Coral Reef Academy
Apia, Samoa

Dear Friends of Coral Reef Academy,

We have received many calls and messages of concern since the earthquake and tsunami that occurred in Samoa and American Samoa on September 29, 2009. Your thoughts and prayers are deeply appreciated. We wanted to assure all of our friends that Coral Reef Academy students and staff are completely safe and well. Our campus sustained only slight damage from the earthquake and the tsunami hit on the south side of the island which is completely opposite from where we are located. Some of you may remember our old campus in Saoluafata which was on the northern coast of Upulu; however, we are now located at Vaitele which is well inland.

The earthquake occurred at 6:48 am, local time, on that Tuesday and staff immediately moved the students out of the fales (houses) into the open area. After the tremor stopped, a tsunami warning was issued and, although our campus is not located on the coast, students and staff evacuated higher inland as a precaution.

We are grateful that there were no injuries to CRA staff or students; however, you have probably seen news reports of the devastation that occurred on the southeast side of the Samoan Islands and in American Samoa. We are deeply saddened by the losses incurred by our Samoan family and have already been assisting with local recovery efforts wherever possible. We have made outreach to the Samoan Red Cross and the local Habitat for Humanity to offer our services in rebuilding projects.

Last Thursday, October 8th, students and staff attended the funeral service for two children of Perelina Ulugia, one of our staff members, in the morning. The students wanted to show their support in the loss of his son, Jayjay, and daughter, Marilyn. That afternoon, they represented CRA at the National Memorial Service held at Apia Park. You can see our students and staff in the pictures below helping out at the local villages and paying their respects at the funeral services.

Many people have asked if there is anything that they can do to help. Coral Reef Academy has established a fund to collect donations and all proceeds will be given to the local relief efforts. If you are interested in contributing, please send your donation to:

Coral Reef Academy
Tsunami Relief Fund
PMB C18
9101 W. Sahara Ave. Suite 105
Las Vegas, Nevada 89117
United States

Alternatively, the New Zealand Red Cross has designated a fund for Samoan relief if you would like to donate to them:

http://www.redcross.org.nz/cms_display.php?st=1&sn=13&pg=6341/.

Although the affected areas are miles away from where we are located, we are all saddened by the events affecting our friends.

Our thanks again for all of the messages of support and care and we will continue to keep you updated on Samoa's recovery efforts.


Sincerely,
The Coral Reef Academy Students and Staff.