Funds Needed For Haiti Schooling, Medical Treatment

Hello Everyone!

I am including the short update from Auguste (posted below my message) as we have yet another need for funds.

Guilene, the blind girl in St. Raphael who received a Brailler from Penn. (info at Starthrower Foundation) had an infection in March. Soeur Ginette was unable to help, so she sent Guilene down the mountain to our centre in Cap-Haitien. We took her to the Hosp. Justinien, which has an Opthalmology clinic run by a Cuban doctor.

At that time, he told us there was a surgery which would give Guilene some sight (she's been blind from birth), but she would have to go to the Dominican Republic. I asked Marlene to follow up while I was in Canada, as she -- Marlene-- wants to be a doctor. This email (below) from Auguste says that Guilene will go to the hospital in Milot for further tests first. If the surgery is do-able, we will need funds for passports, visas, travel and accommodations etc.

In addition to Guilene, Rosenie is ill and Micheline has not yet recovered. We have no update on Jean Ricot (see previous posts). Modeline was given the okay to return to school as long as she did not exert herself. She has a 15 km / 9 1/3 miles walk to school then return. We are providing money for tap tap but she still has a 5 k walk to the street to catch the tap tap.

As you can see from this brief update, there are so many reasons why a vehicle (or 2) is a necessity, not a luxury. Here alone, we need transport to Justinien Hosp, Milot hosp, Dominican Republic, to and from school for Modeline, to check on Jean Ricot. Most of our students do not live on or near tap tap lines. And this is in addition to the ongoing needs for the feeding program, tuition, etc.

In addition, in my update Jan. 21, 2007, I set down the amount needed to raise by thsi summer to sponsor the children for the coming school year. The total was $55,000. As of today, we have just under a quarter of what we need. Again this year, we will be faced with saying 'no' to many.

Gratitude and blessings to those who have helped this year, and whose donations and sponsorships are still to come. Funds are used very judiciously; However, prices continue to rise, making life more difficult for the poor, and shrinking the buying power of donations.

One at a time -

Kenbe

Sharon
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Emails from Auguste (in kreyol)

From: auguste
To: sharon gaskell
Subject: Guilene
Date: Mon, 14 May 2007 18:32:54 +0200 (CEST)

bonjou, Mme

Marlene te ale cheche enfomasyon pou Guilene. Dr Guerline di gen espesyalis Cubenn kap vini nan lopital sakre coeur Milot samdi 26 me 2007.

pou li ale ak Guilene Mesadieu we yo avan li ale nan sendomeng.

mesi
Auguste
--------
sharon gaskell a écrit ::

Bonjou anko

Silvouple dit Jack ti chat yo kap ale nan nouvo kay la semen sa. Ti bel en fas nou a Mme Gerda, Ti woz a Mme Joceline epi Ti Bet a Mme Carmene. (Si yo pa deja ale)

Nou gen bwat yo epi nouriti pou chak. Sonje tout moun chak bezwen dlo toutle tan api manje chak jou.

Mesi
Sharon

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From: auguste
To: sharon gaskell
Subject: enfomasyon
Date: Sun, 13 May 2007 15:33:11 +0200 (CEST)

bonjou Mme

koman sante ou ye? Nou tre byen nan lakay.

Wi gen Rezilta sonde pou Micheline ( enfeksyon ak anemi men yo pa di ki enfeksyon ).

Rosenie malad li pa ka fe twalet depi 2 semen. ( Rezilta sonde parasitose intestinale , anemie modiree ).

mesi a la prochen

Bondye beni ou

Auguste
A.
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sharon gaskell a écrit :

Mesi Auguste

Eske nou gen rezilta sonde pou Micheline?

M byen content chat la pa bezwen lot rendevou ak dokte osi Jack te komanse auto ecole.

M'ap kontiye ale pou physio epi plis radiographie pas ke ponyet te kraze nan 2 plas pa yon. Dokte pa te we 2eme. Sa se poukisa m toujou gen dole.

M kontan wifi mache byen. M Marc gen panaux solaire, batri yo epi plis ordinateur.Le m rive nou kap pale. bezwen yon plas pou tout moun utilize ordinateur yo - petet grand salle.??

Tann fini nan bibliotek

Beni-w

Mme
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From: auguste
To: sharon gaskell
Subject: RE : Tout Bagay
Date: Sat, 5 May 2007 21:25:14 +0200 (CEST)


Bonjou, Mme

Koman ou ye? Nou byen.

System WIFI mache bien. Te gen 22 kite vini pou sak nouri dimanch.

Jack komanse ak priorite auto ecole. Jack pa te ale nan veterine ak ti chat la paske li bon.

Jean-Ricot pa te vini ..

Micheline Mompremier malad , ke fe mal, diare mwen te voye li nan Lopital Justinien jodia.

mesi n'ap priye pou ou. Bondye beni-ou...

Auguste
------------
sharon gaskell a écrit :

Bonjou Auguste

Kouman ou ye? et tout moun? Eske Jack te
ale nan veterinaire la ak ti chat la? Li pi byen oubyen non?

M te ale nan physio therapist la lendi epi jodia. Osi me te we dr. Wendy et Dr, Mike. Apre mwen te ale pou plis radiographie yo. M va we lot dokte orthopedist apres resultat sonde. Li nan lot cite donc bezwen taxi-a.

Souple dit bonjou a tout moun epi m'essaye vini vit.

Eske Jean Ricot te vini?Res-la gen bon sante?

Beni-w

Pran swen fanmi mwen

Mme Sharon

Report from Auguste in Cap-Haitien

Here is an update [below] from Auguste at the house in Cap-Haitien.

He says that the wifi is working well, Jack has started driver training, the kitten recovered and did not require another visit to the vet.

He also says Micheline is sick. She has a heart problem (ke fe mal) and dysentry so he took her to the hospital. That would mean he had to go down to the street to find a cab etc.

This is one of the reasons we need one or, preferably, 2 vehicles. We can provide faster and safer access to medical and dental treatment with our own vehicles. One morning I had to hire 5 taxis to take our kids to various appointments.

Sharon
=========
From: auguste
To: sharon gaskell
Subject: RE : Tout Bagay
Date: Sat, 5 May 2007 21:25:14 +0200 (CEST)

Bonjou, Mme
Koman ou ye? Nou byen.

System WIFI mache bien. Te gen 22 kite vini pou sak nouri dimanch.

Jack komanse ak priorite auto ecole. Jack pa te ale nan veterine ak ti chat la paske li bon.

Jean-Ricot pa te vini. Micheline M. malad, ke fe mal, diare mwen te voye li nan Lopital Justinien jodia. mesi n'ap priye pou ou. Bondye beni-ou.

Auguste

Photos of Students Who Now Have Eyeglasses

Here are photos of four students who received eyeglasses. All have received glasses since January 2007. We have several more being treated for eye infections . We will pay for vision checks post infection.

Othanes D., age 20, 3eme secondaire (4th year high school)

Edwina S., age 16, 9eme sec. (3rd yr.)

Paulaine C., age21, 9eme

Marlene D. . age 25, completed Philo last summer, and is currently taking a computer course. She wants to enter medicine and specialize in Orthopedics.

Lakay Fondasyon :: Online in Cap-Haitien!

Hello Everyone,

Thanks to the hard work of several supporters, we at Lakay Fondasyon, Starthrower Foundation's 'home' in Cap-Haitien, are now online! This is my first email using the new system.

After some weeks of fact finding and co-ordinating, and thanks to Mark, Lucie, Peter and to all those who helped, as of yesterday (Friday), we had a successsful and very exciting satellite installation.

The team arrived shortly after 1:30 p.m. and the electricity departed at 2 p.m. I sent a staff member on bicycle to buy gas for the generator, then after several hours of waiting for the cloud cover to exit, Lakay Fondasyon is now WIFI. We were ready to go by 5:30 p.m., but had to wait for electricity.

This morning we have electricity so I am test driving the system. Mark, you and yours are truly guardian angels. [Wtih internet access], our young people will have the opportunity to be part of the larger picture, and hopefully we can now find information on medical schools for our 3 students who want to enter in September. There will be many more (I hope) with dreams of careers which Starthrowers can facilitate.

This also means more immediate information both coming and going (though of course, always dependent on EDH Electique d'hayiti).

Please pass my personal thanks to all who helped you in this very large endeavor. We are very grateful.

We had visitors this week, too. Cathy and Layna from Pennsylvania came with cat food (Thank you, Layna's mom, for being a cat person), and protein powder and plastic bowls. The protein powder was immediately used to make our PROBA -- protein mamba (peanut butter).

Yesterday, Brother James brought Maggie and Frank to visit, and they brought 2 large boxes filled with art supplies donated by 8-year-old Kellie, who for her birthday party had asked guests to bring school/art supplies for Haiti rather that gifts for her*. Thank you, Kellie!!

I leave for Ft. Lauderdale tomorrow, and Toronto the following day. I will be in Orangeville until the end of June. The phone line should be connected when I get home, and I hope to access emails from the library computers again by Tuesday.

Bon dye va beni w,
Sharon
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* With a similar sentiment, a teacher in western Canada, in lieu of a Mother's Day / 92nd birthday gift for her (former teacher) mom, sponsored a student. A truly meaningful gift!

Francilien's Successful Half Marathon in London

Hello Everyone,

Here's a message from Francilien to let us know that he successfully completed his fundraising half marathon in London on April 21. Thanks to all who supported his efforts!

Karen

"Thank you for your update regarding Starthrower Foundation development in Haiti. I am sorry to hear about the accident of this young boy. I hope they take good care of him in the hospital and hope he recovers from his injuries.

I would like to inform you about the half-marathon I organised from the 21st of this month in order to raise funds for the youth in Haiti. I am pleased to say it went well and I was the only one who ran it from Crystal Palace Park to Battersea Park in London. I had some few sponsors and some few spectators who were willing to pass me some water while I was running. I thank them for that.

I started at 7 o'clock in the morning and in total it took me two hours to complete it. It was pretty hot and it was a good day. I am pleased I achieved it and at the moment I am collecting the funds from my sponsors. Therefore, pretty soon I will be able to forward some funds to Starthrower Foundation for the Haitian youth. A big thank you to everybody who pray for me and support me spiritually. All praises are for God. We are only the vessels He uses."

Thank you once more.

Francilien