E-mail that started Starfish

"Oh give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; make His deeds known among the peoples!" Psalms 105:1

The following letter was written by Dr. Cliff sheets after his 2007 trip to Haiti.

This letter is what started the Starfish Program.

There is a well known story about Mother Teresa, who was walking along the beach one day when she encountered thousands of starfish that had been washed up and stranded on the beach by a storm the evening before. The starfish, trapped with no way to get back into the water, were slowly dying. She bent over and picked up a starfish and tossed it back into the ocean so it could live. As she stooped over to pick up a second one, a passer-by asked her why she would bother, since it was obvious she could not possibly make a difference with so many of them stranded. She held up the creature, and said “It makes a difference for this one,” and tossed it into the ocean.

I do not know if the above story is true. But even if it is not, it illustrates the fact that when faced with the overwhelming need of a large community, we as individuals can positively influence the future of many and make a life changing difference for some.

I just returned from my seventh medical mission trip to Haiti. For the fourth time, I traveled to the mountainous region about 10 miles outside of Port-au-Prince. Each time I go, I am overwhelmed with the need of these people. There is poverty in that country that is hard to comprehend. Whole families live in shacks that are little more than a few pieces of tin roofing, rocks, scrap metal and burlap fashioned onto a makeshift lean-to. Each day they struggle to eke out a meager existence for their families. Small farms are tilled by hand, often without the benefit of a pick or hoe. Safe drinking water is non-existent. Farm animals are watered at the same location drinking water is drawn. It is not uncommon to see large piles of manure within inches of where the water is drawn.

The Haitian government struggles to provide even the most minimal of public services. There are no sewers, water systems, public schools, health clinics, or electrical grids and no effective police force or security provided for these mountain people. What few services that are available are usually provided by charitable organizations that have a heart for the Haitian People. Inflation has devastated the economy. When I first traveled to Haiti in 1995, one US dollar was equivalent to 3 Haitian dollars. Today the exchange rate is 1US:7.5 Haitian. An average days wages is $2 US.

In the mountains high above Port-au Prince, there is a small church that has opened a school for the children of the poor farmers of the region. Unlike almost every other school of education in Haiti, there is no tuition charged to attend this school. The church and the school are supported by donations received by International Allied Missions (IAM) based in Kingston Springs TN.

Over 250 students attend this school daily. Even though the parents have little or no education themselves, they realize that the only way out of this cycle of poverty and devastation is to provide an education for their children. So they sacrifice to buy a uniform, and then send their children off to school each weekday morning 10 months a year.

I saw and treated many of these school children when I was there this past week. I was appalled at the degree malnutrition I saw in all age groups. The effects of this malnutrition are devastating. Children who looked to be 4 years old were actually 7. Bloated bellies and red hair, signs of severe malnutrition were seen in more than I could count. Most of the school children come to school with little or no food in their stomachs. They may get a small cup of coffee in the morning at home, and then a small piece of bread or perhaps a carrot to eat until dinner time.

I asked about starting a feeding program at the school, and how much it would cost to make sure each child got a nutritious lunch each day along with a multivitamin. I won’t bore you with the details, but the bottom line is 25 cents a day will feed a child. When I saw the number I was amazed. The cost included the price of propane, a full time cook, and all the cooking ingredients as well as juice to drink.

Shortly thereafter I reached in my pocket to pull out some change and saw 2 quarters in my hand. Looking at them I thought “these could feed 2 children today” if only they had a lunch program in place. So right then and there I decided that from now on, I will pull the quarters out of my pocket change each day, and save them for the children of this school. I cannot possibly feed all of them, but at least a few will become my “starfish”.

I mentioned my plan to my neighbor and she immediately said “count me in”. If you are in receipt of this email it means that either I or the sender who forwarded it on feels like you might do the same.

You do not need to commit to a certain amount each month. You will not get a photo or a letter from a child. You will simply get the satisfaction of knowing you helped feed a starving child each time you earmark a quarter for Haiti.

If you are willing to join me I ask that you do this. First, each time you get a quarter in change, think of and pray for the children of the school L’Ecole Eglise. Then put the quarter aside knowing that one child will be fed a nutritious meal with that quarter. When you have gathered $10 or $20 in quarters, deposit them into your bank account and then write a check to International Allied Missions, 350 Twin Oaks Drive, Kingston Springs, TN 37082. In the memo line, write “Starfish”.

Your contributions are tax deductible and 100% of the Starfish funds received by IAM will go towards feeding these children. In fact 100% of all monies received by IAM go towards mission work. The overhead is either donated or paid for by the founders of IAM.

I hate spam, and I hate internet chain letters. However, I feel that the power of the internet cannot be denied. If we can find just 250 people to save $1.25 in quarters each week, we can forever change the future of a whole community. So please pass this letter on to whomever you think might choose to become a part of this worthwhile plan. My apologies in advance go to anyone who is offended that they have received this email. If you have specific questions I will attempt to answer them all at the email address below. Please put the word Starfish in the subject line.

You can see the school and church compound on Google Earth. The coordinates are 18 25 55.11 N, 72 14 41.37 W

Sincerely,

Clif Sheets, MD FAAEM

Click here to read Dr. Clif Sheets' follow-up letter one year later.