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Final Report on CNC Hurricane Irma Fundraising |
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by Keith Ellis
November, 2018
Sometimes the name of a hurricane can be deceptive with respect to its brutal strength and its malicious endurance. So, it was with Irma that hit northeastern Cuba
in the very early morning of Sept. 9, 2017 as a Category 5 hurricane and maintaining winds of up to 270 km/h. Travelling slowly, with lingering cruelty, it began to select targets that it seemed to know would be devastating for the Cuban economy and its defenses, destroying or damaging severely everything from wind gauges to homes, hotels, hospitals, warehouses and factories. But it didn’t succeed in breaking the will of the Cuban people or in making them panic and forget the defensive and early recuperative measures against this strongest hurricane to ever hit Cuba. It didn’t seem stronger than the notorious 1932 Camagüey Hurricane only because of the formidable defensive and protective measures that are now in force in Cuba.
To help in the recuperative effort, Canadians from all parts of the country sent in to the fund established by the Canadian Network on Cuba (CNC) a total of $89,542,00. The main fundraising drive against Irma has now ended, but the deficit faced by Cuba because of the damage caused by Irma and previous hurricanes is great, so Sharon remains available to provide her generous and efficient work of receiving, acknowledging and sending on to Cuba any further donations (Sharon Skup, 56 Riverwood Terrace, Bolton, ON L5E 2S4, Canada). Every penny of the $89,542.00 went to Cuba, to a fund set up by the Cuban Ministry of State, specifically to receive contributions destined to help Cuba recover from the damage caused by Irma. All incidental expenses such as banking and transfer fees, postal costs, etc., were paid by the CNC.
Our campaign was supported by a deeply felt spirit of solidarity, for which we thank everybody who contributed, for whatever they contributed, and especially the Cuban diplomatic corps for their guidance and their significant material contribution. We hope that Cuba, which suffers much more than enough from plotted malice, will be spared in the future such brutal natural blows as were unleashed by Irma.
Keith Ellis
Coordinator, CNC Hurricane Relief Campaign |