PRINTAid for the aftershock
During desperate times, Columbians step up to help Haiti relief efforts
ALEXANDRA BROWNING
Karen and Leon Krueger browse items at the silent auction benefitting Haiti relief held at Hemingway’s.
February 11, 2010 | 12:00 a.m. CST
Hemingway’s restaurant manager Calvin Rolark keeps fresh pairs of socks in the back of his Jeep. “I’m big on water and socks,” he says, laughing. It’s something the Denver native has been doing since Terry, a homeless man he spoke with regularly, named those two items at the top of his must-have list. “He said, ‘Calvin, if I don’t take care of my feet, I’m dead.’”
Rolark’s belief is that if one person can make an impact, imagine what an entire community can do. So Rolark put his theory into practice, and Hemingway’s held a silent auction for Haiti relief on Jan. 29.
About a week after the earthquake, Rolark, armed with a Red Cross tax-exempt form and a cause to promote, went door to door asking for help with the auction. He was rarely turned away. Dillard’s allowed him to pick out anything from its home department, Macy’s gave a gift card, and Mizzou men’s basketball head coach Mike Anderson donated a signed basketball.
The athletic community has also shown support through donations at Mizzou basketball games. Attendees of the Jan. 23 men’s game against Nebraska and women’s game — on the same day — versus Baylor donated $6,628.77 to the Red Cross.
Broadway Brewery co-owner Walker Claridge says their benefit event, which included a dinner and a raffle, was “bigger than themselves.” Held on Jan. 26, it raised $2,119. “It was a great night for The District,” Claridge says, “but it wasn’t just us, it was a community effort.”
Columbia’s generosity to disaster-stricken Haiti isn’t only shown in the coffee maker leaning against Hemingway’s wall or the Wii Sport gaming package donated for the cause. It’s in the story behind the items.
“Guess where this came from,” Rolark says while pointing to a basket filled with wine. “A buddy of mine from K.C. called someone who lives in Columbia and met ’em halfway to deliver it.”
The outpouring of items has been substantial. KT Jewelers donated a specially made princess-cut diamond necklace for the event, and Tom Bradley, a radio personality on KSSZ/The Eagle 93.9 FM, publicized and hosted the silent auction, which raised $4,101.
There doesn’t have to be bling to bring in bank. At Which Wich, a $5 donation gets you a community card filled with sandwich savings. In a little more than two weeks, the sandwich shop raised $1,570 for the Red Cross Haitian relief efforts.
“We’re in tough economic times, but they’re not tough when you see what other people are going through,” says Tays Taylor, an employee at Glazer’s Midwest liquor distribution who donated to Hemingway’s silent auction. “I just sell; I’m just a foot soldier, but I told my boss about this, and he said, ‘Let me get you the good stuff.’ Everyone’s just in tune.”
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