The following link will take you to a recent article in the Telegraph magazine about ShelterBox in Syria. It very clearly shows the continuing relationship between Rotary and ShelterBox and is good publicity for both.

http://www.rotaryinlondon.org/docs/TelegraphArticle.pdf

We are fortunate to have been awarded 8 different underground stations to collect at during Big ShelterBox Week (June 9th – 16th); one for each day! It’s a great opportunity to collect much needed funds and do some awareness raising. The 8 stations are:

Tooting Broadway	Sat 9th	Northern
Kew Gardens	Sun 10th	District / Overground
Leicester Square	Mon 11th	Piccadilly / Northern
Monument	Tues 12th	Circle / District
South Harrow	Wed 13th	Piccadilly
Marble Arch	Thurs 14th	Central
Hounslow Central	Fri 15th	Piccadilly
Clapham Common	Sat 16th	Northern

We can collect all day (06.30 – 22.00) but obviously aren’t expecting to have volunteers cover the entire day! The main times will be morning rush hour: 07.00 – 10.00 and evening rush hour: 16.00 – 19.00. But as many hours as we can get covered would be great. We’re looking for volunteers to collect in 2 hour stints and the max number of collectors at one time is 2 (except Leicester Square which can have 4 collectors).

Abi, James and I will act as your point of contact – we won’t be there during the day but will go along to deliver new buckets, will be on the end of the phone to answer any questions and will also collect the money at the end of the day.

If you feel you would like to help with this please respond to this email with dates and times you are able to collect. I will then organise a rota and how to get collection buckets and t-shirts to you and will provide all necessary information as well as TFL guidelines for collections.

Maribeth Lloyds, Corporate Fundraising Manager, ShelterBox

w. www.shelterbox.org

ShelterBox has committed an initial 5000 boxes of emergency aid following the massive earthquake that struck southeast Turkey on 23 October.  Hundreds of lives have been lost, with many more people injured and many thousands left homeless by the 7.2 magnitude quake. A ShelterBox Response team is currently in Van, a city close to the epicenter of the earthquake, and is liaising with the Turkish Red Crescent Society and local Rotary clubs to ensure that aid gets to the most vulnerable as quickly as possible.

As well as the response to the devastating earthquake, volunteer ShelterBox teams are delivering aid following other humanitarian crises around the world.

Thailand is experiencing terrible flooding following heavy rain and monsoons, the worst the country has experienced in more than fifty years. Over five hundred ShelterBoxes have already been distributed to some of the most vulnerable families. Further aid is being distributed as the country’s capital Bangkok is seeing evacuation as the threat of flooding closes in.

Additional Response Teams are assessing need for aid in Central America where Hurricane Jova and torrential rains have caused landslides and flooding, leaving hundreds of thousands affected.

We have been allocated a large pitch at the London Mela in Gunnersbury Park on Sunday September 4th. Last year, about 92,000 people attended this event, so it’s a fantastic opportunity to publicise ShelterBox and Rotary in general. We shall have the large trailer/caravan from ShelterBox HQ and a tent on display. Volunteers are needed to help us set up and pack away, as well as to talk to people during the day.
Please contact Shirley Kirk  if you would like to be involved in any way at this event or if you are interested in becoming a volunteer speaker for ShelterBox (there is a training event on Saturday August 20th at Gilwell Park, Chelmsford, by invitation).

Calling all Rotarians, Rotaractors & Inner Wheel Members. As part of the 2011 Big Green Box Week celebrations, up to 1,000 people will collecting an empty ShelterBox from York Gate and going around London, walking, on the bus, on the tube, etc. etc. If you would like to volunteer to do that please register at http://www.bgbw.org,  If you don’t feel that is for you, then read on. With the permission of District Governor David, all of these people will be starting their journey from Rotary’s very own District Headquarters in York Gate NW1, which is where you come in. A majority of the people that will be carrying a green box will know about the work of ShelterBox, they might have heard of Rotary, they might not know about the works that Rotary, Rotaract & Inner Wheel do. We need you, to help cover 4 shifts 08:00am thru 10:00am, 10:00am thru noon, 16:00 thru 18:00 & 18:00 thru 20:00 on that Saturday, with as many people as possible to be at York Gate, where you can talk to these people about your section, make them a drink, tell them about the other wondrous things our organisations do, in short get them interested in joining Rotary, Rotaract or Inner Wheel. Up to 1,000 new members – can you, your club or your organisation afford to say no? Please phone me  or email me  to register yourself, your club or your Area for a time slot on 11th June. See you at York Gate.

Yours in Rotary Adrian Faiers (District International Chairman) and Shirley Kirk (District ShelterBox Coordinator)

So far there are 468 ShelterBoxes in the country with another 400 en route. A further 5,000 are on stand by should they be required.

Adrian Faiers

 

You will have seen on the news, heard on the radio or seen on the Internet the terrible Earthquake that hit the pacific this morning (our time), 66 miles off the East coast of Japan. The Earthquake measured 8.9 on the Richter scale and is the 6th largest recorded Earthquake on record.

All of the Rotary Box projects have put themselves on standby for what they think will be the largest supply of Disaster Relief equipment ever to be needed.

There is worse to come – a Tsunami is moving out from the epicentre and will hit the shores of all countries in the Pacific Rim Countries, which will cause more devastation.

Please find attached the news that arrived from ShelterBox this morning.

Can you please ask your clubs to support all the box projects at this time, boxes & their prices are shown below – everything is needed.

ShelterBox (http://www.shelterbox.org/news.php?id=612) – £590.00

Water Survival Box (http://www.worldwaterworks.org/wsb.html) – £150.00 or Donation to “TheBigGive.org.uk“

AquaBox (http://www.aquabox.org/latestnews.asp) – from £50.00

I am available to come to clubs and talk about the box projects,  I also have a ShelterBox if you would like to see one of those

Yours in Rotary Service

Adrian Faiers

Hello ShelterBox Supporters

As I’m sure most of you are already aware there has been a massive earthquake in Japan that’s triggered a tsunami. We have a Response Team, consisting of Lasse Petersen and Mark Pearson, currently mobilising and trying to get into Japan. Large areas of the Pacific Basin are on tsunami alert.

The latest news is online here - http://www.shelterbox.org/news.php?id=612 – or copied below. This disaster is still unfolding and the situation is constantly changing. As soon as we know more we will let you know. Please send any questions you have to me and not the Operations Team as they are extremely busy coordinating the response.

ShelterBox responding to Japanese earthquake and tsunami

A ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) is mobilising after a massive earthquake struck Japan earlier today. The earthquake, measuring 8.9 in magnitude, triggered a tsunami that’s caused extensive damage.

The latest reports coming out of Japan have shown cars, ships and buildings being swept away with waves of up to 10 meters high slamming into the coast. Areas across the Pacific Basin have been put on tsunami alert including Russia, Guam, the Philippines, Taiwan and Hawaii.

SRT members Lasse Petersen (AU) and Mark Pearson (UK) are ready to head to Japan and begin ShelterBox’s international response.

‘The scenes we’re seeing are catastrophic,’ said Lasse. ‘Whole homes are being washed away and our thoughts go out to all the families who are facing this disaster. The epicentre was in Japan so our first team are mobilising to head there but we continue to watch very closely the path of the tsunami. We’re very aware the worst may not be over.’

According to U.S. Geological Survey the earthquake was magnitude 8.9 at a depth of 20 miles with the epicentre 250 miles away from Japan’s capital Tokyo.

The tsunami warning was issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre and they say the wave could even reach as far as Chile.

Tom Henderson, ShelterBox Founder and CEO, added: ‘At present the scale of the disaster is difficult to measure. What we do know is that the combination of such a large earthquake followed by the tsunami has the potential to cause significant damage across the Pacific Rim.

‘We have aid pre-positioned locally and a member of the ShelterBox Response Team stationed in the Philippines enabling an immediate response.’