East Orange hosts ‘marathon’ for Haitian relief

By Chris Sykes, Staff Writer
Claudinette Jean, the wife of famed musician Wyclef Jean, last week joined city officials inside the City Council chambers to kick off a citywide effort to help the earthquake victims of Haiti.
An estimated 200,000 people have died and thousands more have been living in tent cities or makeshift shelters. Despite the aid which has come from around the world, Claudinette Jean said more was needed and it would be efforts, such as one East Orange hosted last weekend, which would provide the necessary help.
City Hall was the site for a “donation marathon,” in which residents could bring items, such as clothing, non-perishable items and cash, for donation on Saturday and Sunday for 12 hours each day.
Claudinette Jean issued some credit to City Councilwoman Sharon Fields for her work in pushing the aid effort.
“I thank Sharon for reaching out to us after the earthquake and coming by the house and Yele Haiti headquarters many times,” she said. “We have containers going to Haiti at least once a week. What you might think is not a lot to give can mean the world to struggling people in need.”
The couple is Haitian-American, as were the other members of Jean’s legendary hip-hop trio that were the Fugees. Since the group disbanded in the mid-1990s, Wyclef formed his Yele Haiti charity. Its formation occurred prior to the earthquake, Wyclef Jean has said, because he wanted to do more for his homeland.
Prior to the devastating earthquake, which measured a 7.0 on the Richter scale, the couple and his former colleagues had been acting as de facto ambassadors for their home nation. Last week, Claudinette Jean said that still applies.
“I went to Haiti less than 24 hours after the earthquake because we knew we had to be there no matter what,” she said to those who attended the March 4 ceremony. “When we got into the city, we saw the bodies in the streets and that hospitals, government buildings and so much had been destroyed. I’ll never forget the bodies and the smell. There was nobody to pick up the bodies.”

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