Pilots In Haiti

Two University of Portland students trapped in collapsed building in Haiti; one escapes but the other is unaccounted for

The parents of a University of Portland graduate who is spending a year working in a Haitian orphanage are awaiting word from their daughter.

Molly Hightower, 22, of Port Orchard, Wash., has been a volunteer for Friends of the Orphans since June. She works with disabled children in a facility outside Port au Prince. The building where Hightower lived collapsed, said her father Mike Hightower. He said his daughter was on the fifth floor at the time of the quake.

A friend who was visiting her, Rachel Prusynski, a fellow 2009 University of Portland graduate, was on the seventh floor at the time of the quake. Prusynski was pulled from the rubble, was taken to the U.S. embassy and then transported to Guantanamo Bay. She then was flown to Florida, where she contacted the Hightowers to tell them what happened.

“The only thing we know is the building she was in – the residence – collapsed,” Mike Hightower told The Oregonian this morning.

He said another worker who was staying on a lower floor also survived.

“We are planning on Molly surviving, too,” he said.

Molly Hightower has been chronicling her experiences in her blog.

Hightower said his wife and three other children are glued to CNN for updates. They scan news Web sites for the latest information out of Haiti. So far, they have heard nothing from their daughter.

After graduating from UP, Hightower decided to follow in her aunt’s and uncle’s footsteps by working for Friends of the Orphans. She signed up for a yearlong stint as a volunteer helping disabled children. She teaches them to swim and helps with physical therapy. He said his daughter has applied to graduate school and planned to get a degree in sociology or psychology.

The orphanage where the children live was not destroyed, Hightower said. He said he has heard reports that the children are safe.

Prusynski, meanwhile, a summa cum laude graduate with a degree in life science and Spanish, spoke about helping the poor in her remarks to the graduating class last spring.

“I did nothing to deserve to be born into such a wonderful life — none of us did,” said Prusynski, of Boise. “It was the best original birthday gift any of us could have ever received. Never forget your original birthday gift and earn it over and over every day in whatever way you are able to give back to the world.”

Prusynski has deep ties to UP. Her great uncle, the Rev. Chester Prusynski, is the oldest priest living on campus.

-- Noelle Crombie

Two recent University of Portland alumnae among those in Haiti earthquake

University of Portland’s 2009 valedictorian Rachel Prusynski is among those who survived the devastating earthquake in Haiti this week. But the fate of friend and fellow 2009 graduate Molly Hightower remained unknown Thursday as a worldwide rescue effort unfolds.

Prusynski, of Boise, Idaho, reported that she suffered broken bones after being pulled from the wreckage of a building that collapsed. Prusynski stated that she was on the top floor of the building when the earthquake occurred.

Hightower, of Port Orchard, Wash., was believed to be on the fifth floor of that same building, according to a message from Prusynski. She had gone to Haiti to work with disabled children for an organization called “Friends of Orphans.”

University president, Rev. E. William Beauchamp, C.S.C., asked the University community yesterday to pray for Prusynski and Hightower, who have been performing service work in Haiti, as well as for those whose lives were devastated by the earthquake.

“This is a people who will need our prayers and our assistance for months, if not years, to come,” Beauchamp stated. “As a University community we pray in a special way for the safety and well-being of members of our community who live and work in Haiti, as well as the Holy Cross religious who make that place their home.”

In her valedictorian speech last May, Prusynski spoke on the worldwide necessity of community service and outreach to combat poverty, starvation and other global epidemics. Prusynski, summa cum laude graduate in both life science and Spanish, cited a University service trip to Nicaragua, in which she witnessed thousands of people rummaging through refuse to resell for survival, which caused her to realize how fate had been good to her.

“I did nothing to deserve to be born into such a wonderful life—none of us did,” she said. “It was the best original birthday gift any of us could have ever received. Never forget your original birthday gift and earn it over and over every day in whatever way you are able to give back to the world.”

Prusynski’s ties to the University of Portland are deep and include several aunts and uncles who preceded her on The Bluff overlooking the Willamette River in north Portland. One such family link is her great uncle, the beloved Rev. Chester Prusynski, C.S.C., the oldest Holy Cross priest living on campus.

In addition to traveling to Nicaragua, Rachel went to the U.S.-Mexico border through the Moreau Center and studied abroad in Granada, Spain, for a semester. She also was selected to participate in the University’s Murdock Summer College Research Program last summer with professor Ami Ahern-Rindell to conduct research in genetics.

Hightower, also a 2009 graduate of the University of Portland, majored in psychology, sociology, and French Studies, and studied in Paris in the summer of 2007. Her family lives in Port Orchard, Wash., and she is a graduate of Bellarmine Prep in Tacoma, where she was on the cross country team. Trudie Booth, professor of French language at UP noted that Molly is a very gifted student of French and, while a student here, participated admirably in class and was an excellent student. Rev. Art Wheeler, C.S.C., assistant provost and university professor remarked, “Molly loves French culture. She is religious and oriented toward social justice.”

“The University of Portland community waits for news about Molly and others suffering in Haiti,” Beauchamp notes. “Molly is recognized as a heroic young woman serving the most vulnerable children in one of the poorest countries in the world who recognized the critical need in Haiti long before this natural disaster stuck the country. The University community is holding vigil, praying for her safe return.”

up7587 wrote:I have read that there could be as many as 500,000 deaths, approximating 5% of the population. This is a massive tragedy.

Would that be Rachel Prusynski? Based on this or this page I am guessing it is! Is she any relation to Fr. Pru? Yikes!

Prayers for all of those impacted by the earthquake. Send dollars, too. Many places to donate: Red Cross, Catholic Relief Services, etc., etc.

University establishes Haiti Relief Fund to assist those affected by earthquake

The University of Portland community’s response to the devastating earthquake in Haiti this week has been one of prayerful solidarity, hopeful petitions for the safety of our alumnae and all others there, and offers to provide financial assistance. The University is accepting donations for relief efforts and will split all money received evenly between Catholic Relief Services and the Holy Cross Community.

“We pray for the people of Haiti and those whose lives were devastated by the earthquake,” said University President, Rev. E. William Beauchamp, C.S.C. “We pray for those who have lost their lives and for those who grieve their loss, we pray for the injured and for those who have lost everything. This is a people who will need our prayers and our assistance for months, if not years, to come.”

Catholic Relief Services has been excellent at providing immediate, short term assistance in disaster situations overseas. CRS staff is already in place in Haiti providing food and relief supplies . For over 60 years, Holy Cross Priests, Brothers and Sisters have been ministering, teaching and caring for the people of Haiti. Many of their buildings have been destroyed in the earthquake.

To donate to the Haiti Relief Fund , please make checks payable to the University of Portland and note “Haiti Relief Fund” in the memo. Checks can be sent to the Development Office, which will collect funds until Jan. 22, 2010. In addition, donations can be given online on the secure University website. Please follow this link and look for the fourth category listed, “Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund”: https://webster.up.edu/giveonline/

The University will also be celebrating a special Mass on Saturday, January 16 at noon in prayer for the safe recovery of 2009 graduate Molly Hightower, who was working in Haiti at an orphanage and who has been missing since the earthquake struck. All members of the community, especially young alumni of the University, are invited to attend.

In addition to the work already being done in Haiti, Catholic Relief Services is helping coordinate efforts to collect additional necessities such as plastic sheeting, hygiene kits, mosquito nets and water purification tablets. These supplies are being loaded in the Dominican Republic for distribution in Haiti.

"Search and rescue will have to find people in the rubble, treat people who are injured, secure food and water, and set up shelter for the homeless," said Bill Canny, CRS director of emergency operations. "We will be working hard to bring help to these people who have suffered so much."

Holy Cross missionaries first came to Haiti in 1944 to direct an existing secondary school in Cap Haitien. That initial mission, now called College Notre-Dame, sparked the establishment of other Holy Cross educational, social and parochial ministries throughout Haiti, now organized as the Province of Notre-Dame du Perpetual Secours with 70 religious, including two Holy Cross bishops.

“As a University community we pray in a special way for the safety and well-being of members of our community who live and work in Haiti, as well as the Holy Cross religious who make that place their home,” Beauchamp said.

Molly Mackenzie Hightower March 29, 1987 - January 12, 2010 Our darling Molly was tragically taken from us by the Haitian earthquake doing the thing she loved the most - helping and caring for disabled children. Molly was born in 1987 and lived in Pacific until 1994, when the family moved to Port Orchard. She graduated from Bellarmine Prep, where she participated in cross-country and fastpitch softball, playing catcher. She was a talented flautist. Molly attended the University of Portland, studying abroad in Paris one summer. She graduated in May 2009 with a triple major, French, Sociology and Psychology. In her 22 years on this earth, Molly accomplished more than most people do in a lifetime. She loved traveling and visited Las Vegas, Disneyland, New York, Paris, Rome, and London. Yet, most of all, Molly wanted to make a difference in children's lives. She made the decision to volunteer in Haiti, working with abandoned and disabled children. This was her passion. Molly will forever remain in the hearts of her family and those who were touched by her friendship and compassion. She is survived by her parents Mike and Mary of Port Orchard, her beautiful siblings, sister Jordan and brothers Zach and Sean, who she loved with all of her heart, grandparents John and Annette Hightower of Renton, and Barney Barkshire of Gig Harbor, aunts and uncles Paul and Margot Hightower of Federal Way, Therese Hightower of San Francisco, Christina and Mark Zimmerman of Rosburg, Craig Hightower S.J. of Spokane, Jeff and Kiko Hightower of Chinook, Jerry Barkshire of Olalla, Pam and Mick Deines of Gig Harbor, great aunts and uncles Earl Zuelke of Helena, Rev. Lee Hightower of Lakewood, Marshall Lewis of Seattle, Art and Mary Fran Barkshire of Seattle, and Marie O'Neill of Tri-Cities, cousins Matt, Meg, Katie, Dominique, Meghan, Travis, Ali, Brady, Nicholas, Olivia, Isabel, Broghan, Hailey, Mick and Jake. Molly will forever remain in the hearts of her family, friends and those who were touched by her compassion and dedication for children. May her life be an inspiration to volunteer and make a difference in our World. Funeral Mass will be celebrated Wednesday, January 20, 2010 at 11:00am at St. John Bosco Catholic Church in Lakewood. Memorial donations can be made to Molly's Passion, the children. www.friendsoftheorphans.org/molly. Please leave online condolences at www.GaffneyCares.com. Arrangements by Gaffney Funeral Home, 253-572-6003.