It’s the Season of Giving
With Herald Charities’ yearly Wish Book campaign under way, the Herald will share stories about South Floridians in need. In return, readers donate, often generously: Gifts last year topped $400,000.
This time last year,
Jirandy Lahitte couldn’t see himself in the mirror.
A carjacker shot the 27-yearold old T-Mobile store manager, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. From the vantage point of his new wheelchair, getting around the house — or even seeing himself in the mirror — became difficult, if not impossible.
But thanks to the generosity of Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald readers, Lahitte has a new accessible bed, toilet, sink and ramps to help him in and out of his home more easily. He even has a small refrigerator in his room for his medications.
“Any kind of help is always appreciated, and the fact that it was unexpected makes it better,” Lahitte said. “It was kind of a blessing in disguise.”
Thanksgiving marks the launch of Wish Book 2019, a nonprofit project of the Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald to provide relief to needy members of the community, overseen by Herald Charities. For more than 35 years, readers have pitched in
to donate computers, furniture, housing assistance, medical equipment and home accessibility modifications to their fellow Miamians.
“Year after year, Miami Herald readers demonstrate their unwavering commitment to helping their less fortunate neighbors through our Wish Book campaign. It’s a testament to the immense generosity of our readers and the power of a community coming together for a greater good,” said Miami Herald President, Publisher and Executive Editor Aminda Marqués González.
Here’s how it works: The Herald highlights a few compelling stories of people who need help, and you donate. The stories will be published in print and online starting on Thursday and continue through the holiday season.
The donations of money (or services, or items) help the people in our stories — and dozens more who aren’t written about.
Last year, readers gave $361,000 in cash and more than $45,000 in inkind donations. That helped almost 200 nominees. When you include their families, that means Herald readers aided more than 740 people in South Florida last year. On Nov. 21 of this year, readers gave nearly $9,000 in donations to Herald Charities through the annual Give Miami Day. That’s a good start to this Wish Book season, but thousands of dollars more are needed so that this year’s recipients’ needs are covered.
Among those who’ve benefited from Wish Book in the past few years:
• Lois Chambers, Goodwill’s lead cook for the last 20 years, had her teeth removed over the years and couldn’t afford her insurance co-pay for a set of dentures. Dozens of people called in after her story ran in 2016, and a team of doctors, including Dr. Jose Chaviano of Illustradent South Miami and Dr. Vivian Morad, stepped in to help. Chambers received more than $20,000 of dental surgery and implants this year, at no cost to her.
• Pierre Remus, a cheery man with a developmental disability, received the vouchers he needed to continue attending Miami-Dade’s Disability Services and Independent Living program through the 2018 Wish Book.
• An anonymous donor paid for the leg braces that Rolando Ramirez, a Nicaraguan immigrant with a spinal problem who works at Goodwill, could not afford to replace.
In the upcoming Wish Book series, readers will meet a dozen or so other members of the South Florida community in need of a helping hand, including:
• Gloria Alexandre, a 14-year-old from Haiti who was diagnosed with a genetic disease known as achondroplasia dwarfism. The eighth-grader at North Miami Middle School needs a laptop to do her homework on.
• Dana Connolly, a 61-year-old veteran, currently battling Stage Four cancer. He has a wife and 3-year-old son, who are currently living off nine months of housing assistance and $541 a month in Social Security. He needs clothing, food, financial housing assistance and housing.
• Gerald Banks, 48 of Miami Lakes, lost much of his cognitive function after being involved in a motorcycle accident. He needs speech therapy and caregiver support.
• Gabriela Montes de Oca is an 8-year-old with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Her mom, Andrea, is a single mom and has taken a leave from work for the past 10 months while Gabriela receives chemotherapy. They need financial assistance.
• Marilyn Bass, 89, of Miami Shores, is a widow who fell and broke her hip at her granddaughter’s wedding this summer. She needs an aluminum ramp installed at her home.
• Deandra Joseph is 23 and dreams of getting a biotechnology degree to start a pharmacology company that uses natural plant-based medicine to treat patients. She is the first in her family to graduate high school and go to college. She has had several setbacks along the way including losing her grandmother (who raised her) to breast cancer when she was 16. She needs professional clothing and money for books for school.