We're overwhelmed by the devastation and tragedy in Haiti. Like all Americans, our natural reaction is "How can we Help?" Millions are being raised and that's a great start. But it's going to take billions.
This is your chance to mobilize in your local community to multiply the effort. When we started the Haiti Shirt Project January 14th, our goal was to sell a million shirts and raise ten million dollars for the relief efforts. What was going to be a national effort now spreading globally.
After 9/11 hundreds and hundreds of t shirt printers produced United We Stand shirts after the attack. Millions of dollars were raised at the local level as printers contacted their local customers, businesses, churches, nonprofits, and media to rally together.
We wanted to use the same methods that were so successful right after 9/11, but this has turned into so much more. The powerful image on this t shirt has become a symbol of the American Spirit. This deeply penetrating message of Americans helping Americans for the benefit of others in need is bringing forth an incredible outpouring of generosity, compassion, and cooperation. As your friends and neighbors make a small contribution of $15 to buy one of these shirts, prominent individuals, local businesses, and national corporations are partnering together to multiply the grass roots efforts in a huge way. Like 9/11 this is happening spontaneously.
The result of this is an exponential increase in what's being raised. And the beautiful thing is that ALL of the funds raised and collected are being directed and controlled by the groups doing the work in their own communities. The Haiti Shirt Project is only the conduit, the vehicle that's making all this happen.
The Haiti Shirt Project is the Vision of Jeff Cottrell co-owner of Screen Works Inc, Dayton, Ohio. Jeff, along with his partner Ron Witters patterned this Project after their highly successful 9/11 program. Jeff's company raised over $1,000,000 in Dayton in just three weeks for the American Red Cross. They earned the recognition President George W. Bush, New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, the US Congress, Honorable Tony Hall, Ohio Governor Bob Taft, and the President of the American Red Cross. Out of that experience Jeff founded UnitedWeStandForAmerica.org to take their highly successful regional program and multiply it across America and now the world.
Hundreds and hundreds of printers and local organizations are gathering together right now to conduct a coordinated fund raising campaign in their local communities. UnitedWeStandForAmerica.org has partnered with Mark Coudray and withTShirtSuccess.com to bring this great program to the decorated apparel industry.
This effort comes at a critical time for America. All across this country people are out of work. Jobs are gone and none of us know when or if things will return to normal. The Haiti Shirt Project helps Americans, in their own community while they generously give to aid the citizens of Haiti.
The Project combines local t shirt production with the combined local efforts of business, churches, nonprofits, and media. We're coordinating printers, groups, and organizations right now. The pieces are in place but we need your help.
Whether you're a local organization or a printer looking to work with groups and organizations in your community, you need to find out more about this Project. You may not be ready to join us yet. We won't be able to work with everyone, we know that already. But we want you to watch us, give us your ideas, suggestions, anything that will make this better. This is bigger than any of us and we want you to be included. To engage with us in this historic effort, enter your email in the area appropriate to your interest and we'll provide you with details, our credentials, and our partners on the other side.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read about The Project, we look forward to working with you.
God Bless You and God Bless America as we come to the aid of all those suffering in Haiti.
