Richelor's Coins for Haiti
In the wake of Haiti's devastating earthquake, an adopted 4-year-old boy from Port-au-Prince began a coin drive to help "fix the broken things in Haiti."
Learn more:
Richelor Pierznik is a 4-year-old boy who lives in Portland, Oregon. He was born in rural Haiti and was dropped off at an orphanage in Port-au-Prince when he was 18 months old. Richelor was adopted by Bill and Mary Pierznik and arrived in the United States in December 2008.
Richelor found out about the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12, 2010 on the morning after it happened. After being told that there had been a big accident and that many things were broken, including his orphanage house, Richelor said to his dad, “I want to help fix the things that are broken.” So Richelor decided to do a coin drive at his school. He spent that afternoon decorating a big jar and put a Haitian flag on it. He took it to school and asked his classmates to help him raise money for Haiti. After two days, donations worth $90 filled the jar. The fundraising has continued at school and now there are other jars around his neighborhood collecting money for Haiti.
Coins for Haiti is sponsored by Mangrove Fund, a 501(c)(3) public charity focused exclusively on Haiti. Every cent collected by these coin drives will be administered in the same manner that Mangrove manages its own donations. Mangrove is an entirely volunteer organization. 100% of the money collected, including those from any Coins for Haiti efforts, will go directly to relief and rebuilding efforts in Haiti. All donees are vetted and use of funds is audited.
KOIN 6 - Storiy on Richelor’s Coins for Haiti effort
KOIN 6 - Questions and Answers Site
KGW - Stories on Richelor’s Coins for Haiti effort
Richelor found out about the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12, 2010 on the morning after it happened. After being told that there had been a big accident and that many things were broken, including his orphanage house, Richelor said to his dad, “I want to help fix the things that are broken.” So Richelor decided to do a coin drive at his school. He spent that afternoon decorating a big jar and put a Haitian flag on it. He took it to school and asked his classmates to help him raise money for Haiti. After two days, donations worth $90 filled the jar. The fundraising has continued at school and now there are other jars around his neighborhood collecting money for Haiti.
Coins for Haiti is sponsored by Mangrove Fund, a 501(c)(3) public charity focused exclusively on Haiti. Every cent collected by these coin drives will be administered in the same manner that Mangrove manages its own donations. Mangrove is an entirely volunteer organization. 100% of the money collected, including those from any Coins for Haiti efforts, will go directly to relief and rebuilding efforts in Haiti. All donees are vetted and use of funds is audited.
How to Get Involved
We encourage everyone, including children, to begin their own Coins for Haiti effort. Getting your children involved in Coins for Haiti is a great way for them to learn the value of helping others. | Click here for information on how to start your own coin drive. |
Media Coverage
CNN - Orphanage Fails, children OkKOIN 6 - Storiy on Richelor’s Coins for Haiti effort
KOIN 6 - Questions and Answers Site
KGW - Stories on Richelor’s Coins for Haiti effort
