NIAGARA FALLS — Most of the attention now on the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti is

focused on the still-uncounted tens of thousands of casualties in Port-au-Prince, but one

Niagara Falls man's heart and mind are firmly committed to the much smaller community of

Cote-De-Fer, where the needs are just as great.

Nelseau Doreus, a native of Haiti who has lived in Niagara Falls for about three years,

said the earthquake itself did not hit Cote-De-Fer, a rural community about 75 miles from

Port-au-Prince. But the area already was in bad straits, and refugees streaming in from

Port-au-Prince have made conditions worse.

"It is hard to live there. It is a bad, bad situation. There is no electricity. Parents

cannot support their own children. Many families have no shelter," Doreus said in an interview

Sunday in his home on Niemel Drive.

Even before the earthquake, Doreus and his friend, Alce Previlon of Hudson, N.Y.had decided

to do whatever they could to ease the plight of families — and especially children

— in Cote-De-Fer.

Together, they founded the CDF Haiti Organization to send relief supplies to Cote-De-Fer

and to support a school there with their own money. The two men said they personally support

50 children and the school. They pay the two teachers a subsistence salary with money from

their own pockets.

Doreus' income comes from disability payments for injuries suffered when he was driving a

tractor-trailer several years ago on the Niagara Thruway and from what he makes by renting out

three automobiles to taxi drivers. But that no longer is enough to be much help to the

children of Cote-De-Fer.

So Doreus and Previlon have started a Web site aimed at collecting clothes, nonperishable

food, canned goods, over-the-counter medications, shoes, surgical gloves, work gloves,

personal hygiene products, toiletries, diapers, toothbrushes, soap, toothpaste, sanitary

napkins and money.

The two men plan to take these supplies to Cote-De-Fer in mid-March, "and we will give them

directly to the people who need them. We know who needs them, and we will give them to those

in need, even though we know there will not be enough for everyone," Doreus said.

He said donations may be made to the CDF Haiti Organization at Post Office Box 1533,

Niagara Falls, NY 14302, or donors can visit the cdfhaiti.com Web site.

The principal beneficiaries will be children from 4 to 12 years old, Doreus said.

"Many of them lost their parents in the earthquake. But even the parents who survived

cannot support their children," Doreus explained.

Medical care is among the major needs in Cote-De-Fer. "We have a clinic in a tent, and

there are nurses. But we need doctors," Doreus said. He added that three doctors from the

Hudson area have volunteered to accompany Previlon to Haiti for perhaps a few weeks next

month.

Doreus lost a handful of relatives and friends in the earthquake, but his grandmother,

cousins and uncles still live there. His wife, Erna, lives in Hamilton, Ont., and she has not

gained permanent entry into the United States. Doreus moved to Niagara Falls to be closer to

her and their two children, Darnel, 2, and Sarah, 3 months.

"Our main mission is to expand our program in Cote-De-Fer and to serve more children," he

said. "And I want to thank the people of the United States and Canada who have helped us to

get this far."