Community still spurs efforts to help the Haitians

By Debbie L. Hochberg, Managing Editor
West Orange has not forgotten Haiti.
Although it is no longer the crisis du jour, the devastating earthquake which took the lives of more than 200,000 people and injured at least that many two months ago is still much on the minds of many in the township.
On Friday, Mayor John F. McKeon invited West Orange resident, Michelle Cadeau, president of the recently formed organization HeartHaiti, and Dr. Mark Rieger, pediatric orthopedic surgeon of the Orthopedic Center in Cedar Knolls, to appear on his TV show, West Orange Week, to discuss their efforts to support Haiti and to transport injured Haitian children to the United States.
According to Jessica Glicker, spokesperson for the township, approximately 1,000 Haitian residents and 12 new students were transported here from Haiti by their West Orange relatives, giving the township a personal stake in the situation.
And the township, through Cadeau and Rieger, and with the help of the mayor, are continuing to reach out to the local Haitian community and their brothers and sisters who remain in the island nation.
Rieger has been working with the medical community at Morristown Memorial Hospital and with Cadeau, in an attempt to transport injured Haitian children to the United States to provide a higher level of care than they can receive in Haiti, and, he said everything is in order — except permission to get the children out of Haiti.
“We have mobilized physicians and staff, and are able to get occupational therapists and physical therapists to support the childen for follow-up care,” Rieger said. “We are working very hard to have children brought up here. We had a private jet company offer its services. Everything’s in place. It’s just a matter of getting politicians to put their differences aside and focus on the children.”
When McKeon asked Rieger how he became connected to the Haitian cause, Rieger said it was his grandmother, Lena, who inspired him.
“My grandmother always said, ‘It is never the right time to do the wrong thing, but it is always the right time to do the right thing.’ It is our mission to improve their world. I live a very blessed life, and you have to be able to give back. It’s just the right thing to do.”
Cadeau has found West Orange residents, and those in neighboring communities, willing to house
the children post-operatively. Rieger said the organization, Heal the Children, is positioned to screen the families to be approved to care for the children.

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