Dear JCI Member,JAYCEES & Friends
As you know, on May 12, a powerful earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale struck the Sichuan province in southwestern China. On behalf of JCI members worldwide, we would like to express our desire to help alleviate the suffering of earthquake victims.
According to news received, China was struggling to bury its dead and help tens of thousands of injured and homeless, when a powerful aftershock brought new havoc four days after the earthquake.
The quake's toll was officially 19,509 but the Earthquake and Disaster Relief Headquarters of the State Council has said more than 50,000 people may have perished. One school in Juyuan collapsed in seconds, killing all but a handful of 900 students. In Mianzhu, seven fallen schools buried 1,700 people. And about 1,300 bodies have been recovered so far.
Thousands of men, women and children were heading by foot for Mianyang, a nearby city, saying they were abandoning their ruined villages for good. Survivors desperately need help.
JCI Operation Hope
JCI members all over the world and particularly those in Asia are eager to provide assistance. Eric Tang, President of JCI Hong Kong, China, requested that contributions for earthquake victims be channeled through JCI Operation Hope.
Therefore, we would like to encourage JCI members to aid earthquake survivors in China through JCI Operation Hope. Your donations will be used to help JCI members conduct relief operations through contacts in the affected area.
If you would like to make a donation for earthquake victims through JCI Operation Hope, please go to http://www.jci.cc/about/en/jciope rationhope, and earmark your donation by writing “China Earthquake.”
Let us continue to implement our mission by helping those in need!
Graham Hanlon - JCI World President
Edson A. Kodama - Secretary General
