Dine out and help out Haiti

The horrors of Haiti hit close to home for Mary Nguyen, owner of Parallel 17: Her husband, Raphael Jouvenat, is from there. "Haiti has always been a poor country; a country with political turmoil and limited resources neglected by most of the world," she writes. "However, it is the place that my husband Raphael calls home; a country where his family and friends still live and have been tremendously affected by the earthquake. Fortunately, his family is safe. However, for the rest of his fellow Haitians, it is a different scenario."

Jouvenat's family runs a hospital and foundation called the Haitian Health and Education Foundation. "The hospital has been one of the few in Port-au-Prince and Petion-Ville with no structural damage with working teams of physicians and nurses, and volunteers night and day," she continues. "Some of the hospital staff have died in the earthquake. His family has been working 24 hours a day to help the hospital treat the wounded at their door. Thousands of wounded people have overtaxed the hospital's capacity to respond to the emergency."

And so Parallel 17, is raising funds to help out.

On January 20 and 21,Nguyen will be donating 25 percent of all proceeds from her restaurant at 1600 East 17th Avenue to the hospital. "Please help those affected by this tragedy by enjoying lunch, dinner or drinks at P17 this Wednesday and Thursday," Nguyen says. Find out more about the hospital here. (Find out more about Nguyen in this Chef and Tell interview.)

And other restaurants are aiding in the effort.

On Wednesday, January 20, TAG, at 1441 Larimer Street, is donating 20 percent of all proceeds to Stand with Haiti/Partners in Health. Dazzle, at 930 Lincoln Street, is holding benefit concerts tonight and this weekend. For more information on these and other fundraising events, click here.