Keep the Momentum of Caring and Sharing for the People of Haiti

Executive Director of COGIC Charities

By Dr. John W. Penton |  March 31, 2010

   January 12, 2010 stunned the conscience of the entire world.  Humanity from every geographical area of the globe responded to the cry of a nation in peril when the earth shook the foundation of a nation of over 9 million people leaving countless homeless and scattered the existence of over 200,000 people.  COGIC Charities was one of the NGOs that responded with urgency just hours after the tragedy was reported by Television media.  Bishop Charles Blake President and Board Chairman of COGIC Charities summon the COGIC Charities executive committee to strategize our response.  Bishop Charles Blake immediately designated Superintendant James Pullings, Jr. of New York City to be the point person for COGIC Charities Disaster relief efforts. 

James Pullings, Jr. was dispatched to Haiti to get a first hand assessment of aftermath of this 7.0 magnitude quake’s epicenter hit just 10 miles west of Porte-au-Prince and its 2 million inhabitants.  James Pullings and Horrace Pritchett arrived in Haiti January 27, 2010 via of the neighbor country the Dominican Republic (all commercial flights were suspended January 14 – February 28, 2010). Communication from Haiti was via cell phone, as you could imagine the telephone systems that depended upon the infrastructure did not work. The cell phones were not consistently working due to technical problems and the accessibility of recharging stations for the batteries of the cell phones were scarce.

James Pullings reported his first impression, “I have never been in war, however I have seen war pictures on TV, and this is worst than I could have ever imagined the devastation would be like after a war”.  He saw unburied bodies and the anguish of the living that had lost love ones. He went farther to describe the condition of infrastructure in Port-au-Prince, “It looked like a nuclear bomb had struck the city”. The two orphanages were totally destroyed and the churches in the Port-au-Prince area were destroyed.  It was countless of people displaced without shelter and the people resolved not to trust in any of the buildings in the city of Port-au-Prince because they did not trust the stability of the building as they were constantly reminded by the many aftershocks.

James Pullings discovered with great relief that the Church Of God In Christ Headquarters building that was located about 30 minutes drive from Port-au-Prince had very little damage done to the infrastructure. The Headquarters building was recently completed several weeks before the earth quake hit and Bishop Charles Blake was scheduled to dedicate the building January 26, 2010. Over 250,000 dollars were provided by COGIC Charities to complete the construction of Church of God In Christ Headquarters building.  James Pullings reported that while the building was standing, there were functional damages that needed repaired. The water tower, electrical supply system and the restrooms were repaired by the local people under the leadership of James Pullings.

 

 
 
 

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