Donations collected would be used to purchase Shelter Boxes (see below for more details).

The members of the Lions Club of Towcester were invited to join forces and they readily agreed, with “their” collection going to the central Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Haiti Appeal.

Tesco had made a national agreement with the Red Cross and on the Friday and Saturday (22nd and 23rd) the Lions helped the Red Cross to collect for the Red Cross Haiti Appeal.

On the Friday and Saturday £1012 was collected at Tesco for the Red Cross Haiti Appeal.

On the Saturday and Sunday the Lions collected £895 for the DEC Haiti Appeal.

On the Saturday and Sunday Rotary collected £2012 for Shelter Boxes.

Each Shelter Box costs £490 to cover the contents, assembly and distribution costs, so with the money raised plus Gift Aid plus a donation from the Rotary Club’s charity fund, six Shelter Boxes have been purchased.

The sincere and heartfelt thanks of all of the members of the Rotary and Lions Clubs of Towcester go to everyone who contributed across the whole weekend. Given the variety of ways that individuals can donate to international disasters these days, almost £4000 was collected in our Town in the “traditional” way of putting money into a collecting tin.

Rest assured that no matter which collecting tin your money went into, it is helping the people of Haiti.

Shelter Box contents
A 10 person tent plus a selection of other equipment to help an extended family survive for a minimum of 6 months.

The exact contents will depend on local conditions and what is most needed but will generally include sleeping bags, blankets, mosquito nets, multi-fuel stove and fuel, cooking equipment, water containers and purification tablets, a basic tool kit, eating utensils and a children’s pack.

Each box is given a unique number so that “your” box can be tracked on their website.


David Reed
Rotary Club of Towcester