Hello friends, I am asking for your support for a cause very personal to me.  Immediately after the devastating earthquake in Haiti (January 2010), my good friend Rubens and his family travelled to the country to help hand out supplies and support the displaced people. While it was helpful in the short-term, they thought deeper and really wanted to make a sustainable contribution that would help the country for many years to come.   Shortly thereafter, they founded a non-profit (501c3) organization to build a school in rural Haiti, where one is desperately needed.  Haiti is a country set back by the lack of educational opportunities for most children and by providing a quality education the lives of the next generation will greatly be improved upon.  The non-profit is called B.A.T.I School (Building Ayiti To Inspire - http://www.batischool.org).  Haiti has some bright spots, one being the availability of intrinsic resources. B.A.T.I School is looking to take advantage of these abundant natural resources by having a farm on the school’s campus that will not only provide food for the students, but will also teach them an aspect of self-sustainment through the use of agriculture.  They have also secured five acres of arable land (with several producing mango trees already on site) and traveled to Haiti in April to plant 300 fruit trees (avocado, mango and orange) on the school’s campus.    With funds already secured to plant the trees, their next step is to raise money for a clean water project for the school.  They plan to drill a well and implement a water treatment system to provide clean water for the both the school and surrounding community.  In an effort to raise money for this next critical stage, on May 12th 2012 I am participating in the Pocono, PA Tough Mudder (www.toughmudder.com).   Please consider supporting this cause as I seek to help them create this school with a nurturing yet demanding learning environment that fosters both high academic achievement and a sense of responsibility for young Haitians.   Donations are tax deductible. If you would like to use the GS Match Program, our organization is set up in the system under "BATI Inc" West Palm, FL (ID 26520). You can also sign up to receive our quarterly newsletter that will provide project updates: http://www.batischool.org/GETINVOLVED (Get the latest updates). Since November 2011, they have raised over $70,000 through various fundraising efforts and with your support we will be one step closer to providing the type of education children in Haiti deserve.