In Haiti, the lives of millions changed forever.

In Sequim, a small Rotary club wants to make a difference by sending hope – in a box.

The Sequim Sunrise Rotary Club raised more than $15,000 in a few minutes at its Jan. 15 meeting to help survivors of the magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Haiti on Jan. 15.

Prior to the program, it was noted that club members Pat McCauley, Andy Loehr and Al Friess had donated $1,500 to buy Shelter- Boxes for Haiti.

Sequim’s club members got behind them for thousands more. The total raised in less than five minutes was more than $13,000, with another $3,000 in promissory notes, said Nell Clausen, Sequim Sunrise Rotary president.

As of early this week, the club’s donation total had risen to nearly $17,000.

Sequim Sunrise Rotary club members Jim Pickett, Tom Schaafsma and Scotty Robinson are familiar with the ShelterBox program, having helped raise money for similar aid efforts in the past.

To make a donation or for information about the project, call Pickett at 681-4380, see www.sequimsunriserotary.org or send mail to Sequim Sunrise Rotary Club, P.O. Box 1521, Sequim, WA 98382.

ShelterBox USA

ShelterBox is a grassroots Rotary Club project that rapidly grew to an international level. The organization’s mission is to deliver immediate relief to victims of natural and other disasters anywhere around the world.

One ShelterBox costs about $1,000 and contains a 10-person tent plus essentials for surviving the first days, weeks and months of a disaster. The materials are packed specifically for the emergency situation where a ShelterBox is going.

The ShelterBox organization estimates it has sent 700 boxes to Haiti as of early this week.