It was just two weeks after New Year’s Eve, the big Platinum Key affair, and I was working hard to plan the next series of events at LUCID: Jazz Awards, Miles Davis tributes, happy hour specials. The goal: Make this year better than the last.

But amid the planning and sending of final e-mails, fliers, and event lists, 30 seconds rocked an island nation. And those 30 seconds shifted my life. 

What I learned during my trip to Haiti in the aftermath of the earthquake gave me purpose. Haiti’s situation has given me the extra motivation to breathe new life into the reconstruction of the country’s broken heart and spirit. Why did I react that way? 

I knew in my heart that my mom was OK because of how resilient she is, how loved and admired by the people in her neighborhood. She’s phenomenal. I don’t really think I went completely for my mom. I went for Haiti; Mom was the conduit.

I realized it more after I gave her a few hundred dollars and it was all gone next day because she gave it away to those in need in her neighborhood. She started me on this path, a path where helping others is more important than comfort. My mom doesn’t talk about what needs to be done, she just does it selflessly. She’s the inspiration for what we do now.

What I witnessed during my visit to Haiti was real: To be so close to death, to smell it in every breath. I can still smell it. And when I close my eyes, I see the bodies I walked over as I helped carry a woman for medical attention. I can still see the smile on people’s faces when they received medical supplies.

It’s a great place to be, I tell you. It is amazing to have this chance to give. Before I left, I shook people’s hands, looked them in the eye, and promised, ”I’ll be back with more help. I promise. I mean it.”

I share this to remind you that it is because of you that we are able to help Haiti. Your love and prayers mean so much as we move forward to help, lead, inspire, and change.

Thank you, all,

David