A thank you from Doctors Without Borders

I was so touched today to receive a handwritten thank you note from the Hearts for Haiti contact at MSF and want to share it here since it is really for everyone who volunteered, donated, supported, promoted, and otherwise helped our project become such a great success.


The card reads, "Dear Victoria, On behalf of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), I want to thank you for all your generous work fundraising to support our organization. We are so honored you selected MSF as the beneficiary. As requested at the beginning all donations have been directed towards our operations treating the victims of the earthquake in Haiti. Your efforts are helping us to respond to the emergency in Haiti by providing urgently needed medical care and humanitarian aid to thousands of vulnerable people. Please extend our gratitude to all those involved. Thank you for getting involved and for helping to make a difference. Kind Regards, Charlie Kunzer"

It's a simple gesture but somehow it really brought everything home for me. We really did do something monumental!

♥ Victoria

The Art of Compassion

Here is another great example of artists using their talent and generosity to help those in need through Doctors Without Borders.  (You can view the online magazine here.)

Fourth and final payment sent - $7,305.64

I'm so honored to finally be sending this fourth and final check to Doctors Without Borders. This experience. The shop closed in September and I just had the PayPal reserve lifted and the money transferred to the credit union account so at long last the rest of the money is on its way! Another $7,300--amazing!

♥ Victoria

Film: Etsy Hearts for Haiti, Movie Trailer

Grace & Mercy is a film about Haiti.  A film life admist destruction.  We follow 5 Haitians as they rebuild theirs and other fellow Haitian's lives.

A friend of mine is working with the film maker of this documentary.  This movie trailer is only 1:34 sec. long but powerful.  (Click the image, allow 1 minute to load).

Love and Peace, Sunny

Alert Article -Sept. 30, 2010 Haiti: Impact of Donor Support

ALERT ARTICLE | SEPTEMBER 30, 2010

Haiti: The Impact of Donor Support

Among the large scope of MSF activities in Haiti, as of May 31, more than $14.6 million has been spent on surgical care for Haitians injured in the earthquake. At least $5.3 million was spent on maternal health services.

article located at Doctors Without Borders here

The Deposit Check will be posted soon

Victoria van der Laan our Etsy Hearts for Haiti founder emailed the Team members and said that she is happy to report that she will be able to post the final check for Doctors Without Borders as soon as the funds clear PayPal in Oct.    


If you have any questions you can contact Victoria directly by clicking "Main Shop Keep" or clicking the Contact Us button.


My name is Sunny, I'm the blog writer volunteer and I'll be happy to post your comments, photos, articles, and stories about your what you made for the HFH shop or what you purchased, or anything else you'd like to share with the other donors.


Again, thank you.

Sept. 14, 2010
A Message To The Donors From Sunny,
(HFH blog volunteer)

We did a great job everyone!!

I will be posting updates from the DWB news stories from Haiti as time goes on.

I know that not just hundreds -but thousands of you (2,641 of you to be exact) stood in line at the post office, some with children in tow, or took time off from your busy day to get to the post office to get those donated items into the mail on time.  You paid for postage and your took some of your finest shop items and gave them out of the generosity of your heart.  THANK YOU! Your donations brought medical supplies to many, many people desperately in need of them.

This blog will remain open as a reminder of what what accomplished when the hearts and hands of a global arts and crafts community joined together to help humanity in their time of need.

Comments always welcomed,
Sincerely, Sunny
HFH Blog Volunteer

The Etsy Hearts For Heart Shop is now closed

HeartsforHaiti's Shop Announcement

September 3, 2010: Hearts for Haiti is now closed. Together our amazing community has raised $33,803.32 for Doctors Without Borders in Haiti!

Thank you to everyone who made this amazing effort possible!!

HeartsforHaiti is an Etsy collective of hundreds of Etsy shops who have generously donated items to raise money so we can assist the relief efforts in Haiti. 

100% of the proceeds from this shop (after Etsy and PayPal fees) go directly to Doctors Without Borders ( http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org ). They have given HeartsforHaiti permission to use their name, and separate PayPal and bank accounts have been set up to maintain the integrity of this shop.

BLOG http://etsyforhaiti.blogspot.com 
FACEBOOK http://www.facebook.com/heartsforhaiti
TWITTER http://www.twitter.com/etsyforhaiti

Doctors Without Borders' twitter updates from Haiti at @MSF_USA

Update on Hearts for Haiti shop....

Some very good news:  The Hearts for Haiti shop has now raised *drum roll please* $33,525.73 (after fees) for Doctors Without Borders.  The shop is winding down now and when the last of the 100 or so items expire the shop will close.  I don't think any of us who were on the Volunteer team dreamed that so much could be done so quickly.  It was made possible because of the many, many generous donors.  Here's one beautiful example (above). -This item is still available!  

Mini Paua Abalone Sea Shell Earrings in Green and Gold $9.00 with free shipping.

This item was donated by cindylouwho2.etsy.com from 

Calgary Alberta Canada. All proceeds from this donation (after Paypal & Etsy fees) go to Doctors Without Borders to assist their work in Haiti. 

What? The HFH Shop Is Extinct?

"No way, our doors are still open!....come visit us!


But this is to let you know, that it looks like HeartsforHaiti.etsy.com will be stopping all new listings at the end of April, & shutting down at the end of August when everything has expired. 


Things start expiring in a few weeks, so if there was anything you wanted, now is the time to get it." (hint, free shipping!)

Two Colour Original Illustration of Nautilus.

copyright 2008, Dayna Gedney.

This is a handpulled silk screen, printed on quality, acid free paper, size 16"x20" using archival quality inks. Signed and dated at the bottom of the work. $40.00 US. (shipping generously donated by daynagedney.)


This item was donated by daynagedney.etsy.com from Toronto, Canada. All proceeds from this donation (after fees) go to Doctors Without Borders to assist their work in Haiti.

A Treasure Chest of Love

The Etsy Hearts for Haiti shop will still be taking your handmade arts and crafts (plus vintage and craft supplies) donations until the end of April 2010.  The Hearts for Haiti online Etsy shop will stay open and continue to sell the hundreds of goodies in stock. Come have a look  -the variety of donations from the talented members of the Etsy community is simply amazing! 

                 Flowering Fire - small glass treasure box








For all of your little treasures and secrets here is a hand painted lidded glass box. Dimensions:    3 1/4” x 4 1/4”. $34.00 us.
This item was donated by yevgenia.etsy.com from Brooklyn, NY US. 


All proceeds from this donation (after fees) go to Doctors Without Borders to assist their work in Haiti.


Etsy Treasury, "Buried Treasure", curated by Dee.

Let's be friends

Hearts for Haiti just joined Twitter!  Let's be friends! ♡ Go to:  http://twitter.com/EtsyforHaiti

"Enough Love For Everyone Fairy" Giclee print

This item was donated by wyanne.etsy.com from Amelia Island, FL USA. All proceeds from this donation (after fees) go to Doctors Without Borders to assist their work in Haiti. $16.00 us, shipping has been kindly donated by the artist.

Doctors Without Borders: Port-au-Prince / New York, March 30, 2010 –

UN Donor Conference: Given the Immense Needs, Haitians Must Have Continued Access to Medical Care  

"Since the January 12 earthquake, nearly all public and many private medical structures in the affected areas have offered healthcare free of charge. Recently, however, plans have been disclosed to progressively reinstate hospital fees as early as mid April.  Making access to health care contingent upon someone’s financial means would totally ignore the reality that we see in the streets and makeshift camps in Haiti,” said MSF emergency coordinator Karline Kleijer. “Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced and live in rickety huts made of plastic sheeting, tents or ruined houses, with one latrine for a few hundred people on average. Shelter, hygiene, water and medical care remain a priority need. Short term humanitarian needs remain huge and unmet,..."  Read the article here.    

Collectible Lampwork Flower Implosion Marble

Above: Flameworked Pink Floral implosion marble made of borosilicate glass. Size: approx. 1.31" or 33mm round. Annealed in a digital kiln and includes a stand for your marble. $25.00.  Shipping has been generously donated by 
the artist.

This item was donated by jwinterbowerglassart.etsy.com from Lebanon, Oregon USA. All proceeds from this donation (after fees) go to Doctors Without Borders to assist their work in Haiti.

Your Donations Are Making A Difference

Quote from the Doctors Without Borders Website (03/12/2010)


"Currently, MSF ("Doctors Without Borders") has 348 international staff in Haiti working closely with over 3,000 Haitian staff. With the expansion of services, the 26 MSF hospitals and health centres can accommodate 1,346 inpatients. In the last two months, MSF teams have performed more than 3,700 surgeries, provided psychological counselling to more than 22,000 people, and treated 54,789 patients. MSF teams have distributed nearly 18,000 non-food item kits—including kitchen kits, hygiene kits, jerrycans, blankets, and plastic sheeting—and more than 10,000 tents."  


Go here to read the full article with photos: Haiti: Two Months After The Quake.

"Have You Heard?"

"The Etsy Hearts for Haiti shop is up to 2,533 sales so far!!  That's over $32,000.00 raised for Doctors Without Borders.  There's still 1,126 items up for sale....let's go!......

"A Pair of Ceramic Snails"
(Large snail is about 6 inches x 2.5). This item was donated by NomadClayworks.etsy.com from Paducah, KY, United States. All proceeds from this donation (after fees) go to Doctors Without Borders to assist their work in Haiti.  Donation price: $34.00 . (No charge for shipping! Like all of the items in the Hearts For Haiti Etsy shop, the shipping costs have already been donated for you.  (Note: this donor is offering US shipping only). ♡ 

Hop on over....

To see what's new in the Hearts for Haiti Etsy shop!  

♡

This item was donated by TheDecoratedHouse.etsy.com from USA. All proceeds from this donation (after fees) go to Doctors Without Borders to assist their work in Haiti.  Donation price: $13.00  (No charge for shipping! Like all of the items in the Hearts For Haiti Etsy shop, the shipping costs have already been donated for you. ) ♡  

Etsy Treasury curated by localcolorist titled: Joshua Bell and {Heart Felted}.

Hearts for Haiti Treasury by FiveSparrows

Here's a sample of the variety of handmade arts, crafts, supplies, and vintage items that Etsy shop owners have generously donated to the  Hearts for Haiti shop.

A Treasury is a collection of photos "curated" from items that are listed for sale by the Etsy community. This Treasury was curated by: FiveSparrows. (click image to enlarge). 

2010 Handmade Olympics - Silver Medal

With very exciting news.......

.....we won silver in rikrak's 2010 Handmade Olympics!!

The silver prizes are a $50 gift certificate to little bit of pretty and a $50 gift certificate to open stock party.

I've asked if we might be able to translate that into something to sell in the shop, perhaps the gift certificates themselves.

Great work spreading the word everyone and thank you for all your votes!

♥ Victoria

What Can $30,000.00 In Donations Buy Doctors Without Borders?

The Hearts for Haiti shop on Etsy.com just reached $30,000.00 in donations this week.  

Beberagz, an Etsy shop owner and a donor, asked a great question: "...It would be interesting to know what that amount of money will buy for Doctors Without Borders [?]". 


HFH Volunteer Colleen (aka FiveSparrows) wrote:  "I was curious after your comment beberagz -so i did some looking on the Doctors Without Borders website. This comes from their general page of where your donation goes": 
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/donate/what.cfm 

$35 Two high-energy meals a day to 200 children 
$50 Vaccinations for 50 people against meningitis, measles, polio or other deadly epidemics 
$70 Two basic suture kits to repair minor shrapnel wounds 
$100 Infection-fighting antibiotics to treat nearly 40 wounded children
$250 A sterilization kit for syringes and needles used in mobile vaccination campaigns
$500 A medical kit containing basic drugs, supplies, equipment, and dressings to treat 1,500 patients for three months
$1000 Emergency medical supplies to aid 5,000 disaster victims for an entire month 
$5500 An emergency health kit to care for 10,000 displaced people for three months 

Then I did some number crunching:

Taking 30000 and hypothetically saying it would only go to help one of those items (just for the sake of visualization)-even though I am sure it gets split up into lots of places-this could translate into:
health kits to care for 50000 people for three months,
Or emergency medical supplies for 150000 people for a month, 
or medical kits with basic drugs and supplies to treat 90000 people for three months
Or 120 sterilization kits used in mobile vaccine campaigns
Or enough antibiotics to treat 12000 wounded children
Or vaccinations against meningitis, measles or polio for 30000 people
Or two meals a day for 171428 children

Pretty amazing results of how much 30000 can do!!"

(Image courtesy of HFH donation, title: "Best Friends" by PocketCarnival of Melbourne, Australia. Thank you!)

Interesting Photo

While Nora, HeartsforHaiti Volunteer, was in San Francisco over the weekend, she passed this mural on a shopfront on Union Street.

Apparently, we are not alone in using the HEARTS FOR HAITI name, nor in having the $$$ raised go to Doctors Without Borders.

This was a group of local merchants, accepting donations and/or offering a portion of proceeds. Their goal was $10,000 in 10 days. She wasn't able to find out how they did.

Third payment has been sent - $ 8.500.00

Another receipt has been received and we are pleased to post copy of third payment of $8,500, bringing the total of payments processed so far to $26,500.










Our continued thanks to everyone who has volunteered, donated, bought, and spread the word.

...........together we really ARE making a difference!!

♥ Victoria

Editors note: To see other receipt posts, refer to receipt label

Edited to add the thank you letter from MSF:

Hearts for Haiti Volunteer Andrea from Nyblaque

Peace and Blessings, My name is Andrea but most folks call me by my Etsy Nickname Ny;-) I live and love in NYC with my two spirited children and have been running my Etsy shop from home for almost 3 yrs this coming June.

Before I learned about HFH, I started pitching in with my own personal donations of food, clothing, care packages and making up cycled bags to donate to local community programs that were collecting for Haiti relief. Afterward, I registered with the American Red Cross and donated whatever proceeds I could financially muster through my former Handmade4Haiti section in my Etsy shop.

I read about HFH through an article in Etsy's Storque Blog and was moved to tears. After reading about the collaboration through the HFH forum and checking out the shop, I knew immediately that I wanted to donate some items from my Etsy shop, and also hopefully get a chance to pitch in directly. I wanted so much to spread the word about HeartsforHaiti!

When I first contacted Victoria about what role I could play as a volunteer, I wanted to dive in and take on multiple tasks such as listing, sending convos and writing blog posts. I thank Victoria for pinning me to listing items for now as I quickly learned how overwhelmed I would have been trying to do all three tasks!

With my hands in so many cookie jars actively involved in community events, still donating to the American Red Cross, the American Cancer Society, running my shop from home and caring for my children, I wish I could do more. But just being a part of the HFH team's community effort of love, faith and creative support is something I will never forget. To me, this is history in the making, I am glad to have lived to be a part of it somehow. We are making a difference. Together.

Namaste and Blessings to you,

Ny;-)

Etsy Hearts for Haiti Volunteers

Reflecting Back On January 2010


"10 Extraordinary Days"
by Sunny

Akureyri, Iceland, image courtesy CC GNU

At 9:55 PM on Jan. 13, 2010, a whirlwind of volunteer activity began the moment Etsy shop owner, Victoria Vanderlaan posted the question in the Etsy.com Forums, "Fundraising shop for Haiti?".  Immediately a group of women from the Etsy global arts and crafts community stepped forward to volunteer and began brainstorming an Etsy shop to raise funds for victims of the earthquake.  

Jan. 13 -Jan.15, The Volunteers ironed-out logistics, determined charity protocols, created shop policies, designed a logo and shop banner, opened Gmail, credit union, and PayPal accounts, joined 3 social networking sites, wrote a press release, and began compiling the list of donors.  

Jan. 16, 2010,1:08 AM, Day Four: the HFH shop opened. Donations poured in. Volunteers offered to work in shifts and began listing hundreds of donated items and images.

Jan. 16, 2010, Victoria posted: "The very tired Victoria here. I seriously love all of you guys right now. It's 4:30 am where I am and I've been going nonstop for days and I feel like I just want to keep going! But I'm going to have to go to bed, kiddos will be up in a few hours and the papa won't be content to be on his own for too long on a Saturday. I'm so proud of all of us for making this happen." 

Jan. 18, 2010, 2:00 AM, a Volunteer posted: "Night all! got my set of listings done-time to get some sleep so I can wake those kiddos up early tomorrow. better go set my coffee maker for the morning!!". It was now Day Five and HFH

had it's 100th sale and 170 items donated. 


The Volunteers were energized by the generous outpouring from the  Etsy Community, the touching messages that came with the donations, and they continued to be deeply concerned by devastating news reports from Haiti.  

The whole world was reeling from images from Port-au-Prince. Donations poured in faster than they could be listed. The Volunteers listed between cooking for their families, housework, jobs, school, Scout meetings, doctor's appointments, running their Etsy shops, and taking care of their children.   

One Volunteer posted in the Forum: "Hey guys, I'm working as fast as I can on those listings. I have to take breaks periodically to make sure my brain doesn't fry and that my family gets to eat! :)".   Another posted, "Good morning again, great night of listing...did anyone sleep?".   Another posted, "... It was a late night....off to get more...coffee."  Another Volunteer posted that she had to go to the doctor but that she would return to list items if she had the strength afterwards. In spite of a disability she powered through day after day keeping everyone in good spirits. The Volunteer's sense of humor and positivity kept the team moving forward.


The urgency of the medical situation in Haiti after the earthquake was pressing the Volunteers to get as many items listed as quickly as possible to help Doctors Without Borders. 100% of the proceeds were going directly to D.W.B. after Etsy and PayPal fees.

Jan. 22, 2010, Day Nine: Victoria sent the first $5,000.00 to Doctors Without Borders and provided a copy of the bank draft on the HFH blog.  

There were a few bumps-in-the-road during those first nine days. There was a tech problem with the Gmail account. There were some photo uploading problems. But everyone worked together to solve them quickly. There were weather problems for some Volunteers, such as power outages.  One Volunteer posted:  "Woke up to freezing rain! Frustrated-no mail will be going out today, so can't ship my item from the shop that sold :( And, no school either...might be a long day! Hope it's a great day for everyone else though-and again-you all are doing GREAT!!!".     

Jan. 23, 2010. Day Ten since Etsy HFH began. The group receives a profound email Update from Victoria.  It says:  

"When I wrote to you a few days ago I was really overwhelmed, coming off of nearly a week of long days devoted almost exclusively to the shop. But since then I’ve been able to step away occasionally during the day, shower and even—gasp!—leave the house.  Each day I step a little further away from the computer for a spell, and things are fine when I come back.  Though I can’t seem to stay away for long. :)."  

As I read her words I looked around me and realized how much house work had stacked up. I hadn't thought of much else but HFH. I had barely gone outside for a week. Likewise, the Volunteer from Australia posted, "Much to the delight of my two small dogs,I have spent a good part of the last week at home, on the couch, pretty much connected to my laptop." Everyone was focusing on one thing: helping Haiti.

Victoria's message continues, "I know you all have been working quite hard as well and I want to be sure that you all know that I only want to you to take on as much as you’d like to do and are comfortable with.  I realize that this project wasn’t a planned step we all took, it was something we threw ourselves into to help the people of Haiti in whatever way we can.  We all have things we dropped in order to make this happen and I know those things need to be picked up again sometime."  

On Jan. 23, 2010, ten days after Victoria posted, "Fundraising shop for Haiti?", HFH had raised $15,000.00 for Doctors Without Borders.  


It had been an extraordinary ten days that none of us who Volunteered behind the scenes will ever forget.  


It would not have been possible without the hundreds of Etsy community members who donated their shop items plus the shipping costs as well as the buyers.  They are the larger body of volunteers that make up the Etsy Hearts for Haiti Volunteer Team.

A certain type of person gives without expecting anything in return and they make this world a beautiful place for everyone. Each and everyone one of you who volunteered, donated, or bought from HFH are just such people.


Victoria concluded her message: "You are all my heros."  

And you are mine also.  

-Sunny  (Etsy Hearts For Haiti Blog Volunteer)

The Smile Seen Around the World

One month ago, a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti taking at least 200,000 lives, injuring 300,000 and leaving over one million men, women and children homeless.

In the midst of despair and grief, surrounded by devastation and tragedy, overwhelmed with eight days of the nonstop flood of heartbreaking news, came this story.

After a week of being trapped in the rubble, Kiki, a frail little eight year old Haitian boy, rescued with his sister, emerged with his hands held out and an infectious smile.

This picture and story spread around the world like wildfire, hopefully spreading the message to never give up and always have hope.

Perhaps one day, this picture will be the face of the Haiti earthquake.



New York Post photographer Matthew McDermott, who traveled to Haiti with the disaster-relief organization AmeriCares, snapped this amazing rescue shot

An Etsy Treasury for Hearts for Haiti

A Treasury is a collection of photos "curated" from items that are listed for sale by the Etsy community. This Treasury is made up of items that have been donated to the Hearts for Haiti shop on Etsy.  Curated by: localcolorist. (click image to enlarge).  

Doctors Without Borders Haiti Update Recorded

Did you miss the live update? Here is the recorded livestream (1 hr 21 min), listen in.

Doctors Without Borders Haiti Earthquake Update - Live Online

Join Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) for a special teleconference on the recent earthquake in Haiti, streamed live online.

Hear first-hand how their medical teams set up makeshift clinics to triage patients on the grounds of destroyed hospital structures; how they accomplished complicated surgical procedures in an inflatable hospital and tents; and the future of their work as they continue to address medical challenges the Haitian people are facing.

Find out how donations are being put to work. Ask your questions.

Location: Online at Ustream - Haiti Earthquake Update
Date: Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Time: 12 noon EST / 11 am CST / 10 am MST / 9 am PST / 8 am AST / 7 am HST

For more information, refer to Public Events on the Doctors Without Borders website.

picture courtesty of Doctors Without Borders

HeartsforHaiti has been nominated in the 2010 Handmade Olympics!

We just received this hot off the press!From Etsy seller rikrak who wrote

Congratulations!

Your wonderful group has been nominated for the 2010 handmade olympics on my little blog, and now it has been shortlisted by the judge for your event! Thanks for doing super things! Yay!

There are over $2000 worth of fabulous handmade and vintage prizes up for grabs - so best of luck to your group. In the event that a group of folks win, we will leave it up to your organization to divide up the prizes!

Hope you'll encourage others to vote for you! You can grab a vote for me button from the sidebar.

You might also be interested in seeing who nominated you for this event, in the original post for event #5.

Thanks again and happy handmaking!

k. @ rikrak

Click here to read more and click here to GO DIRECTLY TO VOTING!

Etsy Hearts for Haiti Fun Facts

Fun Facts As of tonight, HFH has had 3156 convos. There are 2228 sales. 2289 users have Hearted us. There are currently 1136 listings for sale. Since the beginning, we have listed OVER 1136+2228 (3364) items (some were cancelled so aren't included in the tally) Average selling price (using latest $$ raised / # sold and adding back in roughly 10% to cover fees extracted from total) is $14.09.

"Conversation Heart confetti - 48 pieces" donated by ThePinkDillo.etsy.com

Fun Facts submitted by HFH Volunteer Lucinda.

Doctors Without Borders - Thank You Letter

Doctors Without Borders - Letter of Authorization

Click here to download PDF (35.1 KB)

From the blog of Three Little Birds Boutique

Jill of 3littlebirdsboutique has been busy on HeartsforHaiti, making donations and purchases, as well as promoting the shop wherever she can. This article is a reprint from the blog of Three Little Birds Boutique on Febuary 5, 2010.

It has been over 3 1/2 weeks since the catastrophic earthquake hit Haiti. Although donations have poured in, how much will it really take to rebuild an entire city? To care for the wounded, traumatized survivors? The sad truth is that no matter how shocking reports of hunger, homelessness, and disease in the wake of a disaster are, people lose interest once the camera crews leave the scene of a crisis.

It is important to remember that these people will need help long after the media moves on. One of the ways that I have chosen to help is by supporting an Etsy shop called Hearts For Haiti. They have vowed to stay open as long as there is an urgent need there. I have watched this group of women tirelessly volunteer to organize, manage, and promote, and am deeply touched by what can be accomplished in such a short time. The best part is 100% of the proceeds go directly to Doctors Without Borders for Haiti Relief.

I wanted to help in some way too, but like many people, was short on time. With a busy household of five children and a full time business, I chose to contribute in a small way by donating a few items, making purchases, and prompting people to spread the word through social networking. The beautiful thing about this shop, is that there are many ways to support this cause through it, that do not have to involve large amounts of money or time.

Why not do all of your gift shopping for the year through Hearts for Haiti? I know I will be. It gives me a good feeling to know I am not spending frivolously, when others are merely just trying to survive.

Here are a few of my fabulous purchases so far:

This copper bracelet (which I've shown previously, but oh, so LOVE) symbolically represents the heart, generosity and love of the people involved in this collaborated effort. Obviously, I am not alone in admiring this, as the seller, Jen of mintyfreshfusions has generously donated and sold so many!

A birthday gift from the kids to their Dad, appropriately titled "Old Hank" (his name is Henry / Hank) from a very talented photographer, and fellow IndieJunction gal Kelly Warren, of happyshackdesigns. I can't believe I scored this...the colors are amazing!

Another piece of jewelry with the most gorgeous pendant ~ I may or may not be gifting this one!

It's beautifully handcrafted by charmedbyheather.

Here's a great and very unique gift for the macho men in my life. Brass bullet pens...what a conversation piece! The bonus is that this seller, Kathy of awelldressedbullet, is one of the people so dedicated to making this shop a success, through her many donations, support and with the creation of the Hearts for Haiti blog.

If that's not enough, she is super sweet too. (a bit unexpected from someone selling "bullet paraphernalia" ;)

Everyone can get involved by spreading the word. Don't let this become "old news."

Go out and blog, tweet, facebook etc. and if you have time, post your efforts here PLEASE BLOG about HEARTS for HAITI! or leave a comment on the Hearts for Haiti blog and let people know about it.

For Etsy sellers, create a treasury (look for several great ones already there), add a link to your shop announcement, or volunteer to help behind the scenes. I'm sure a few of the current volunteers could use a "coffee break!"

These are just a mere sample of the great offerings there. Hundreds of sellers have donated a huge variety of items in many price ranges. Oh, and did I mention that shipping is FREE?

Just a warning though, this shop is addictive, due to the warm, fuzzy feeling you will get from supporting this wonderful cause. Shop at your own risk! HeartsforHaiti.etsy.com

Paying it Forward

One of our volunteers, Nora, received this lovely email from Linda of FeltedBagLady, which touched all of our hearts. Linda wrote:

Nora, You are probably very busy with the Haiti site but I thought I would share a story with you. I am always creating, but one of my favorite things to make are Moravian Star Christmas ornaments, and have sold them for a number of years.

At the end of January I received a check from a longtime client who had not placed an order with me this year. She sent me a check "in appreciation" of her family enjoying my stars each year.

I was so touched but didn't feel right about keeping the check so I decided to "pay it forward". I found your Haiti site and purchased three pair of red drop earrings to give as Valentine gifts.

I believe everyone came out a winner ... and I feel really good!

Linda