Tsunami countered by wave of generosity

It was the day after Christmas, a time when many of us were still basking in the afterglow of holiday parties and hearty turkey dinners. News reports of the tsunami disaster that devastated several Southeast Asian countries were at first spotty, and no one yet knew the depths of the damage caused.

But the death toll skyrocketed by the hour, shocking us when it eclipsed that of 9/11 and eventually climbed to six figures. Estimates vary widely, but as of early this week, several news organizations reported as many as 165,000 were killed and more than 100,000 remained missing.

Here in North and South Brunswick, the response was both immediate and touching. Every week, we’ve reported the stories of how children, businesses, individuals, community service organizations and local officials mobilized to help rebuild these ravaged nations.

The Nrithyanjali Institute of Dance, run out of a home in North Brunswick, sprung to action immediately, organizing a concert that raised an amazing $27,000 in relief funds. A new South Brunswick-based singing group called the Hidden Gems garnered some $10,500 in their concert debut at the township’s Senior Center

Our schoolchildren showed impressive devotion to this cause, such as the students at North Brunswick Linwood Middle School, which held a winter concert and created T-shirt crafts for charity. In South Brunswick, Constable and Cambridge elementary school students accepted pledges for charity rather than money for doing household chores, Monmouth Junction Elementary held a bake sale and Crossroads South Middle students competed in “penny wars” events for charity.

There are too many other examples to mention in the space of this column, to say nothing of the area residents who played their own small part and sought no publicity for it.

The International Red Cross reported it received pledges for over $1.2 billion worldwide in the 30 days after the disaster, a sum the organization estimates should be sufficient to carry out its plans for assisting the area.

All those who have lent their efforts to this cause should be commended — especially the children, who stood to learn important lessons in altruism. In however modest ways, your contributions are helping the faceless millions rebuild their homelands and lives.