New Orleans - The suffering in Haiti hits close to home, for students, faculty and staff at Loyola University.
But for some, their minds are more than 1300 miles away on the tragedy back home in Haiti.
Sisters, Kris and Sue Celestin are two of 6 Haitian students in the Loyola Symphony Orchestra worrying about family and friends, now earthquake victims, and watching places close to their heart destroyed.
"The music school we used to go to in Port-Au-Prince is not there anymore, it's totally gone. It's sad."
"I want to help as much as I can. I feel helpless right now," says Sue Celestin.
Symphony conductor Dr. Jean Montes is also from Haiti and is trying to stay strong for his students.
"I was lucky enough to have an uncle tell me my parents are ok. They got out with bruises, but it's just chaotic in terms of the not knowing," says Montes.
Ironically, the orchestra is preparing for a previously planned concert with the Cornell University Symphony Orchestra and the Greater New Orleans Youth Orchestras.
Cornell musicians were set to perform, then do some volunteer Hurricane Katrina recovery work with Habitat for Humanity. Now Saturday night's concert takes on new meaning as students give through music, and then some.
Loyola, with so many ties to the devastation, is hoping to pool its resources for the greater good.
For the Celestin sisters, it's great news, but even better news came when they got a call from their father, who they haven't seen since last February, still in Haiti, but ok.
Now, they can focus on the music at hand as 3 orchestras come together to share in the spirit of giving.
The concert is set for Saturday night at 7:30 on Loyola's campus at Roussel Hall. Admission is free.
