Sending teddy bears to Haiti hits snag

HORTONVILLE - When seven-year-old Teila Stezenski saw video of the earthquake in Haiti, she cried.

"I saw it on TV so I felt really bad for them," she said.

She told her mom, April, she wanted to help by donating stuffed animals to kids there. They set up drop off sites at local schools and bowling alleys. Now they have more than 500 teddy bears, filling up their house and truck.

"We just want to get them over to the kids in Haiti,” said April. “That way they have something to hold on to, something they can go to sleep with at night and feel safe."

After collection boxes and boxes of stuffed animals, April and Teila have run into a problem. They have no way of getting the teddy bears to Haiti. Shipping the teddy bears is not cheap. One large box could cost more than 100 dollars. Janet Anthony is a music professor at Lawrence University. She's going to Haiti soon and is taking as many supplies as she can fit in three bags.

"The most cost effective way of getting large amounts of stuff to Haiti is by boat,” said Anthony. “There are a lot of shipping companies out of Miami."

The American Red Cross would rather people donate money, because it goes to what is needed most.

“We've had some people on more rare occasions will turn that into a fundraising activity and they'll turn the teddy bears into dollars," said Tony Gonzalez, Executive Director of the Outagamie Chapter of the American Red Cross.

If they can't get the money to ship the stuffed animals, April and Teila will find someone else who needs them.

“If we can't get them over to Haiti, I just told her the other day, we'll be able to help other children, even if it's around here," said April.