The Haitian American Student Association (HASA) invites Syracuse University students, faculty and staff, and the Central New York public to “Komanse Konya: a benefit dinner and letter writing campaign for Haiti.” The event will take place Sunday, Feb. 21, from 4-7 p.m. in Goldstein Auditorium in the Hildegarde and J. Myer Schine Student Center and will feature speakers, dance and music performances, and a buffet dinner of Haitian cuisine.

Attendees are encouraged to participate in a letter writing campaign and donate money or items for hygiene kits being assembled by the Step Center. All proceeds will go directly to Partners In Health, an organization dedicated to providing quality health care in Haiti.

“As a student, I encourage the campus community and Syracuse community to come together and attend this important event,” says Cathiana Vital, president of HASA. “This dinner is an opportunity to show a strong collaborative effort in supporting the Haitian community and the lives that were lost and those affected by the earthquake. As current and emerging community and campus leaders, we have an obligation to not only lead by example in showing support but also by making a difference in any way possible.”

Featured performers for the evening include the Black Celestial Choral Ensemble, Redemptions and Oy Capella.

Tickets for the event are $10 for students and $15 for the public. A $6 ticket option allows entrance to the event without dinner. Groups may reserve a table for 10 for $150. Tickets are available at the Schine Box Office. Free parking will be provided in the Marion and Waverly lots.

For those who cannot attend but still wish to help, donations are being accepted for hygiene kits, packages of essential items needed for those recovering in Haiti. Needed items include:

• one hand towel (16” x 28”)
• one washcloth
• one wide toothed comb
• one nail clipper
• one bar of soap
• one toothbrush
• 6 bandages
• one plastic zipper bag (gallon size)

These items can be dropped off at the benefit event or to the Hendricks Chapel Dean's Office, from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Interested volunteers can attend a kit assembly meeting March 6 from noon-2 p.m. in the Noble Room of Hendricks Chapel.

For more information on "Komanse Konya," contact Cathiana Vital at suhasachapter@gmail.com. For more information on the hygiene kits, contact Gail Riina, the Lutheran chaplain at Hendricks Chapel and director of the STEP Center, at griina@syr.edu.

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