Music for Relief Builds with Habitat for Humanity
Contributors: Jake Poole, Whitney Showler BUILDING FOR THE COMMUNITY
OTHER AREAS IN NEED Founded by the band Linkin Park, Music for Relief is a non-profit organization dedicated to help with disaster relief and mitigation, and we all know there are many areas in need and much work to be done. The oil leak in the Gulf Coast that began following a deep water oil rig explosion on April 20th is still occurring. As the oil slick reaches the coastal wetlands, fragile ecosystems and the animals that inhabit them are in danger. In partnership with Voice of the Wetland and For the Bayou, Music for Relief is supporting the important humanitarian and environmental assistance that is needed in coastal Louisiana now and for the years to come to restore and protect our critical wetlands. Visit the Voice of the Wetlands (VOW) or For the Bayou websites to make a donation, or support Music for Relief and VOW's Send Dirt campaign by texting DIRT to 90999 and make a $5 contribution via your mobile phone. Or if you would like to volunteer with the oil spill cleanup, find opportunities to do so here.  Music for Relief is also working to support the efforts of non-profit partner organization Hands On Disaster Response to help the victims of disasters such as the earthquake that hit the Sumatra Region in Indonesia late 2009, and the widespread flooding that occurred recently in Tennessee. HODR is a volunteer organization that provides hands-on assistance to survivors of natural disasters around the world and fills in gaps left by governmental and non-governmental agencies in clean-up, community recovery and reconstruction projects. Their projects typically focus on the initial 1-6 months following a disaster. Find out more here about how you can become a volunteer in this process in a number of areas worldwide.Following the Southern CA wildfires in 2007 Music For Relief made a donation of $50,000 to Direct Relief International that was matched by SanDisk to help victims of the wildfires. Major League Baseball donated $25,000 to the organization last year. MFR also sponsors numerous tree planting projects all over the world and organizes environmental campaigns that help individuals recycle, conserve energy, and lower their carbon footprint. $1 per ticket from Linkin Park's China concerts in 2009 were donated to the Million Tree Project to help reforest the Inner Mongolian Desert. This is a fantastic organization that has done wonderful things for the world and around the world -- get involved! WHY IS MUSIC FOR RELIEF IMPORTANT? Take a look at their list of accomplishments over the past five years:
|
What Is Music For Relief?
When a devastating tsunami hit the coasts of eleven countries in Southeast Asia in December 2004, the members of Linkin Park answered the call for help. They organized a grassroots campaign, Music for Relief, to raise funds for the tsunami victims and their families, knowing it would require billions of dollars in humanitarian aid to sustain the population as the waters eventually subsided. The organization is comprised of musicians, music industry professionals, and fans devoted to providing aid to victims of natural disasters and the prevention of future disasters through the support of various environmental causes and projects around the globe.  Since its formation, Music for Relief has provided aid to thousands of individuals affected by natural disasters, and partnered with Hollywood for Habitat for Humanity to build new houses for victims affected by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina. Learn more at: www.musicforrelief.org.
Download To Donate V2.0: Haiti Relief Continues
When the 7.0 earthquake devastated the country of Haiti on January 12th, 2010, the worldwide call for aid was heard and organizations and individuals stepped up to do their part for a country that has been riddled with tragedy in the past. It's been a year since the devastating earthquake, but the crisis continues today with nearly one million people living in temporary shelter and makeshift camps. Since the earthquake, Haitians have endured a hurricane, flooding, and a cholera outbreak which began in October. Music for Relief has re-launched Download to Donate for Haiti V2.0 in an effort to support another year of recovery efforts and keep public attention on this critical situation. Go to downloadtodonate.org and make a $10 donation (or more!) with a credit card or paypal and receive a one year music subscription featuring 60 songs donated by outstanding artists. Or, text RELIEF to 41010 on your mobile phone. New songs and updates from the ground in Haiti will be added each month. The program will support the medium and long-term challenges of reconstruction, including delivery of food, clean water and medical care, as well as the rebuilding of schools for children affected by the earthquake. |
In collaboration with ;)
for MFR and Habitat's Green Home Build Day. It was a fantastic experience for our staff and we were able to work with a number of amazing individuals who gave up a day to help a family in need. Members of Linkin Park took time from their busy schedule to come out as well, and were swinging hammers with the rest of us! We were able to put up a large amount of siding on the houses and help finish off framework on the second story. During the build, we were blessed to meet Betty Monroy, a mother of three who recently worked with Habitat volunteers to build her own new home. Mrs. Monroy was on site at the new 
green home to tell us about the impact that her home had on her family and quality of life. It was amazing to meet someone who had their life directly changed by the efforts of organizations like Habitat for Humanity. Needless to say, this was a very moving and overall extraordinary day. Thank you to everyone who made it out for the build! Just remember, the work there is not complete -- MFR and Habitat need your help. Donate or volunteer today!
