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International (2006-2014)
Tzu Chi in the USA
1989 – 2014

Rebuilding Hope

in Haiti

n January 12, 2010, a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck
near Port-au-Prince, Haiti. It left a quarter of a million
Odead and another million or more homeless, and led
to an ongoing cholera epidemic that has killed at least eight
thousand more. Tzu Chi volunteers wasted no time in delivering
compassion and relief, entering the disaster region just one
week after the quake and staying for months afterward—a quick
and thorough response which was possible in part due to the
expertise gained and the relationships formed during hurricane
relief efforts in 2008 and 2009.
In the immediate relief period, generous donors in 36
countries contributed relief funds while 262 volunteers paid their
own way to Port-au-Prince to hold 84 distributions that benefited
196,411 people with 110 tons of instant corn powder, 80 tons
of instant rice, 6,000 tents, 40,000 tarps, and more. In addition
to material relief, medical volunteers held a series of free clinic
events in which 73 volunteer doctors treated more than 15,000
earthquake survivors with both general and alternative medical
treatments, as well as dental and chiropractic care.
After the immediate relief phase ended in May 2010,
volunteers focused on sowing seeds of goodness by encouraging
disaster survivors to take on compassionate projects in their

Earthquake survivors participate in Food for Work.

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