Garden City Relief

The Second Life community has a tremendous capacity for raising funds for humanitarian efforts. Product expos have long raised money and awareness for charitable organizations that provide a wide range of supports – from health and well-being to medical research.

The generosity of planned charity events is matched by our community in times of disaster, like the many fundraising initiatives organized for the Victoria, Australia bushfires (2009) and the Haiti earthquake (2010).

Banding together in trying times shows the reality of what a global community Second Life truly is. People whose lives and whose families lives are affected by the violent forces of nature are on your in-world contact list.

During the normal workday on February 22 at 12:51PM, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake hit the south island of New Zealand with Christchurch, the island’s second largest city, at the core. The entire island country remains in a National State Of Emergency in the aftermath ^[1]. Since September 2010 several quakes have shaken the island ^[2], though none exhibited as deadly a force as yesterday’s hit.

The New Zealand Herald is reporting casualties and major damage to downtown buildings, with many more left in limbo.  Lives are forever changed with the recent announcement of 75 confirmed dead and 300 people reportedly missing. Tragically, the Canterbury Television building, an independent television station broadcasting in Canterbury, New Zealand, collapsed killing 100% of those who may have been inside ^[3].

There is a lack of power, drinking water and food.

ABC News International reports first-hand witness accounts of the grim scene ^[4]:

• Russell Gibson, police Superintendent: “There are bodies littering the streets, they are trapped in cars, crushed under rubble and where they are clearly deceased our focus … has turned to the living”
• Susan Bayh, visitor and wife of former U.S. Senator Evan Bayh: “What was really frightening is what was happening … on the streets as well as inside the buildings. … There was a lady next to me, probably maybe a yard away that had a piece of concrete the size of maybe a half of a twin size bed on her upper half and you could just see her feet”
• Olivia Carville, local reporter: “Bodies were just lying on pavements covered in towels because there were no sheets and no way to get the bodies out of the city. It was one of the most terrifying experiences I will ever have in my life and the city just looked like a war zone”

In the face of what Prime Minister John Key is calling New Zealand’s “darkest day”, Hibiscus Flossberg, long-time New Zealand resident and owner of Puarangi Designs, is entreating the Second Life community to rally together to donate to aid efforts. According to Hibiscus, “The quake struck at lunchtime, when the city center was full of workers, shoppers and tourists”.

Listen to Women Who Dance With Frogs podcast interview with Hibiscus Flossberg as she talks about the direct impact of the devastation from a first-hand perspective.

You can give in the following ways:

Through Second Life

• Purchasing Puarangi Designs products. 100% of all store sales from present to March 31, 2011 will go directly to the New Zealand Red Cross*.
  • Shop in-world
  • Shop on the Marketplace
• Donations to GardenCityRelief Resident. This is an alt of Hibiscus Flossberg set up to receive funds for relief efforts.
• Supporting the Garden City Relief fundraising benefit. From February 26 to March 3 designers including Clutter, DCNY,  Exile, Gesticulate and KMADD will be offering items for sale with proceeds to benefit the New Zealand Red Cross. Read more at gardencityrelief.wordpress.com.

Online or by phone using your credit card ^[5]

• Donations can be made to the Red Cross online or via the GrabOne website, as the Red Cross site has been crashing.
• Donations can be made to the Salvation Army by calling 0800 53 00 00 (specify that your donation is for the ‘Canterbury Earthquake Appeal’) or at:
  • Any ANZ Bank branch: Account number 01-1839-0188939-00
  • Any National Bank branch: Account number 06-0869-0548507-00
  • Any Westpac Bank branch: Account number 03-0207-0617331-00
  • Any ASB Bank branch: Account number 12-3205-0146808n Key sa-00
  • Any BNZ Bank branch: Account number 02-0500-0982004-000
  • Any Kiwibank branch: Account number: 38-9009-0759479-00
• Donations can be made to the Rotary New Zealand World Community Service here.
• Across the Tasman, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia is also accepting donations for the New Zealand Red Cross.
• The Christchurch SPCA has opened a Pet Emergency Earthquake Fund. You can donate money here or to the Westpac account 030802 0586429 00.
• Paw Justice is sending food shipments to pets in Christchurch affected by the earthquake. Text “FOOD” to 4662 to donate $3.
• Vodafone users can donate to the Red Alert Canterbury Earthquake Appeal by texting “Quake” to 333 to make a $3 donation to the Red Cross Canterbury Earthquake Appeal.

Note: The Ministry of Consumer Affairs is warning people about an email scam, which uses Christchurch’s earthquake as an opportunity to prey on the good will of New Zealanders.

Your generosity can introduce brightness into the “darkest day” for many residents and visitors in Christchurch. Please give.

* Due to server problems the New Zealand Red Cross web site has been crashing.

^[1] Wikipedia: 2011 Canterbury Earthquake
^[2] NASA Earth Observatory: Magnitude 6.3 Earthquake near Christchurch, NZ
^[3] New Zealand Herald: Christchurch earthquake: Hopes fading for 300 missing
^[4] ABC News International: New Zealand Earthquake: Aftershocks Rock Christchurch on ‘Darkest Day
^[5] New Zealand Herald: Christchurch earthquake: How you can help