Dominican Republic was blessed to only had felt a minor shake after the major earthquake in Haiti.
My mom has reported having felt the shake eventhou we are about 100 miles away from Port au Prince, Haiti while she is visiting our home country. As reported Dominican Republic has not been effected from this terrible earthquake and is extanding their hands by opening there boarders to those in need of help which as many know is big step since we are twon countires with past tension.
I am so upset that the news coverage do not mention the quick action of the country that was the first to extand a hand during these hard moments.

While I would never discourage one from giving I would encourage people to think about how to make the most of what they give.

If you want to make the most of your donations it is important to consider not only disaster relief but also which organizations work day in and day out to improve the socio-economic conditions of the worlds citizens. It is tempting to spend larger sums in response to situations such as the one in Haiti but in reality your efforts will make a greater overall impact by planning them out once or twice a year and donating to organizations that are efficient with their funds and invest in infrastructure.

Certain areas of the world that are prone to both natural disaster and economic hardship need long term investment that will improve their ability to respond to a range of situations much more than they need one time assistance tied to a specific event. HIgh profile events generate awareness of conditions but it is strategic investing that minimizes the long term impact of such conditions.

Find organizations who share your ideals and invest in them on a regular basis to the highest level you are comfortable with. Then you can rest assured that even if you are not in a position to make a donation when a particular event happens you have done what you can.

Your phone will automatically get billed. The "number" you text to and "word" you text automatically select the amount. I think it is like $ 5 or $ 10 depending on which you use if you read Anya's post.

It is my understanding that all third party transaction and billing fees that are usually billed to the relief organization will be waived for this relief effort.

Yes--it gets added to your bill.  100% of the donation goes to the charity, not the phone company.