Give whatever you can

Events like the recent earthquake in Haiti remind us how fragile our lives are in the balance of nature. At the same time, they show us how everyday men and women can rise to the occasion and become heroes.

Take the example of Rob Artle, a Huntington Beach resident and Los Angeles County firefighter paramedic who went with a search-and-rescue team to Haiti to help rebuild hospitals, orphanages and lives in the shattered Caribbean nation.

Artle admitted to feeling butterflies when the phone rang with his assignment, but he toughed out the mission and came back with a different view of Southern California.

“You think you know poverty working in an East L.A. barrio, but then you go to Haiti,” Artle said.

It’s a sad fact that the most ramshackle neighborhoods in Southern California would be the posh side of town in many parts of the world.

Upon returning from Haiti, Artle and his fellow rescuers urged people to donate money to organizations that provide relief worldwide.

Given our own recession, many people may not be able to spare more than a few dollars a month. But again, our pocket change would equal wealth in a country like Haiti.

In any case, we salute Artle and the other members of his team for reaching out to a blighted part of the world. And we recommend, as Artle’s fellow crew member Chris Valenzuela does, that people not wait until the next headline-making disaster to open their pockets for those in need.