February 7, Santiago, following Talien.

Monday, February 7th - an auspicious, historical date and all staff arrived late. No camionets running, students turned back home, schools closed, burning barricades and projectiles which include bottles, rocks and bullets. To-day we should be celebrating the departure of the old government and welcoming the new. But the old doesn't want to relinquish power so the new remains undecided. Last week's 'moment' wasn't enough - too little, too late. Leave, the people say. It's past time.  Jack just returned from the street - all stores are closed so we have one  bottle of potable water til tomorrow. We use ten per day.

Thursday morning (Feb 3rd) Auguste and I had descended the street in search of a taxi. We were heading for the bus station, destination Santiago, Dominican Republic for home and school visits for our university students there. Twice during the week,  Jack had helped repair the street for passage. The rocky, pitted surface still demanded full attention. 



Jack (red shirt) helps to open our  street for pedestrians.

Everyone was tired. Staff had arrived before 7 a.m. after a night spent waiting for election run off results. The promised announcement was again delayed. Then as we walked, an experience to be savored. All 'bri' ( noise) seemed to stop - no horns honked, no voices called. Radios broke the silence - portable and car - blaring from everywhere. 'S'ak pase?' (What's happening?) we called out. It was the long awaited announcement, a surprise in the timing. No one on the street moved. The results - Martelly, the people's choice, was in the run off. A cheer from what seemed like the country,  followed by everyone talking and laughing at the same time. A moment of euphoria. The voice of the people had been heard.

After a long and tiring bus trip to Santiago we settled in and began visits. We managed to share a meal although everyone arrived and departed at different times. No group picture.  Jhennie is in 2nd year Business Administration at UTESA, Marlene and Elorge are 2nd year Pre-Med at PUCMM. All have been in Santiago for longer periods as programs require intensive Spanish. We have learned a great deal from their experiences and the next students we send will have the benefit. Jhennie exhibits the distinctive edema of wet malnutrition - a student diet of less expensive carbs, no funds for the more necessary but expensive proteins. She is very uncomfortable in her skin.



Elorge and Jhennie share experiences. Marlene was writing an exam,

Friday morning breakfast then off to see Jhennie's apartment, followed by a trip to UTESA (Universidad Technologica Santiago). Jhennie shares a 2 bedroom apartment on the top floor of a 6 story walk-up with 3 other Haitian students. Like all of our post secondary students who are obliged to leave Cap, Jhennie sleeps in a bed for the first time in her life. She shares the bedroom with one other person. The living room contains 2 plastic chairs - no work/study/rest space. A table, desk and laptop are needed.  We're working on that. A sofa and chair would be luxuries.

 

Reviewing Jhennie's message to her sponsor.




Jhennie and Auguste take a break on Campus.





For  three days I had the luxury of walking everywhere, something I am unable to do in Cap for security reasons. What a sense of freedom in the simple act of walking. Jhennie headed to class at noon and Elorge joined us for a sandwich then shopping. He knows the city well and proved a great guide. We made bulk purchases: pens, pencils, erasers, pencil sharpeners and highlighters. Backpacks were simply too expensive - the equivalent of $40 USD each. If anyone has a connection with the companies which make high quality backpacks, let me know or feel free to contact on our behalf. (Jansport, Columbia, High Sierra and ???) Less expensive items give out within weeks - victims of the climate and load.

Saturday morning Marlene was available so both she and Elorge made video messages for their sponsors. Jhennie had a day long seminar. Like Jhennie, they were very self-conscious of the video process - a new experience, but in each case it showed the amazing young adults these 'starfish' have become.

A rare moment of relaxation - Auguste, Marlene, Elorge

Their lives are difficult and busy - there is no social life. The idea of a Lakay in Santiago was raised as rents keep increasing. Another good idea for someone who reads this, as we have more students headed for university there.  We happened to pass a small, neat house for sale just blocks from the two campuses.

Travel is always an opportunity to reflect. What a gift these young people are receiving and what a gift they are already giving to their community here. Thank you, sponsors - Jeff, Marjorie, Sharon and families.

I would be remiss if I didn't follow-up our visit to Talien's ti kay. He had owner's permission to clean and paint so we arranged a work team Saturday morning (video below).

Many stopped by to see what was happening and everyone asked if we could do their place next. No one offered to help. We donated 2 plastic chairs and a small table - he thought he had won the lottery. The danger now is theft - everyone knows what he has acquired.

Jack and Talien packing sleeping carpet



Lusmond after hospital visit.

During the week he picked up the sleeping carpet we purchased. His brother Lusmond accepted our offer of a hospital visit for his eye problems. Tuesday he had a consult with the Opthalmology Dept. He has a followup to-day.

Due to the unanticipated school holiday, we are very busy. Auguste has gone to transfer funds to our students in Port-au-Prince so I am looking after the office. Joceline is making sandwiches, Carmene is baking a cake, Jack is out looking for staples as Myriame, Carline and Mackdalene have arrived with books to cover and every stapler is empty.  

Elines has just arrived from Sen Rafayel for a consult to-morrow, also in the Opthalmology department. Teeth and eyes - we never catch up. The good news - we have Rose-Guerlande, studying Spanish and waiting for sponsors to enter Dental School at PUCMM in Santiago and Edwina has announced she wants to become an Opthalmologist after secondary studies.

More later

Kenbe pa lage

Sharon

Following Andreas, Talien and Elines

Saturday morning 5 am - The rain is letting up, voodoo drums now have competition only from the roosters and the hum of electricity. With 'kouran' comes an internet signal and news that Andreas (FrostBike) has successfully completed his ride from Kingston to Toronto. WELL DONE, Andreas and team.

Many of our young people are close in age to Andreas and those who supported his challenge. How wise of the universal energy to bring them to-gether.

Andreas initially contacted us via email. Many of our young people here arrive with letters in hand, often from other NGO's unable to continue support. Sometimes the kids outgrow an organization, or it folds or leaves the area. That is how Talien arrived at our portay. After speaking with the referring agent and checking papers, Talien became a weekly visitor - quiet, shy, never asking for anything just using the facilities, eating and leaving. Then came kolera, and in November while I was stranded in Providenciales, his support system, his grandmother, died in the street trying to get past the fiery protest barricades to the cholera treatment centre.

He started to talk. Could we help with the rent as his grandmother paid until month end? Last Friday we visited. Our webadmin Daniel has posted a portion of that visit. I have the privilege of going where many etranje yo have never been. When I asked where he lived, he responded that his tikay was behind the gas station on Airport Road. Sounds uncomplicated. Take a look at the walk to his place (Click here to view video). Seems I have two modes of operation in Haiti, leading or following. I'm always following to get to a home visit. Interestingly, there is always a staff member following me.



Talien (school casual uniform) sits beside his possessions, cooking supplies



Only reading material -prized,tattered copy of Evangelists (French)

The squalor in which we often find ourselves always shakes me. His home is approximately 6 by 8 feet. That's it. No communal toilet, no water except raw sewage outside the door, no space to cook his meager meals, no furniture - infested with cockroaches (ravat-yo) and fire ants (foumi). His younger brother, with obvious signs of eye infection, shares the space. I asked how long he had experienced eye trouble. 8 years, since he fell out of a mango tree. He has been unable to continue school.

Younger brother Lusmond shares the space. Grandmother lived there also.

As we will pick up Talien's rent for the next 6 months,  I suggested looking for a place closer to school, preferably one with a window and a latrine. Not an easy matter. In the meantime, plans were made to send a team Saturday to work with him to clean and paint. The day prior to clean up, Talien arrived after school with a group of others. He presented Malaria symptoms so we started treatment, as clinics and hospital were closed. He said he needed to speak to me about an urgent matter. Obviously ill, he slowly made his way into the office, put his head on the desk and began. As the organization which sent him to school is unable to continue, how does he find help to attend university? He wants to study agriculture to help his country. I suggested we deal with Malaria first, cleaning his house next, getting him through the next 2 years of high school, then we'll talk university. This is a poignant example of the focus and drive which propel these young people. Life and school are about what you can do for your family, community and country.

In contrast to following Talien through the concrete jungle to his home, we've also posted a look at a home visit in Sen Rafayel - following Elines through the literal jungle (Click here to view video). His home is shared by sister Lunda (on our waiting list), brother Djohn (one of our staff) and father, disabled due to an accident which injured his leg. Broken bones are never set if you're poor. You either die of complications or live with the consequences. Mom died 10 years ago. Having watched his mother die and living with a disabled father, Elines wants to be a doctor.

School books (Elines) hang out of harm's way.

Following these young people to their homes is always humbling. Talien and Elines and their lives are representative of every young person we serve. For Talien in the city, there is a minimum 2 hour walk to school after leaving the concrete jungle. Two hours home again, usually on an empty stomach. How does one thrive eating once or twice a week? Elines as well has a long walk, hungry. Would I have made the same effort at that age? He also has an eye infection so we're making arrangements to get him down the mountain to the Opthalmology department at Justinien Hospital.


So many challenges just to go to school. Thank you again, Andreas for making a difference.

(Daniel here: Andreas's fundraiser raised $2,800)

More later.

Beni-w
Sharon

Sen Rafayel - tet anba (upsidedown)

Some days stand out because there seems to be an energy which gathers speed as the day progresses, hurtling one towards an exhausting yet anticlimactic finish. Those days seem indelible, as though written in the brain with a  permanent, bold marker. Those are what I've labeled  'awareness days'.

Yesterday was one of those days. Awake at 4 a.m., time for yoga under the net,  out of bed at 5 a.m., open security doors, light the gas stove, haul water, boil water, feed the animals, make sandwiches, coffee and tea for Sen Rafayel, check emails, load the truck with Jack and Auguste -- out of town before 8 a.m., leaving all in the capable hands of Mme Joceline and student staffer, Rosema.  Unfortunately the road up the mountain was slow and treacherous - we arrived in the village (28 km) at 11:20. The route was very dry - not a drop of mud. I always thought the  mud slowed us down. Mud seemed doable compared to 3 and 4 foot deep ruts which felt like concrete.



Djohn attempts a jerry-built causeway in front of our office

Sen Rafayel took us by surprise. We drove past our 'biwo-a' (office). It took a moment to realize that our neighbouring carpentry shop was no longer there and our parking space out front  was now a deep trench. This made the roadway considerably narrower. Thursday market exacerbated the problem. Two large projects are taking place in the village:  construction of a covered market place set  away from the main road  and canals which will hopefully stop the frequent flooding endured by villagers. Every year gardens and animals are swept  away and all too often drownings occur.





Jack and Auguste before the fireworks.

After backing the truck into a pile of gravel which did not block the road, Jack and Auguste began to unload provisions, when a truck marked POLICE skidded to a halt in front of us, effectively  blocking our exit.



Within seconds a parade of men with guns, women and children ran past us down the side of our office. Shots rang out, bottles and rocks flew everywhere,  and several voices shouted  " Mete Madam  machin-an" (Put Mme in the truck). Mayhem. (dezod)

Long story short - staffers informed us that the area surrounding our office was always prone to violence but this has escalated since prior to Christmas. Now I understand  why Djohn has been sleeping on the floor in the office nightly. The shop next door was destroyed by youths brandishing rocks and bottles. Our shared  latrine, which is 2 houses away, in the 'hot' zone,  is now off limits. We need the situation  to resolve itself quickly.  Short term we need a toilet, long term a safe place for staff and students so  we are on the lookout for a new space as the lease expires August 1st.

Francois D. - classe Rheto

 In need of a safe place to leave the truck, we imposed upon our friendship with  Soeur Ginette, parked at the clinic,  and walked back. Once inside, down to work. Pay staff, explain distribution/recording systems for supplies.  Revise student lists -  6 were left off although paid for. Auguste  worked with staff while I met with Francois, a Starfish who had dropped out last year to look after his ailing mother. As he is in Rheto, which means he will write state exams, he can begin without first term. We have at least 30 on our waiting list in the same situation. We just need the financial support. When I asked how his mother was (father predeceased) he said it was a miracle she lived as she is very old. "Konbyen ane li gen?" (How old is she?)  I asked. "Senkannzwit" (58).

Consienne dropped in to pick up the stipend her sponsor sends. In an email to a friend last week, I noted the difference observed in her sponsored student, Camiose.  I saw the same in Consienne yesterday. It is not immediate - I think it takes awhile to trust that the 'soutyen'  (support) will not disappear. Having a sponsor (or group of sponsors) is transformational. Every student with outside support has a new confidence. They present themselves differently, carry themselves differently.  It has been informative. Worth documenting  and following up.



Consienne signs the receipt book. Djohn, Auguste, Kesner



Roadside entertainment for 100 gds

So much to pack into a brief time - we're always late getting away for the return trip and I feel as though we rush everyone and every activity. There are always students left standing we did not get to. It was suggested on the way home, that if I can find a place where we can stay, it would be easier for everyone and we could accomplish more if we stayed overnight and began interviews etc about 6 a.m.  So I'm on it. The trip home was eventful, this time instead of funerals we stopped for entertainment. This gentleman  was playing homemade maraccas and performing a song and dance in honor of the Haitian flag.

No matter how many times I make the trip, entering Cap-Haitien is always a jolt - the difference between rural and urban Haiti  thrown into relief. The poverty of the village  has space - the poverty of the city has no privacy. Both are hazardous.





Above the gas station on Rue L (Barrier Boutey)-no personal space 

Home at last - 5:30 p.m. and Carmene and Joceline along with the dogs gave us a heroes' welcome. Again we survived Granjil as did our tires. Tired, covered in dust, thirsty , exhausted,  Jack, Auguste and I retired to our respective desks, brought log books up to date, then sat on the gallery debriefing the day. We returned with 51 new letters from students sitting out this year.

My day was not over until I had read everyone. In addition to many who lost support in the earthquake there were 3 who had recently  lost parents  to 'kolera'.  Today we've had intake interviews and this afternoon, home visits. On the weekend I'll translate and prioritize the letters. If it weren't for the fact that I'm retired, I would say that I have the best job in the world.
(Daniel here - You can read samples of student letters here.)

Alapwochen

Sharon

PS



Market day - Sen Rafayel - room to move



School Strike, Frostbike, Another Mountain

While the macrocosm of the country continues to bubble and steam like a volcano threatening to erupt, the microcosm of Lakay Fondasyon chugs along, the little engine that could. School supplies are non existent - we have scoured the marketplace and stores weekly since early December.With schools opening (supposedly) this week, we increased the hunt.



Marie-Vonette unpacks notebooks

We can't find scientific calculators, back packs, pens, pencil cases,  notebooks.  We are out of and cannot replenish protein powder, multi vitamins and Allimax. We did find hygiene products in quantity.

Prior to the quake, notebooks were assembled in Port-au-Prince.  We found the last 4 packages of 96 page notebooks in Cap-Haitien at $ 12.US per pack.

We have more than 100 students in secondary - each one needs 8 notebooks, can get along with 5.  The 48 we found won't go far and upon inspection, the advertised 96 pages proved an exaggeration - each had 80 pages. Yes, we actually sit and count (kontwole) the number of pages in a notebook.  Then Satuday  (his day off) Auguste phoned from the market - he had found a marchand with kaye Miami (notebooks which came from the states) for $1.50 USD per notebook ($15. US per pkg.). She only had 23 packages but it gets everyone started.



Paudeline in school uniform.

Or so I thought.  Tuesday Paudeline arrived bright and early  for one of her little visits. The quality of  sewing on school uniforms is to be admired - - all hand made in very cramped, poorly lit spaces. She brought news that her school Lycee Boukman was on strike again (gen grev) as the teachers' have not been paid by the state for many months.

Unfortunately this is a regular occurance.


Which brings us to the announcement of new industry coming to Cap-Haitien. The answer to our problems is not more sweat shops which  keep the poor trapped in the entrenched vicious poverty cycle - a recently passed, fought over minimum wage  increase to $3. USD  PER DAY which does not feed a family, nor pay for schooling or put a roof over anyone's head. The industry needed would provide a just living wage in safe, sanitary conditions. This country is filled with talented, motivated, passionate individuals, languishing. I was hoping for universal health care, access to education and safe housing. Perhaps a  support program for post-secondary education. Seems quite doable given the largesse targeted for the country. Mr. Clinton, please come to visit us.

Of the 4 we sent to L'hôpital Justinien last week with eye infections, Mona and Mackdalene  need corrective lenses.  While we provide the money for eye exams, hospital consults and tap-taps for travel, these young people still must get up and arrive at the hospital before 4:30 am as the limited daily number of places (usually 15)  go quickly. We keep all cards on file here. There are  so many with eye problems we have a separate folder for the Opthalmology Department.  Students must come in for a referral form, consult fees and the original card. This expedites the process of finding their dossier at the hospital.   If no previous dossier, the process takes more time. Then they sit until the doctor arrives, usually 10 or 11 am. Thanks to you, the Starthrowers who support us, they will have glasses next week.

We're paying trimeste fees at each school in Cap  this week, setting up home visits (both here and in the Dominican Republic) In addition we're gathering supplies, revising lists and contracts  and filling salary envelopes as well as school envelopes with 2nd and 3rd trimeste fees. as we travel up  Morn Granjil to-morrow to meet with staff and students in Sen Rafayel. So I'm keeping it brief today.

Andreas on his mount, dressed for the occasion.

In closing I want to introduce you to a Starthrower who lives in Toronto, Canada. His name is Andreas Kloppenborg, a 4th year student in International Relations at the University of Toronto.

On Saturday, January 29th he will ride his bike from Kingston to Toronto (hence Frostbike) in frigid Ontario temperatures to raise awareness and funds for Starthrowers' secondary school program. Please visit his website and support this fundraiser. Tell one more person.

I'm in awe of the generosity and creativity exhibited by Starthrowers. I don't have the creative gene.  Andreas, you are one of my heroes.

As a final thought, if you have seen news reports, you know of the drama surrounding the return  this week of former dictator Jean Claude Duvalier, which continues to unfold. Where it will end and what impact it will have is anyone's guess. Auguste arrived for work Monday very subdued. I asked if he was ill. He replied "It's worse than that. It's another earthquake - Duvalier's here"  (Se pi mal ke sa-a. Yon lot trembleman te-a. Jean Claude te rive.).  Last week I quoted a Haitian proverb -  Deye mon gen mon. It's yet another mountain.

Plis pi ta (more later)

Beni-w (blessings)

Sharon

Jan. 12 - One Year After the Heartquake

There is unutterable sadness and weariness to life lived in absolute poverty. This was true before  the tranbleman te (earthquake) of Jan. 12, 2010.  How, I ask myself,  can something already so profound be deepened? There is also inspiring joy, delight and humour in the simple things those with privilege miss.

We are the privileged - I am - and perhaps you are as well. We've been to school - we can read . We have access to a computer, running water, a toilet which can be flushed, electricity for the dark times, and socks to wear to church and zip lock bags.

I have lived with these privileges and never thought to stop and thank the universe or wonder "Why me?"

That was before my Haitian transfusion, figuratively and literally after life saving surgery, strengthening me, reminding me of the sense of wonder and gratitude I once had but lost for a time.

Carmene

Joy and pain are tangible here and so closely related.  Carmene, our cook/housekeeper, arrives for work every day with a smile on her face and a greeting for everyone.  Haitians do that - acknowledge every day and the people who pass through it. Her smile is gentle and genuine - concealing a sadness we can never enter. She is the face of Haiti: courage, wisdom, patience, and in her smile, teeth, blackened with cavities, which will never see the inside of a dentists' office.



Traditionally, the New Year is a time to remember those lost in the past year. There were many lost in Haiti last Jan.12 who will never be remembered publicly. The only newspaper we receive, Le Nouvelliste,  carries personal ads every printing, of those looking for loved ones not seen since Jan. 12th.  A year later the search continues. In recognition of those who still search and those unaccounted for,  I'm sharing our loss -  a young man who was the face of Haiti's present and future and now belongs to her past and the legacy of January 12, 2010.

This is Carmene's son Frandzy, killed January 12, 2010.

Frandzy V.  26.01.86 - 12.01.2010

I found some pictures of him in my computer a couple of weeks ago and asked Carmene if she wanted to see them or have me print them. She paused for a painfully long time, slowly turned to me with a look of  profound sadness and vehemently shook her head. "No" was all she said.

Too painful to remember, the second son she's lost in the service of  Haiti's terrible poverty. Frandzy was in Port-au-Prince in first year medical technology. He wanted to be a doctor because his younger brother Ernst died at age 13 of a simple ear infection, easily treated if you're privileged, fatal if you're poor. He wanted to help  improve the odds currently stacked against the poor.



He was intelligent, funny, thoughtful, studious and committed to being part of the change Haiti needs from her young people. His dream would have been realized thanks to Starthrowers like you. Others will do it in his stead and in his name.

I'm not a writer - Karen and Jeff are blessed with that gift. I don't have an eye for photography - that's Pete. And I certainly have no gift for drawing a story with pen and line - that's Daniel and my son Ken.

I can be present and I can tell you the stories - the minutiae and the mountains climbed by the young people who pass through Starthrower in Haiti. I think their stories are worth telling. I think we - the privileged with our computers and zip lock bags - need to know. Knowing their stories makes me a better person. 



Marrion F.

The New Year is also a time to look ahead. Last August 14,  Marrion F. (Sen Rafayel) wrote a letter to me. It was one of 73 letters received that day. That night, while tucked under my mosquito net, flashlight in hand, I made my way through all 73, saving his for last as it was written in English - a painstaking chore to be sure, probably written with  dictionary in hand. Saved for last because no translation was required. In it he wrote "My father died in the heart quake 12 January 2010. My mother is living but she is sickly. She can't help me continue with my classical education, I'm obliged to address you."  What a profound mistake - our hearts did quake, sometimes it feels as though our hearts broke.  While  reflecting on Marrion's letter, I recalled a line from a video I had seen last year.  According to the character of Jake ('Must Love Dogs ' 2005 Warner Bros.) after an experience which breaks your heart, the universe lets it grow back bigger, stronger, more capable of love. Words of comfort are often found in surprising places. The world needs bigger, stronger hearts.

Marrion is on our waiting list - one of the 300 plus. He is waiting to finish the final year of high school and go on to university.   He is also the face of Haiti - the present, the future, the 'possibilite'.

One year later we are coping, moving on - Martha has started sleeping inside again, Piterson and Guilene have recovered as much as possible from their physical wounds. Guilene, blind from birth, is back at school in Port-au-Prince. She still has pain from six days of confinement beneath the rubble of her former school. Piterson also has residual pain, but is writing entrance exams at the State university hoping to study medicine. Another survivor with guilt. He was at school with Frandzy. It was Piterson who somehow in all the terror and disorientation,  found a telephone and called us with the terrible news.  He has always wanted to be a doctor - more so after his experiences last Jan. 12th.

Gaby, Brunie, Wisly and Alland still don't sleep well when in Leogane, Plenito has found a new university  in Port-au-Prince but has to repeat last year. His survivor guilt continues,  he wonders why favourite teachers and classmates died but he didn't. Dieugrand and others still have difficulty entering large buildings.  Vaudre, Elines, Fabiola, Constance and many others continue to live in quake damaged homes. Repairing would be futile. They need to be torn down and rebuilt. And the list goes on.  We have repaired the structural damage to our centre  in Cap-Haitien although large cracks remain.  The 'structural damages' sustained by many of our young people are not visible.

 One year later we are coping, moving on - but always remembering - n'ap degaje, n'ap kontinye ,n'ap sonje.

Beni-w

Sharon

PS An official announcement yesterday stated that three more bodies had been found  (on the exact anniversary) and that less than 5% of the rubble has been moved. One year later - still a heartquake.