Molly Olson, 12, and Ela Sandoval, 11, braved it and got on stage to sing during "Karaoke for the Kause." (Photo by Erica Tinsley)
Story by Erica Tinsley
In January, an unforgettable natural disaster changed the lives of millions people in Haiti. A 7.0-magnitude earthquake took the lives and homes of many Haitian people. This devastating disaster reached out to lots of peoples’ hearts, and some Las Crucens decided to take action.
Many people have sent in donations or texted their $10 to the American Red Cross Haiti relief fund to do what they can to help the people of Haiti. Some people in Las Cruces felt that texting in their money just wasn’t enough.
Debbie Calderon, a retired city employee, decided that she wanted to try and put together a fundraiser for the sole purpose of raising money to help those who have lost loved ones and homes in Haiti. With the help of the city of Las Cruces and the Whole Enchilada committee, Calderon was able to get “Karaoke for the Kause” set up. She expected to earn about $3,000 for her efforts.
A gift from the heart
This year’s Valentine’s Day wasn’t just a couple’s celebration; for some citizens it was a day for them to give their hearts to people in need. Many people showed up to Young Park Sunday afternoon to attend the event to help in any way they could.
“Everybody that we asked for help was so gracious and were saying ‘what can we do to help?’” Calderon said. Many items were donated from local restaurants and businesses as prizes for a raffle that was held throughout the day. Some of these prizes were dinner for two or phone accessories from Verizon Wireless. Nancy Montoya, The Whole Enchilada volunteer committee chair, was involved in running the raffle.
“They kind of roped me in to come help with this, which I think is a great cause,” Montoya said. The Whole Enchilada committee helped Calderon and other involved citizens with the karaoke event as well.
These two giant bears were just a few of the Valentines gifts being sold at Young Park. (Photo by Erica Tinsley)
People could also buy shirts from the American Red Cross that read “I gave from the heart,” and it also had the Las Cruces Help for Haiti Campaign slogan printed on it. Many booths were set up to sell teddy bears, heart balloons and other types of Valentine’s gifts. There were also booths selling hot dogs, popcorn and cupcakes or brownies, so someone could just to stop and get a bite to eat.
The main event throughout the day was the Karaoke at the main stage. People would donate a minimum of $3, or more if they pleased, to get on stage and sing a song to the crowd.
If anyone wanted to rest or take a break from the day’s activities he or she could walk around the car show or watch children play in jumping balloons set up in the park.
One hundred percent of the proceeds made at the event were given to the American Red Cross for the Las Cruces Help for Haiti campaign. Anyone wishing to donate to the fund can still visit www.redcross.org.
Some of the t-shirts being sold to raise money to donate to the American red Cross. (Photo taken by Erica Tinsley)
“If everybody gave a dollar, just one dollar, everyone in Las Cruces, can you imagine? That’s a lot,” Calderon said.
Calderon said she was very pleased with the outcome considering it was somewhat arranged last minute.
