How I made two Tweets to PepsiCo and helped the people of Haiti

Late last night, I was shocked to watch and listen to the emerging news of the catastrophic earthquake that struck Haiti.

This morning, I ‘woke up’ to news confirming my worst fears; “thousands, possibly hundreds of thousands of people had perished.”

Instinctively, my first thought was, “what can I do to help?” Making multiple $10 donations to the Red Cross with the text message “HAITI” to number 90999 was easy. Next up was a quick replacement of my Twitter avatar to display a more appropriate message ‘PRAY FOR HAITI’, and I was all set for a day of Tweeting with purpose.

By early afternoon, my Tweets about #Haiti had reached 353108 readers, 71594 of them unique. But I knew I had to be more effective.

A friend pointed me in the direction of this video on Youtube. Watching the video, left me feeling ‘dazed and confused’, it also made me more determined.

So, at around 3pm CST (Chicago, IL, USA time), I sent the following 2 Twitter messages to my friends at PepsiCo.

Here’s the response I received tonight, it’s a positive first step.

And my reply and Tweets.

Before I sign off and publish this post, I want to share with you my 2010 zyOzy Mantra, posted on Facebook: “enable humanity, especially women and girls in the developing world, to ‘LIVE TO THRIVE’ via transformational, economic empowerment.”

And my 3 ‘words’ for 2010: ‘Make things happen’

Peace

Steve

Update to post, 15 January, 2010: Press Release from PepsiCo
PepsiCo Foundation to Donate $1 Million to Haiti Earthquake Victims; Company also to Provide Bottled Water, Gatorade and Quaker Products.

PURCHASE, N.Y., Jan. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — The PepsiCo Foundation today announced it will donate $1 million to the earthquake victims in Haiti and that PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) will provide Quaker products as well as bottled water and Gatorade for the disaster victims through its bottlers in Florida and the Dominican Republic.

Of the $1 million, the PepsiCo Foundation has committed $500,000 for humanitarian relief to be allocated to three of its strategic partners, including the American Red Cross (to be earmarked for Red Cross partners operating in Haiti), Save the Children and Friends of the World Food Program.

The remaining $500,000 of the pledge will be used to support longer-term rebuilding efforts designed to strengthen Haiti’s infrastructure and limit significant damage from future disasters.

Thanks to my Twiiter friends for all the Retweets and messages / DM’s and emails of support.