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The South End uses its talents to help Haiti by Kate Vander Wiede
MySouthEnd.com ContributorMonday Feb 1, 2010 Some dance, some cook, and others donate to the cause
The South End organization Inquilinos Boricus en Accion (IBA) and several Latin American performers came together at Villa Victoria Center for the Arts, 85 W. Newton St., this past Saturday, Jan. 30, to raise money for earthquake victims in Haiti.
Featuring salsa lessons, performances by two dance companies, five Latin-inspired bands, a full bar, food and a DJ, it was surprising to IBA’s Chief of Finance and Administration Mayra Negron-Rivera that it had only taken a week and a half for the entire event to come together.
"Edwin Pabon approached us because we have the facility and the infrastructure to do this kind of event," Negron-Rivera said. As Pabon, a Latin musician and salsa instructor, rounded up his friends to participate, IBA worked on promoting the event. All proceeds from the event, which Negron Rivera said Monday totaled over $3,500, will be donated to The Boston Foundation’s Haiti Fund.
As people flooded in promptly at 9:00 p.m., the hall filled up quickly. Tables downstairs lined a large hardwood dance floor and pews upstairs gave guests a bird’s eye view of the events. Some attendees came dressed in jeans while others came in black-tie attire. All seemed to arrive with a thirst for dancing.
Pabon quenched early guests’ needs with his quick salsa lesson on the dance floor before retiring upstairs for a break. Pabon is no stranger to planning similar events, which he has done twice before in the past. Nevertheless, he seemed to wrestle with the decision to host a high-energy event while the Haitian people were in pain and struggling.
"It’s just a tragedy, you know?" he said. "But you have to do what you can do to get the funds to help ... we need to help one another, help our brothers."
Pianist and percussionist Gonzalo Grau agreed. Despite feeling jetlagged after arriving on a flight from France the night before, Grau showed up to perform with Pabon and the Latin band Cincoson.
"As musicians, although we can contribute with our money or clothing, the best thing we can contribute is our talent," said Grau.
Grau’s idea seemed to sweep through the South End these past few weeks as restaurants and businesses alike donated their own talents to raise money for Haiti.
The Columbus Hospitality Group, which includes the French bistro Mistral, raised money for Doctors Without Borders as well as the affected families of their Haitian employees by selling bags of macaroons. General Manager Marc D’Alessandro said that while everyone they knew had survived the earthquake, those who experienced the event lost everything. After raising over $6,000, the restaurant is considering an extension of their fundraising efforts.
Mistral isn’t the only restaurant with affected employees. Picco’s sous chef Tony Lawrence said that one coworker was in Haiti visiting family when the earthquake struck. Unable to reach him and wanting to help in any way they could, owner Rick Katz hosted an impromptu Haiti fundraiser and garnered $6,000 for Partners in Health. Picco recently received the good news that its employee was alive and well, and headed back to the states on Feb. 5.
Even restaurants that weren’t directly affected have been doing their part.
Aquitaine not only participated in Stella’s Jan. 25 fundraiser, but also added a link to The Boston Foundation’s Haiti Fund on its website and Facebook page. Aquitaine Group’s owner/partner Jeffrey Gates was made aware of the fund by Shawmut Design and Construction. Gates told everyone he could.
"We usually send out a newsletter, so I used the 11,000 e-mail addresses and sent out 11,000 e-mails pointing out the link on our website," he said. "I got quite a lot of e-mails back from people, thanking us for that."
Whit Rutherfurd of the Flour Bakery has a similar story. Customers inundated the store on Jan. 16 when the bakery announced half of its proceeds would go to Doctors Without Borders. Hamersley’s Bistro owner/chef Gordon Hamersley reported that diners have been ordering more after the menu was restructured to show the dollar amounts per dish that would be donated to Partners in Health.
Outside the restaurant industry, businesses and individuals are also doing their part. Sadhana Studio hosted a yoga class set to Haitian music, where all proceeds were donated to Partners In Health. They are in the planning stages for a future event that will help send physicians to Haiti. The Mass. General Hospital Organization of Minority Residents and Fellows is doing the same. The group will host "The Haitian Relief Gala" at the Liberty Hotel on Feb. 19, and is working on attracting some high-profile attendees. The Ellis South End Neighborhood Association also voted to donate $250 each to Partners In Health and Doctors Without Borders on Jan. 26.
And as the night continued at the "Salsa for Haiti" fundraiser, more attendees seemed to appreciate the Latin vibes as they moved to the dance floor. But even as they shimmied towards their partners, guests didn’t forget why they were there. Nicole Daley of the Boston Public Health Commission felt like she owed it to her heritage to attend.
"I’m from the Caribbean and so I feel very connected to what happened down there," she said. "It could have been any one of those islands."
Playright Peter Cohen had been to Haiti years before the earthquake and even then, the country’s difficult circumstances were evident. He offered his deep appreciation to Boston residents and organizations for helping to raise money.
"You know, that is what a community is for-to help," he said.
Roxbury firefighter Mark Dunnigan agreed: "Every little bit helps. Even just a couple dollars here and there, in the big scheme of things, it helps out a long way."
As attendees danced the night away, Negron-Rivera remarked that the reason IBA decided to do their part was simple.
"They are our brothers and sisters that are now in need," she said. "And we need to extend a hand to them. Today it is for them. Tomorrow, it could be for us."
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