An Ode to Education

During my time in Haiti, I have spent a lot of time with the administrators and teachers of the 4 HOM elementary schools. While many of our ideas and practices are similar, the structures of the school systems are very different. In Haiti, going to school is not a guarantee. Few teachers are actually certified and even fewer schools are accredited. To get into an HOM school, children must be 3 years old when school starts in September. They also must have a birth certificate and a vaccination card; both of these documents are very rare in Haiti. There is one day a year at 10:00 am when registration is held at each of the schools. Parents begin lining up around 5:00 am to get one of the 60 spots for the Pre-Kindergarten class. These spots go quickly and several parents and kids leave crying when they are told there are no more spots left. My first question was, well aren’t there other schools they can go to. And here’s the answer for that…

Attending an HOM school means more than a education, it is health and nutrition, Bible studies and classes, English classes and most importantly the hope of a better future! Most of the parents are uneducated and are illiterate; the children will most likely be able to read and write at levels beyond their parents in the first grade. If the parents are one of the lucky ones to have a job, they would make on average $1 U.S. dollar a day. Being accepted into this school means benefits for the entire family. Because this is a Christian school, children often come to Christ through the school and also ask their parents to begin coming to church as well. If there are problems at home, there are people at the school to counsel and work with the parents and educate them about parenting and raising Christian children.

When you are accepted into the school, you receive the following:

·      2 pairs of school (one in September and one after Christmas break)

·      2 uniforms (fabric is given to the parents with a pattern and most mother’s sew the uniforms)

·      Belt, underwear, socks, undershirts (For many children, when they come to school, this is the first time they have had any clothes of their own.)

·      A backpack and school supplies

·      Vitamins each morning

·      Medical and dental treatment when needed

·      A hot meal for lunch (Many children bring an empty lunchbox and fill it up with leftovers from lunch and bring it home for dinner and to share with their family members.)

What also sets HOM schools apart is they are the only schools in Haiti to teach English to the younger grades. They take kids at 3 years old because they usually come malnourished, must teach them their names and how to keep their clothes on, must potty train them, teach them to sit in a chair at a table and must teach the children discipline. There are 3 years of kindergarten (Pre-K, K1 and K2). Upon completion of these 3 years, there is a graduation ceremony and a celebration. This will be next week, and I can’t wait for this special service. They are also the only schools in the Port Au Prince area to have a library. There is a Haitian National Exam that kids are required to take in sixth, ninth, twelfth and thirteenth grades. The passing rate for this exam is extremely low, but HOM students have nearly a 100% passing rate. Without a passing grade, a student can not go on to the next grade. Teachers prepare their students all year and sixth graders come to school on Saturdays and through the summer until the exams. Prayers for these students who are taking the exam today! I’m blown away to see teachers working with the older students studying and reviewing for these exams late into the night at the church and in any room where there is electricity.

Having worked with the teachers and students while I’ve been here, I realize how much I take my education and our school system (although definitely in need of improvement) for granted. These students show up each morning all clean and tidy in their uniform. Despite the fact that they are most likely living in tents with no power and no running water, rarely do you see any students with stains on their uniforms. The parents clean their black shoes and make sure the shirts are tucked in and for girls, their hair is pulled with back with bows right before they drop them off. The reasons behind this are that parents are proud to send their kids to school, kids realize how lucky they are to receive this opportunity and the entire family supports this child because they know that a chance at a good education means a chance for a better and brighter future!

All of these kids have my heart and have forever changed my life! I hope you enjoy these pictures and get a glimpse into the lives of these little angels! I know many of you may or may not be interested in education, but it truly is the key to rebuilding Haiti! 

Too-Te-Ta

This week we have 3 teams in town so it will be pretty crazy! A high school/college group from HPPC came on Saturday… it was good to see some familiar faces and even better that they brought me some things I’d forgotten and a surprise package from my bible study! It made my night to read all of the notes and words of encouragement they had sent me! I was able to work with the Highland Park group on Saturday at Cite Soleil. We painted some of the rooms and ceilings that will be the vocational school and the dental clinic when they are finished. This was a project that we started in March when I came last time and is almost finished. Like I had mentioned earlier, it is really exciting to see the progress being made on all of these projects!

We went to church yesterday at Cite Soleil and heard a very energetic preacher speak about the importance of the father in a family! Even though it wasn’t Father’s Day in Haiti, it was timed quite perfectly for the few Americans in the crowd! Just another reminder of how thankful and beyond blessed I am to have a spiritual role model and lifelong supporter like my dad. So a very Happy Belated Father’s Day to Buz/Daddio!!! I love you so much! In the afternoon, a group visiting from North Carolina invited us to go to the beach with them. We went to a beach called “Obama Beach Hotel.” For those of you who know my family or me, you know this was a challenge, but I did enjoy a nice meal and some time at the beach, so I guess I can’t complain too much! So mom, that one was for you.

Today (and I hope for the remainder of the week), I worked with an education team from California. They are all teachers or staff members at a Christian Preschool. They are here to work some with the students but predominantly with the teachers. The first 2 ½  hours are spent doing activities with both the students and teachers, and the last 2 ½ hours are just working with the teachers and giving them ideas for their classes. I love all of the teachers and admire how hard they work even during the summer time. They have so much energy and didn’t hesitate to jump right in and get the kids excited about the songs and activities. We started off this morning teaching them “The More We Get Together” and a fun song called “Too-Te-Ta.” The second song was a definite hit with teachers and kids alike! I will share some pictures (and possibly videos if I can figure it out) on the blog! We also read “Brown Bear Brown Bear” by Eric Carle and did a sorting game and a memory game with the animals from the book! I loved their ideas and the kids did too!!!

Not much else to report here…. It’s hot hot hot as usual and busy with all of the groups here!! I really like that I can float between groups and help out where I’m needed, but also pick the activities that interest me most, which often involve working in the schools with the sweet kids!

Mammasita, this picture is taken special just for you: 

 Sweet Clarifina is all better and all smiles:

Ronnie helping with the Brown Bear memory game: 

 PreK kids sorting Brown Bear pictures:

Too-Te-Ta with the group:

 

Jessi and Pastor Leon getting in on the Too-Te-Ta action:

 

Teacher Appreciation the Haiti Way

These last two days without teams have allowed for some sight seeing around Haiti! On Wednesday we traveled about an hour and a half to Saut d’Eau (translation: Jumping Water) to see an incredible waterfall. At first I wasn’t quite sure if a waterfall was worth the travel, but now I can say it definitely was. As we drove up and to the other side of the mountain, I felt like I was traveling to another country. This area was not really affected by the earthquake in 2010. Everything was so green and there were people all of the rural area planting various crops, ranging from potatoes to corn and bananas. When we finally arrived at Saut d’Eau, I was amazed. We walked a while and then hiked up to the top of the waterfall. From there, we each had a Haitian guide to help us down the rocks essentially through the waterfalls. I wasn’t dressed quite right so I was grateful to have him to help me down through the slippery rocks and steep drops! I have included some pictures of our trip there. On the way back, we were able to stop and eat at a restaurant and even had some ice cream!

 

Each year after school gets out, Pastor Leon and his family takes the schoolteachers and the staff (the cooks, cleaners and office staff) to the beach as a way to say thank you for their work! He graciously invited three of us along on the trip, and I was so glad I was able to come. We met downstairs at 6:15 to make the hour trek to the beach. While there, they had a staff meeting and talked about the past school year. Then we were able to swim/lounge in the ocean (most of the Haitians can’t swim), eat lunch and then take short boat ride down the coast a little ways. It was so neat to see the teachers from three of the schools celebrate summer and all of their hard work from the previous year! There was a lot of singing, a lot of dancing and more laughing than I have heard in quite some time. I got a chance to talk with some really neat teachers and some of the principals and learn a little bit about their lives and what lead them to teaching. I also got to learn a little creole. I have a lot to learn but they thought it was fun to teach me, and I’m sure they enjoyed hearing me butcher the pronunciation of some of the words. I have also included some pictures from that trip!

 

An update on the two girls from the orphanage who were in the hospital: they are both home, healthy and gaining a little more strength back each day! The group from Highland Park Presbyterian comes this afternoon, and I am really excited for them to arrive. It is an added bonus that they are bringing some of the things that I forgot to pack when I first came!! I hope I’ll get to work with them on their construction projects at Cite Soleil.

For all you Instagrammers out there, start following HOM on Instragram @HaitiOutreach Ministries. I’m going to start posting some pictures up there of things going on around HOM and sharing what the mission groups are working on this summer! 

 

View driving to Saut d'Eau:

 Isabelle, Jessi, Fritz and I pre-waterfall adventure:

Teacher and Staff Appreciation Day at the beach:

 Boat Rides with Pastor Leon:

So thankful for this opportunity to come work with these amazingly gracious and joyful Haitian people!  The Lord is at work here in mighty ways!

Maddie

 

Haiti One

Today I had the privilege of going with Pastor Leon (the founder of HOM) to a conference called Haiti One. This is a new organization with a mission to unite the Christian NGO’s in Haiti. It was very interesting to hear the discussion between representatives from all around Haiti share their experience and their ideas. It was an added bonus that the conference was at a really nice hotel called the Karibe. When we pulled up, I felt as if I were no longer I Haiti. It was air conditioned, had multiple restaurants with a wide variety of food (not just rice and beans), had a spa, tennis courts, swimming pools and basketball courts. I was lucky enough to get a delicious breakfast and a lunch at out of the trip. I’m inspired by these people and their commitment to unifying their organizations and working as one to achieve their goal of restoring the nation of Haiti. I am thankful to have had this opportunity and to have been able to spend the day with Pastor Leon. He is truly inspiring and has so much information to share about Haiti. 

 

After my four star experience at this hotel, I was quickly brought back to reality when I went with 4 of the other HOM volunteers and staff members to take the trash. This is something they do weekly and it is unlike anything I have seen in my life. We pulled up to the dump area in a large white truck filled with trash in the back. I was shocked when a few Haitian children jumped on the back of the moving truck and started going through the trash. I soon learned there is an entire community of nearly 1,000 people who live in and around this dump area. They dig through the trash hoping to find anything of value that they could sell; aluminum, plastic, metal, cans, really anything. My heart broke for the people who lived in this “dump community” because I felt so incredibly helpless. I was so shocked throughout the entire ordeal I couldn’t speak or even think about taking a picture. I felt like I was in Slumdog Millionaire, but worse. 

 

I know previously in the post I had mentioned how inspiring the Haitian’s commitment is to pretty much anything they set their mind to, but I can’t not mention what I experienced this last Sunday. I will run through a typical Sunday here in Port Au Prince. We were awake by 5:00 to get dressed and ready for church, which began at 6:00 am. I walked into the church about 5:55 and saw nearly 200 people already worshipping and praying dressed in their very best and nicest clothes. The service was about 2 ½ hours long and consisted of the most heartfelt prayers and worship I have ever experienced. Although I was fortunate to have a man in front of me who spoke a little English and was able to help with some, I pretty much missed about 90% of what they were actually saying. Despite the language barrier, there are few times where I have been in a church in the United States and experienced such a thing; the Holy Spirit was for sure at work in that church Sunday morning. After this service, there were two more services throughout the day, children’s church, Sunday school and youth group. There was something going on from 5:30 am to 10:30 at night… talk about commitment. Something else that stuck out to me is the pastors consider it a failure if they do not have at least one visitor or new member each week. Rarely does that happen because they really do reach out to every single person in their community and invite them to their services. 

 

After our service had finished around 8:30, I walked with a group to the orphanage right down the block. This orphanage has 11 girls: 8 of them are between the ages of three and five, one is in first grade, one in third grade, and one is in seventh grade. All of them are sponsored by HOM and attend the school at  Terre Noire. While there, we did arts and crafts, played games, colored and then helped them get ready for lunch. They were the happiest and most energetic group of girls I have ever met. I don’t know how the housemother and her staff of just 2 others keep up with them all the time. I do hope that during my time here, I will be able to spend more time with them at the orphanage. But I ask that you pray for 2 of the girls, Dafca and Clarafina, they are both 4 years old and have been very sick since Saturday. Yesterday they were taken to the hospital for more treatment because one of them was having seizures and the other had such a high fever that she was delirious and not making any sense. They are already very small, and so pray for strength and for healing for these sweet little girls!

 

Sorry I know that was a long one and unfortunately I don’t have any pictures of them but I’ll share some others from the week so far!!! 

The Karibe Hotel:

The sunset tonight at Terre Noire: 

Happy Last Day of School to the kids of all 4 HOM schools:

And a very happy birthday to my very best friend!! Miss you so much and wish I was there to celebrate with you!! xoxox

FROGS: Fully Rely On God

Today is Saturday, and the really sweet group from Atlanta, Georgia left to go back home this morning. I’m sad to see them leave… they kind of took me under their wing and included me in their school and construction projects, trip to the beach and in all of their devotionals! It’s kind of slow around here without them so I figured I’d update everyone on my time in Haiti so far. 

 

One of my most favorite days was Thursday because we went to Repatriote to work in the classrooms and then officially “open up” the playground for the students. Many of you know that I have been sponsoring a little five-year-old boy named Roody Jean Baptiste. I have met him once before and was excited to see him again. Ironically, his was the first classroom that we went in to do the caterpillar craft. Obviously, he didn’t remember me, but it was so fun to see him actually in his classroom working on all of his projects. I got to play with him a little and then we took his class outside for the playground opening. This is when the real excitement started! The kids, many of whom have never seen a playground before, were at first confused and a little overwhelmed. We started to show them how to use the slide, the merry-go-round and the swings and their faces lit up. They started running around like crazy playing on the playground; even some of the moms came and we pushed them on the swings as well. Although the equipment was so simple and nothing in comparison to our large, over the top playgrounds at home, the kids loved it! Too often we take for granted all of the things that we have, and I was reminded that I need to start celebrating the little things and appreciating all of the gifts God has given me.  Such a neat experience to share with these church and school families.

 

Yesterday I went with the group from Atlanta to the beach and celebrated their last day in Haiti. It was a fun and relaxing way to end their trip! Once we returned to HOM, we had dinner and then were able to walk around the neighborhood and meet some of the translators that work for HOM. I was so impressed and encouraged by their dedication and commitment to furthering their education and making the best out of their situation. One of the guys I met spoke 7 languages and went to Montana to study for a year and plans to go back to attend college in August. Another translator known as PG, who is 22, goes to school, works as a translator and supports his family of 8. They are oh so humble and do not like the recognition, but I am in awe of their work ethic, commitment to their family and complete trust in the Lord. I must admit, it would be awfully hard for me to keep a smile on my face living in some of these conditions with no end in sight. But, just as most Haitians I’ve encountered do so well, they joyfully give thanks for what they have been given and graciously welcome us into their homes and their lives.

 

This morning I went to a FROG’s Children’s Ministry Seminar. For those of you who don’t know what FROG means (which I didn’t until about 9 am this morning), it is an acronym that stands for “Fully Rely on God.” This was an optional seminar for the people who teach Sunday school for the youth at HOM. It was put on by 4 volunteers from the United States. I wasn’t sure how many people would sacrifice there Saturday morning, but was pleasantly surprised when nearly 50 people showed up and we had to keep adding more benches and tables. These Sunday school teachers range in age from about 17 to 35. Many of them work other jobs, go to school and support their family. It was interesting to hear the conversations because so much of it applied to what I teach at home and many of our ideas and beliefs were very similar. They stayed for almost 5 hours in a hot, crowded room but were so engaged the entire time. Again, conditions I would not tolerate as patiently as they did, but I am working on it! 

 

Wahoo Bay Beach with my favorite group from Atlanta, GA! 

 Singing and dancing with the kids at Repatriote!

 What a stud...  Roody Jean Baptiste!

 Merry-go-round and swings for the first time

 

Love to all of my friends and family back home!! Thank you as always for your prayers and support!

Settling in...

I finally made it to my home for the summer… the guest dorms of Terre Noire, one of the four HOM community centers. I will be staying in a room with another girl who is here teaching English. Her commitment is for 12 months; she has been here for 6 already. I will be spending the next 6 weeks on the top bunk with an air mattress and a mosquito net! For those who know me, the top bunk is something I try to avoid at all costs but this summer I decided I’m up for new and different, so the top bunk it is. As I began to unpack (by unpack I mean unlock my trunks and shove them under the bed because that is where my stuff will stay), I quickly realized about a million things I forgot, thanks to a gracious group of volunteers coming from HPPC, I should have some of those forgotten items in a few short weeks.

There is a group here right now from Georgia and I spent a lot of time with them today. We went into the classrooms at Cite Soleil this morning and did an activity with the book, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” by Eric Carle. The kids were so sweet and loved the book, crazy how we can’t understand one another but we can still enjoy and laugh at the same stories. This afternoon we went to another HOM location at Repatriote and helped finish a playground and a soccer field. I have already noticed how things have improved since I was here last March, and I think I will really enjoy seeing the finished products and the progress made while I’m here. I’ve included pictures of the before and after of 2 projects that our HPPC group started in March and then the finished products. It doesn’t seem like much, but it is really encouraging to see the Haitian church leaders so committed to projects for the entire community to use. I’ve run into some of the translators that we met before and it’s always fun to catch up and talk with them… such amazing stories of starting from nothing and really taking advantage of the opportunities provided to them and making a better and brighter future for themselves and their families.


Soccer Fields at Repatriote

Just getting started: March 2013




Almost finished! June 2013






Playground at Terre Noire

Making the wall for the playground: March 2013




All done and ready for the kids: June 2013




Sweet first graders at Cite Soleil!





My humble abode...

 
Thank you again for all of your prayers and support, can’t wait to share more later but for now, off to dinner!

Maddie

And the packing begins...

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Today is the last day of school and the last day of my time in HPISD. While this is a bittersweet end to a great year, I can now start to focus and prepare on my newest adventure. After two shorter trips to Haiti with HPPC over the last two years, I am taking a leap of faith and traveling to Haiti for the summer. I am leaving on Tuesday, June 4^th for Port Au Prince where I will be a long-term volunteer with Haiti Outreach Ministries. To learn more about the work they do in Haiti, visit their website at www.haitioutreachministries.org. I will be there until July 18^th, working alongside the Haitian workers and church leaders and serving as a host to the groups that come for short-term mission trips. Some days I will be working on construction projects, some days will be spent in the clinics and some days I will be teaching English to the sweet students and teachers at the HOM schools. I will also be helping streamline and organize student information and records and helping the photographer with pictures and posts to their Facebook and Instagram. 

With the school year coming to an end, I have had time to focus on what I will need for the trip. I finally began packing tonight, and I couldn't help but feel that I was in middle school packing for summer camp with my trunk and my "outdoorsy" clothes. My summer shopping has been quite different this year, as I have been on the hunt for insect repellant with Deet, work pants, long skirts and chacos (...yes I finally caved and bought a pair). Other items on my packing list include Anti-Malaria medicine, a headlamp, earplugs, Avil PM and denture cleaner to keep my beloved retainers clean while I'm in Haiti.

Before I leave on my summer adventure, I want to thank all of my friends and family who have supported me through this entire process and have loved and prayed for my trip. In addition to these powerful prayers, I have been overwhelmed by the financial support I have received from so many people. A BIG thank you to everyone who has been a part of this journey so far… in particular the wonderful leaders and young adult community of Highland Park Presbyterian Church who have been truly amazing. I look forward to seeing what the Lord has in store for me during my seven weeks in Haiti. I will share stories, pictures and experiences with you through my blog as often as I can. I ask that you continue to pray for safe travels and that the Lord may be glorified through my work and time in Haiti. I feel tremendously blessed to have this opportunity to serve. Like the Haitian students say each morning, “Merci Saviour!” 

Maddie