Donation to Australian charity provides essential items to support communities following devastating cyclone
Alan Krause presents the cheque for $50,000 to GIVIT’s Sarah Tennant (L) and Rockhampton Mayor Margaret Strelow (C) as emergency services and charity workers look on
Rockhampton, Queensland, April 29, 2015 – MWH Global, an engineering and consulting firm focused on water and natural resources, today through the MWH Caring Foundation donated $50,000 to assist communities in the Rockhampton region and surrounds following Tropical Cyclone Marcia, which devastated the region in February.
A $50,000 cheque, which will be managed by Australian charity GIVIT, was presented by MWH Global Chairman and CEO Alan J. Krause to GIVIT General Manager and Head of Disaster Recovery Sarah Tennant, at an event in Rockhampton. The event was attended by Rockhampton Region Mayor Margaret Strelow, as well as emergency services and local charities.
The event, a sausage sizzle on the banks of the Fitzroy River, was a small way of thanking those who worked tirelessly during the cyclone response and recovery to support affected residents and continue to do so today, two months later.
MWH engineers Stanley Chin (L) and Jacob Weir (R) serve lunch to the emergency services and charity workers who tirelessly helped the community in the wake of TC Marcia
“MWH has worked to deliver road reconstruction works right across Central Queensland since floods and cyclones devastated the region in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013,” said Krause, who travelled from the company’s Colorado headquarters for the presentation. “We have a strong affinity with Rockhampton and were distraught to learn the area had been hit again. We could not sit idly by while this community, in which we have become so invested, suffered.”
MWH opened a permanent office in Rockhampton in June last year. It has been working on projects including repairing essential highways since 2010, employing more than 200 people at the peak of construction.
Ms Tennant said the MWH Global donation will go a long way to support local communities at this crucial time.
“Through GIVIT’s website, local charities and community groups are requesting hundreds of essential items needed for their clients recovering from the Cyclone,” Tennant said. “We are incredibly thankful for this generous donation of $50,000 from MWH Global to assist those in need. This will ensure those requests are met and impacted residents obtain exactly what’s required to help them recover.
MWH project manager Jamila Ellison enjoys the sausage sizzle with State Emergency Service (SES) and local charity workers in Rockhampton
“One simple donated item has the ability to pull someone else out of poverty. Imagine how many items GIVIT will be able to provide and the number of people we can help get back on their feet as a result of this MWH Global donation – a new mattress for an elderly lady sleeping on the floor, clothes for a man who lost his house and the entire contents, a fridge for a young mother who needs to feed her children.”
Rockhampton Region Mayor, Margaret Strelow, said the generosity from MWH Global is a humbling gesture of support for the community.
“I am extremely thankful for this significant donation which will go towards helping those in our community who really felt the brunt of Cyclone Marcia,” Mayor Strelow said. “We must remember that people are still suffering long after the immediate impact of a disaster and thanks to MWH Global, GIVIT can continue providing basic needs to those who need it most.”
About the MWH Caring Foundation
The MWH Caring Foundation was established in 2002 to fund charitable and educational causes that align with our purpose of Building a Better World. To date, the Foundation has donated more than $900,000 to charitable organizations. Previous donations following natural disasters were made to the Queensland Premier’s Flood Relief Appeal in Australia in 2011; Fundación Un Techo Para Chile following the Chilean Earthquake in 2010; the President’s Relief Fund for Earthquake victims in Pakistan in 2006 and the Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief fund in New Orleans in 2005.
About GIVIT
GIVIT is a national not-for-profit connecting those who have with those who need, in a private and safe way. GIVIT’s vision is to ensure quality goods get to where they are needed most by safely connecting and inspiring an online network of givers. In partnership with the Queensland government, Australian charity GIVIT manages all offers of donated goods and services following a disaster. When Tropical Cyclone Marcia hit Queensland, GIVIT managed the donation of more than 15,000 items within the first 10 days and matched them to immediate needs of local communities. Since it was established in 2009, almost 150,000 urgent requests for goods and services have been matched with the resources of community and corporate donors. Founder and CEO, Juliette Wright (recently awarded Australia’s Local Hero 2015 by the Australia Day Council), said GIVIT’s website gives generous Australians an easy, safe and effective way of donating directly to those in need. GIVIT supports local charities, community groups and councils in the affected regions by helping them obtain exactly what they need to support those affected.
Read more about the recovery efforts here.
