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President & CEO, Thomas Tighe's message:
The lockdown of air transportation, and the resulting snarl of domestic transportation avenues complicates logistics. As in any such situation, we want to ensure that our efforts do not impede other activities that may be more time sensitive, such as search-and-rescue. For this reason, we will work in close coordination with other agencies.
We have prepared several pallets of trauma and first-aid materials that are ready to be transported immediately. The items include sutures, IV administrator sets, gauze and bandages, orthopedic soft goods such as braces and splints.
We have communicated with 3M Pharmaceuticals, which had donated several thousand dollars worth of inhalers for respiratory problems, and have agreed to divert those items to NYC.
We have contacted NY organizations with whom we have worked and offered them our support. American Jewish World Service, and Disarm in particular. We have also been in close contact with the NYU Medical Center.
We have advised the public that we are accepting cash donations for relief efforts. Those funds will be used to cover our internal costs and inventory needs, if and when our materials are provided, or will be directed to activities that we have high confidence will be productive and efficient through partners we know. Assistance to surviving family members will be a priority for any such funds.
· I spoke this morning (Thursday) with Ed Conley, a personal friend of mine who is the FEMA representative coordinating communications for the National Urban Search and Rescue at the command center in Manhattan. He advised that:
· the current priority remains on search and rescue activities to locate survivors;
· medical resources ( personnel, blood supplies, equipment, and bed space) appear to be adequate and well organized; and
· he will personally notify me if he becomes aware of any shortages that we may be in a position to address.
· he will personally speak with NY Fire Department Officials that he knows to help identify how financial support to families would be most productively and efficiently directed, and share that information with me. (I believe this is important for persons who wish to direct their donations for such assistance through us.)
We have offered - to FEMA and to the Governor's Office - to deliver any of our materials that may be needed to any flight from California..
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Dezso (Dennis) Karczag, co-founder of the Santa Barbara-based humanitarian aid organization Direct Relief International, died last year at the age of 96. He suffered a massive cardiac arrest on Sunday, May 28th, 2000 after having been hospitalized for less than a month with Hodgkin's lymphoma, the first serious illness of his life
In 1945 Mr. Karczag and his business partner, William Zimdin, both refugees from the Nazi onslaught in Eastern Europe, began sending packets of food, clothing and medicine to their friends and relatives in the war-torn region. From this simple beginning, Direct Relief has grown to become one of the country's largest non-sectarian health assistance agencies. So far this year, Direct Relief has sent more than $22 million (wholesale value) worth of medical aid to help victims of poverty, natural disasters and civil unrest in 34 countries worldwide.
Dennis Karczag was born on February 28, 1904 in Ersekujvar, Hungary. In 1911 his family moved to Vienna, Austria, where he became an Austrian citizen and attended medical school at the University of Vienna. He and his brother then founded a weaving factory that produced silk labels for the fashion industry, including the Jantzen swimsuit company and Bullocks department stores.
Mr. Karczag moved to France in 1929, and when World War II began he attempted to enlist in the French army. Because he held an Austrian passport, however, he was arrested at the recruitment center as an enemy alien, and was imprisoned in a forced labor detention camp. After appealing for help from the U.S. Ambassador to France and the United States State Department, he was released after several months and made his way to this country, where he immediately applied for American citizenship.
Settling in Santa Barbara, Karczag and Zimdin controlled a number of local properties and supervised the design and construction of the El Presidio complex at Anacapa and De La Guerra Streets.
Their surviving friends and families left behind in Europe suffered terrible hardships, and when the war was over they hastened to help them as best they could, first sending packages of food and clothing through CARE, Inc., and then assembling them on their own in the pantry of Zimdin's home.
Dennis Karczag bought canned goods at the old Piggly Wiggly market on Milpas Street, first-aid supplies at the Red Cross pharmacy on State Street, and clothing from various stores around town. Word soon began to spread about these men and their extraordinary charitable deeds, and increasing numbers of appeals for help began to pour in from overseas. |
In 1948, they formed a non-profit tax exempt organization called the William Zimdin Foundation. The first beneficiaries of the Foundation were twenty-six individuals, and their range of nationalities: Latvian, Estonian, Austrian, French, Czechoslovakian and German, was indicative of the international character of Direct Relief's programs to come over the next half-century.
Following Zimdin's death in 1951, his estate was held up in probate for seven years. Until those funds became available in 1958, Dennis Karczag struggled on to keep the Foundation alive. Under his leadership, major drives were launched to send used clothing, food, medicines, and other necessities of life to displaced and destitute individuals throughout Middle and Eastern Europe.
By the beginning of the sixties, Direct Relief's central mission was taking shape, with a new focus on shipping medical goods to health institutions rather than sending items like clothing and blankets to individuals. Direct Relief had by then become a truly global relief agency, with shipments no longer limited to Europe but also going to Asia and Latin America. In 1962 the organization also decided to aid victims of natural disasters in the U.S., and at Dennis Karczag's urging it began to help homeless persons in Santa Barbara.
Looking back at the programs Direct Relief has supported is like thumbing through decades of well-remembered headlines: the Coyote Canyon Fire in Santa Barbara… War in Afghanistan… Famine in Ethiopia… the Mexico City earthquake… Tibetan refugees… the Loma Prieta earthquake… Civil Strife in Bosnia… the Painted Cave Fire… the Northridge Earthquake… Massacres in Rwanda… El Nino flooding… Hurricane Mitch in Central America… the Kosovo refugee crisis… earthquakes in Turkey… floods in Mozambique.The list of relief efforts goes on and on, a continuing tribute to the selfless vision of Dennis Karczag, who remained actively involved with Direct Relief until the final days of his life.
Mr. Karczag is survived by his wife, Sylvia Karczag, and their five children Chris Karzag, John Karzag, Anna Karzag Schulhof, Franco Karzag and Stephan Karczag. There are also eight grandchildren: Justin, Alex, Lauren, Marina, John Patrick, Stefanie, Megan and Ryan.
A graveside service will be held at 2:00 PM on Monday, June 5th at Santa Barbara Cemetery on Channel Drive in Montecito. Following the service there will be a memorial reception at Direct Relief headquarters, 27 South La Patera Lane in Goleta. Everyone who knew and admired Dennis Karczag is welcome to attend.
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In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations may be made to Direct Relief in memory of Dennis Karczag.
Press Releases:
Direct Relief Surpasses Record of Aid Shipments
 Direct Relief International, Santa Barbara’s own global humanitarian aid organization, has set a new record in the help it sends to victims of poverty, civil unrest and natural disasters worldwide. In the first three quarters of this year, Direct Relief has shipped $52.8 million (wholesale value) of medical supplies and equipment, topping its previous record-setting total of $52.7 million in all of 1999.
This achievement is particularly noteworthy in light of the fact that 1999 was marked by a string of tragic and headline-making events to which Direct Relief responded: the Kosovo refugee crisis, earthquakes in Turkey, anarchic violence in Sierra Leone and massive floods in India, Mexico and Venezuela.
Anthoula Randopolous, Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations for Direct Relief, attributes the increase to “the strength of Direct Relief’s relationships with its corporate partners and the trust they place in us to carry out their desire to help those less fortunate here at home and around the world.” The unprecedented amount of donated medical supplies this year came from such corporations as Watson Labs, Ortho McNeil, Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Labs and the Midmark Corporation.
A brand-new charitable hospital in the Philippines will now be fully equipped, thanks to a large shipment of medical supplies and equipment from Direct Relief International. On May 10th, Direct Relief sent a 40-foot container filled with essential medical goods to the new Abulug Infirmary Hospital in Abulug, Cagayan Province, Philippines. The hospital's services have long been needed, since prior to its opening there had been no major medical facility in the area.
The supplies sent by Direct Relief include an OR table, surgical lights, surgical equipment and supplies, a defibrillator, gurneys, autoclaves, wheelchairs, dental equipment and diagnostic equipment. The shipment has a wholesale value of $150,000, and Direct Relief is seeking $6,000 in additional donations to cover the shipping costs.
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VENEZUELA
Direct Relief International is responding to what authorities in Venezuela fear may be a major health crisis in the aftermath of the recent floods that killed as many as 30,000 people there. Venezuelan Health Ministry officials say that, among other health problems, contaminated water supplies in the region have created the risk of a cholera epidemic.
Direct Relief has sent three large shipments of medical aid to Venezuela so far, including more than 100,000 tablets of doxycycline, an antibiotic that is the treatment of choice for cholera and other infectious diseases. The shipments, with a wholesale value of approximately $1.3 million, also include large quantities of other antibiotics, anti-parasitics, disinfectants, first aid supplies, IV sets, needles and syringes.
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KOSOVO
Direct Relief has sent fourteen shipments of aid worth over $1 million to Albania, Macedonia, Serbia, and Kosovo itself. The shipments have included cardiovascular and dermatologic agents, antibiotics and analgesics, as well as other pharmaceuticals and medical supplies specifically requested by our recipients. We have also sent personal care and hygiene products, including special medicated shampoo to combat lice and scabies.
In September, Direct Relief Program Officer Katherine Poma went to Albania to inspect the facilities where our supplies have been sent and to assess future needs. In 2000 we will continue our shipments to Kosovo, Serbia and Albania, working with indigenous organizations on locally defined projects. |
TURKEY
Direct Relief has now sent twelve shipments of medical aid to the area of Turkey recently devastated by two major earthquakes. Some 18,000 people were killed, 50,000 inured, and hundreds of thousands more left homeless.
Direct Relief's shipments to Turkey, with a wholesale value of more than $1.7 million, have included emergency medical supplies such as antibiotics, surgical supplies, catheters, I.V. packs, crutches, splints, braces and slings. Although Direct Relief most often sends exclusively medical goods and equipment, some of the shipments have also included basic survival supplies. Hundreds of tents, sleeping bags, blankets, flashlights, parkas, socks, gloves and all-weather clothing are among the items that have been sent.
Direct Relief Program Officer Mike Hayes is now on his way to Turkey, where he will visit hospitals and clinics in the stricken region to see how the supplies we've sent have been put to use. He will also be assessing the current situation there, so that we may tailor future shipments to changing circumstances and needs.
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 Get involved
Participate in Direct Relief's Harvest Moon Wine Auction
On Saturday, October 14, 2000 - Black tie Dinner and Live Auction beginning at 6 pm. Net proceeds will be donated to Direct Relief International, a not profit organization that povides medical assistance to people in need worldwide. Tickets are $250 each and patron tables will be available. To be on the mailing list for more information or to order tickets, contact:
Santa Barbara County Vintners' Association,
PO Box 1558, Santa Inez, CA 93460,
call (800) 218-0881, fax (805) 686-5881
or e-mail: tickets@sbcountywines.com.
The event contact is Beth Reiswig, Director of Special Events
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ATTEND A DIRECT RELIEF BRIEFING AND LUNCHEON THIS MONTH
- Find out more about Direct Relief's international and local programs
- Enjoy a complimentary hot luncheon
- Tour the warehouse where worldwide aid shipments are being readied
- Chat with Board members, staff and volunteers
- Learn about volunteer opportunities
This month's luncheon briefing will be held at Direct Relief on the second Thursdayof the month, from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM. (the next one is April 13th) Please RSVP to reserve luncheon space: (805) 964-4767. Direct Relief is located at 27 South La Patera Lane, next to the Goleta Amtrak station. |
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Direct Relief International
is located at 27 South La Patera Lane, next to the Goleta Amtrak station. Call 964-4767 for information
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The agency's web site is www.directrelief.org.
Donations can be made online
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Page updated:September 2000 - e-mail:sblive.com -
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