MIAMI — Mission 500, a nonprofit organization that works closely with the security industry to serve the needs of children and communities in crisis, is seeking volunteers to participate in a service trip to Puerto Rico in the fall.
The devastation from Hurricane Maria has left thousands of Puerto Rican residents without electricity and basic supply of clean water and food. The service trip is scheduled for Oct. 31- Nov. 4, during which volunteers will work with local partners to help families in need in Ponce, the island nation’s second largest city, located on it southern coast.
“We are excited about the success of the service trip and how it brings together the growing community of security industry professionals who care about helping others,” says Jeff Eichenlaub, director of strategic partnerships, Mission 500. “More importantly, together we are working to help families whose lives have changed because of the drastic impact of Hurricane Maria that devastated the island of Puerto Rico last year.”
The U.S. government’s official death toll from the hurricane stands at 64. However, a new survey by Harvard and other institutions published in the New England Journal of Medicine, point to a toll of more than 4,600 people, mostly due to delays in medical care.
That would make it the deadliest natural disaster to hit U.S. soil for a century and a death toll twice as high as Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005.
Mission 500 has set a goal to raise $10,000 that will go toward providing two Puerto Rican families with home renovations.
The cost for the 5-day/4-night trip is $450. Volunteers will be provided with lodging, onsite transportation, project supplies and meals. The registration deadline is Aug. 1, with a maximum of 24 attendees.
Mission 500 is urging companies across the security to get involved in the event and consider sending a small team to help with the re-building effort.
To donate, register to volunteer or learn more about the undertaking, go here. You can also contact Tom Nolan at [email protected] or call (516) 903-7291.
Through corporate sponsorships and donations, the volunteer-driven Mission 500 initiative has distributed more than 15,000 book bags filled with school supplies to students attending Title One schools, provided almost 70,000 weekend meals to children who aren’t promised a meal outside of a school setting, and most recently, donated 300 hope packs filled with school supplies and essential hygiene items for children misplaced by natural disasters.
Mission 500 also serves as an advisory team for partners in Canada and Latin America. Through this partnership, Mission 500 LATAM is currently sponsoring 1,000 impoverished children around the world.