New York Times Op-Ed

When a tragedy like the quake in Haiti happens, like most folks, I feel compelled to get involved.  And like most folks we sift through the aid oraganizations and contribute financially to the recovery.  The next thought usually is that I want to illustrate it.  I guess it's just part of my whole "empathy" hang-up.

Thankfully, Aviva Michaelov, the brand spanking new AD of the New York Times Op-Ed page, provided a great oportunity to see this process in print. Aviva has been an amazing partner for me at the NYT.  It was Aviva who championed my unassigned image for the cover of the Week In Review during the Iranian election protests.  Her mind is both wide-open yet sharply focused on the responsibilities that come with being a visual communicator.

The image above accompanied a series of 8 editorials collected around the notion of rebuilding Haiti.  Authors discuss what we have learned from quakes in China, Pakistan, Indonesia, as well as, the cyclone in Myanmar. It's a great read and I encourage all to take a moment out to think about what comes next.  article here

I'd also like to mention that this has been one that hit very close to home for us.  I remember a farewell dinner a few years back for Robin and Melissa Padberg and their 3 children as they were preparing to move to Port-au-Prince to run their family-owned hotel, the now well known Hotel Villa Creole.  We waited an anxious night to hear word from them which finally came the morning after the dust had settled.  "All are doing well, considering the circumstances."  Luckily, the hotel survived as well, and is now both a lifesaving triage center but also a communications center for numerous news agencies.  Although I'm sure most of you have given already, if you feel the need or have the means to help a bit more there is an organization that is specifically supporting the efforts at the hotel.  Project Medishare’s Earthquake Relief Fund could use your help.

Yesterday brought another piece of good news from the family, the 3 children have arrived to stay with an aunt here in Miami.  We can only imagine what they've seen and what this experience has left inside them, but for now, they are among the few to be called lucky.  What's next for the family? Like others they've already started to rebuild their lives.