HAITI STILL NEEDS HELP, AND IT WILL NEED MUCH, MUCH MORE AS TIME GOES BY

I had had literally days glued to the media reports, due to past similar experiences when I received this email from Ellie Brown, today.

Dear Emilio:

International Medical Corps is a global, humanitarian, nonprofit organization, founded by volunteer doctors and nurses and dedicated to saving lives and relieving suffering through relief and development programs.

Our emergency response team is in Haiti responding in force and I would like to ask for your help to get the word out to the readers of Emilio & Gladys Padilla.

There are still thousands of patients seeking treatment of which approximately 80% are in need of surgery and are running out of time - especially with the tremendous aftershocks still devastating this country.

The team is treating crush injuries, trauma, substantial wound care, shock and other critical cases with the few available supplies - And they're in it for the long haul.

I would love your help spreading the word by blogging or tweeting about IMC's rescue efforts.

We've put up a blogger friendly widget here on our site:

http://www.imcworldwide.org/haiti

With the widget it's really easy to let your readers know that donating $10 to help the people of Haiti is as simple as sending a text message of the word "Haiti" to 85944.

If you have any questions just let me know and I will do my best to help you out. If you are able to post the widget or tweet, I would appreciate it if you could send me the link.

Thanks so much, Ellie.

Dear Ellie, it is for me to say it. Haiti has been in my spirit since the first news arrived. It is a very dear thing for me.

I am a hospital administrator with a nurse for a wife. I was trained in logistics and emergency relief.

We are retired now, but memories abound.

I was a guest instructor with the American Army in 1972, and was teaching in those days how to deal with a totally wrecked city, when I was hurriedly sent back to my country of birth, Nicaragua, because of their 1972 December 22nd., Earthquake.

I lived through all that you are living now, and ended up being part of the rebuilding of the main hospital into three smaller ones, having had the privilege of being their, all three, first administrator who set them up into operating stages.

I mention this because my heart is with you, people. I am retired but I would love to be shoulder to shoulder with you, at this present field of tribulations, even if older and retired, but still full of energy and experience.

May this humble effort in including your request in my blog and writing a little about, serve as an encouragement note for you people of generous and unselfish hearts.