Haitian-American actress Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon and NBA star Samuel Dalembert of the Philadelphia 76ers (seen left) are assisting the relief effort. During Friday's 76ers game in Philadelphia, Dalembert presented a check for $100,000 to UNICEF as his initial contribution to Haiti's earthquake relief. Samuel has also pledged to match any donations made by fans during the game.

Dalembert grew up in Haiti, eventually leaving to play basketball at an American college. His father, sister and brother remain in Haiti, and fortunately, all survived. (His mother lives in Canada.) But he has been unable to reach other close family members. Before the Sixers game in New York last night, Dalembert addressed the media, asking for help for his beleaguered country.

"It's going to be a long time," Dalembert said. "There's no shelters, number one. People with houses, they're going to have to put up some tents. They're going to have to accommodate all these people for food and water, and after that, what are they going to do? Who's going to build the houses? What are they going to do? It's devastating, just to not being able to talk to your loved ones, people you grew up with. 
If anybody out there is watching, please, if you can help in any way possible, it doesn't have to be through my foundation, it can be any foundation; your help is really appreciated."

Basketball fans can log on to www.nba.com for more information about donating.

Beauvais-Nilon, best known for her role on “The Jamie Foxx Show,” told Larry King she was having difficulty watching the footage as many of her relatives still live in Haiti. She wonders how such a catastrophre could have been visited on a place that already suffered so much.

“You have (to question faith), in a way, you do. I mean, you don't understand, especially a place like Haiti. We've been hit so hard by lots - why would this happen? I don't know." she said. "This is the country that deserves this the least - not that anybody deserves it. But we are resilient, and we are proud. Even if we have nothing, we are very, very proud. It's unfortunate. It's devastating."

Indianapolis Colts receiver Pierre Garcon heard from his family in Haiti, who survived the disaster. Garcon, preparing for the Colts’ playoff game against Baltimore, pledged to send autographed material to anyone who donated on behalf of Haiti via his Twitter account. You can find him on Twitter @showtimeP85 or donate via his memorablia Web site, www.garconauthentic.com, which has been adjusted to take donations for signed memorabilia.

Haitian-American actor Jimmy Jean-Louis, known as The Haitian on the NBC series “Heroes,” finally reached his parents in the devastated country, but the news was not all good.
"I got a phone call from my sister, who said she was able to reach home," Jean-Louis told CNN. “So I picked up the phone, and my mom answered. The first reaction from both of us was simply to cry." Jean-Louis’ elderly parents are alive, but their home has been destroyed, and they told their son they are sleeping outside.

“They don't understand what's going on," Jean-Louis said. "It's almost like saying 'Why [are we] living?' Shock is an understatement. Apparently, they have not stopped crying ever since the earthquake happened.”

Several of Jean-Louis’ relatives were killed in the collapse of the home he grew up in. The actor, who was born in Petionville, Haiti, left home at 12 and became a model and actor. He just recently spent the holidays with his family in Haiti.

Now he plans to make a return visit sooner than expected to help with relief efforts. His organization, Hollywood Unites for Haiti, was already providing sports and cultural activities for young people in the country. Now it has become part of the entertainment industry’s effort to help the country in its time of extreme need.

Wyclef Jean, the entertainment industry’s most well known son of Haiti, reportedly raised nearly $1 million in his initial efforts to support the relief effort. You can do so, too, at his Web site, www.yele.org. In a statement soon after the 7.0 earthquake hit Tuesday, Jean said, “I cannot stress enough what a human disaster this is, and idle hands will only make this tragedy worse. The over 2 million people in Port-au-Prince tonight face catastrophe alone. We must act now. President Obama has already said that the U.S. stands ready to assist the Haitian people. The U.S. military is the only group trained and prepared to offer that assistance immediately. They must do so as soon as possible. The international community must also rise to the occasion and help the Haitian people in every way possible.”

Jean is in Haiti now and is on Twitter @wyclef. On Thursday, he tweeted: “Thank you to all of the people around the world that are helping and praying for the people of Haiti, keep us in your prayers.”

Tonya Pendleton