homeless, for crisis pregnancy centers, for victims of abusive relationships. Those small soaps and shampoos are perfect. Put out the word that you are doing this and people will bring them to you.

Let your traveling friends know that they can donate frequent flier miles. Several hotels that award points for frequent 'guests' are permitting those guests to donate their points for Haitian relief. If you participate in anything like that, call the company and ask if they are participating in any exchange of points for aid money for Haiti.

Get the word out. I do not consider this blog a substitute for personal charitable efforts, but I do consider it a companion effort- by telling others of the needs I know of, charitable organizations I trust, and ways to help, I hope I am contributing further towards relief efforts. You can do the same. Email, call, or write your friends to pass on a link to this post (or ANY post you find has helpful information on where and how to help).

This requires you to have a bit of cash, but Save the Children is accepting donations through googlecheckout, paypal, and Amazon payments (which uses a card, not, unfortunately, your Amazon gift certificates from swagbucks, I just tried).

Sell other stuff: Root houseplants in soil and sell cuttings and small plants for a dollar or more (depending on the size of the plant). If you live in the right neighborhood you could set up a picnic table with a jar for donations and a big sign in you front yard- again, if people know this is for charity, they will be more generous.

Sometimes we haven't much money on hand, but we do have full pantries. Have a bakesale with homemade pies or fudge and sell them to raise money.

Are there any Haitian refugees or immigrants in your area? FIND OUT. Find a way to contact them and ask if you bring over meals or snacks to them in order to free up their own time or funds for helping family back home. Offer to babysit their children, or take them to the grocery store or library. Often by making specific offers, no matter how silly they may seem, you make it safe and possible for the other person to think of and express another specific need. Saying "Can I do anything to help?" is more likely to cause the other party to freeze up. Saying, "I wondered if it would be helpful if I baked some brownies and brought them over for people to snack on while they are trying to make phone calls to track down loved ones would help? And if that won't be useful, can I drop off some toiletries, or give somebody a ride somewhere, or is there something else you could use?" is more likely to result in an honest statement of current needs.

Likewise, if you know of any doctors or nurses who want to go to Haiti, ask them if there is a way you can help even though you have no spare funds. Can you do something for their family to make it easier for them to get away? Promise to keep an eye on the family or pets left behind, help with sitting, bake a few meals, share a pan of brownies, do a couple loads of laundry, - anything you can do to make it easier for those with the skills needed to volunteer their efforts would be a way of partnering with others who wish to help in Haiti (or anywhere).

Haiti is going to need help for a long time, and even if Haiti didn't, there is always a need for charity. Think ahead and plan to help on an ongoing basis. If nobody in your area is organizing an effort, you could try. Investigate charities that already have a presence on the ground in Haiti and see the sorts of things they have been doing. Let your friends, family, neighbors, local church groups, school friends, etc, know that you want to collect goods and funds to send. Pick the charity you wish to donate to. Some take only money, others collect different things- school supplies, clothing, toiletries, cleaning supplies, and more. Do your homework in advance, make a list of what you will want to help collect, make a contact list, and once the immediate emergency is over and longterm help is required, start contacting people. You are donating the legwork and the planning, and asking others to donate goods and funds. But maybe, if you start planning now, you'll also be able to come up with a way to free up some extra funds between now and a month or so from now?

If you are at all talented with crafty things, make small things like scrunchies, aprons, crocheted washclothes, bookmarks, and have a benefit bazaar- let people know what you are doing and why. Auction off your labor, say, you'll cut a lawn or sew a curtain, or bake a pie for money for Haitian relief efforts.

Spend a day in fasting and prayer, and send the money you would have spent on food for that day to a charity (I know that for some of us this won't be much, but it's something).

Once a month have an electricity free day- turn off all the lights, electronic devices, even the computer, and use candles or kerosene lamps- chart your power bill and see how much money you save, tally that up over a period of time, and donate it.

Give up some other regular expenditure- a weekly trip to town, perhaps, a haircut, your favorite shampoo (try vinegar and baking soda for a month, and maybe you won't go back), a convenience food such as canned beans (buy dried instead and get four times the amount for the same expenditure) or diaper wipes (make your own), or laundry soap (make your own for a fraction of the cost), or a regular treat at the grocery store, and donate the money saved, even if it is only a couple of dollars, to some relief effort.

Reduce a regular expenditure. Do you normally a favorite name brand item, or slightly more expensive cut of meat or cheese? Substitute the generic, eat hamburger instead of a roast, or reduce your use of cheese and contribute the difference (even if it's only a dollar or two) somewhere it can do the most good.

Of course, be sure to include your children in these activities, and share what other ideas you have. Again, this is a need that's not going to go away. Even if you cannot give now, you have time to plan, to work on paying down your debt and eliminating just one more expense, to collect change, to root houseplants, to begin baking and selling, gather information, ideas, and supplies to begin an effort to contribute something later.

Meanwhile, do your homework and investigate the charities that interest you.
There are many charities that have already been working in Haiti for some time and have a presence there. Two of my favorites are Hope for Haiti's Children and Healing Hands International.

These are a few ways you can help in Haiti. Maybe you have others ideas for contributing to Haitian relief efforts. Maybe all you can do is share these ideas with somebody who can use them- but every little bit is something. And keep in mind that the dollar or two that might seem insignificant to you, is enough to support somebody for a day in Haiti, so it goes further than you think.
Every little bit counts is a cliche, but it is also the truth. Help Haiti. And then help somebody else.