Rotary to the Rescue

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Frank Deaver Editorials

Rotary to the Rescue
By Frank Deaver
Rotary Club of Tuscaloosa, Alabama USA

The debate goes on. Is global warming the result of human activity, or is it only an earthly cycle repeated naturally at long intervals? In either case, the natural disasters of recent years clearly seem to have been more frequent and more devastating than in earlier times. Governments and social agencies have been increasingly more responsive with aid, thanks in large part to better communication and more rapid transportation.

But let us not overlook the benefit of innovation, often in the form of a "simple idea" put into action. Such was the introduction in 2000 of the Rotary ShelterBox, conceived in the mind of Rotarian Tom Henderson of the Helston-Lizard Rotary Club in Cornwall, England. As he describes it, "It's a simple package of aid delivered to the most needy people in the shortest amount of time." Its success merited a recent CNN broadcast, praising its humanitarian service. See website:

www.cnn-7.vo.llnwd.net/e7/cnn/services/podcasting/cnnheroes/video/2008/09/09/heroes.tom.henderson.cnn.m4v

ShelterBox camp for flood victims in Kenya The ShelterBox is "small enough so two people can carry it," Tom explains, but "large enough to get equipment in for ten people." Designed to help an extended family survive for a minimum of six months, the lightweight, weatherproof box contains items such as a 10-person tent, blankets, basic tools, water-purification tablets, a compact stove, mosquito nets, and other items tailored to the particular region in crisis.

Although ShelterBox originated in England and its operation was at first only from there, it has become a worldwide network with distribution hubs in many countries. "This allows ShelterBox to respond within 72 hours of a disaster anywhere in the world," Tom says proudly. ShelterBox is nonpolitical, accepting no funding from government agencies. Donations from Rotary Clubs worldwide help fund the boxes, each of which costs approximately $1000 USD. "Nobody can buy our boxes," Tom says. "They are only available for free."

In January 2001, the first 143 ShelterBoxes were flown to earthquake-ravaged Gujarat, India. As of 2006, the ShelterBox organization had responded to more than 70 disasters in 46 countries, aiding more than a half-million victims.

As this is written (September 2008), ShelterBoxes are being distributed in Nepal, where severe flooding displaced as many as 70,000 people. Last month (August) 200 ShelterBoxes were sent to the Ukraine, where floods and landslides forced up to thousands of people from their homes. And in the devastating Myanmar cyclone, 2000 ShelterBoxes were delivered to the hardest hit areas of the Irrawaddy Delta.

Yes, ShelterBox was a "simple idea," conceived in the mind of one Rotarian, launched by one Rotary Club, and that grassroots Rotary project has rapidly grown to an international level. The international relief agency Feed the Children has called Tom's ShelterBox the best disaster relief tool they have seen in their 20 years of experience.

So what other "simple ideas" lie dormant in the minds of Rotarians around the world? Surely there are more "simple ideas" that can also grow into community-wide, or world-wide, programs of Rotary Service.

Also see more about ShelterBoxes at www.rghf.org/drrag

RGHF Committee Editorial Writer Frank Deaver, 10 September 2008, posted by Jack Selway