When a Friend Mentions Haiti...
An old friend called me on Christmas Eve. We shared updates on our families, laughed about the pains of getting older, confirmed our stubborn and continuing hope for the New York Knicks.
Near the end of the call he asked about our work in Haiti.
I’m sorry, but I don’t get it. I follow the headlines. There are atrocities reported from Port-au-Prince, the State Department says don’t travel there, foreign troops haven’t arrived in the numbers promised. And yet, Locally Haiti sends pics of a new hospital in front of beautiful mountains and feathery clouds, photos of smiling children jumping rope in the courtyard of a school whose enrollment is up 40 percent.
Which is true?
The answer, of course: Both.
The situation in Port-au-Prince is tragic beyond words, and there is no clear or simple path to improvement in the short-term. I have dear friends who’ve been forced to flee, and others who are living through a nightmare.
It is heartbreaking.
And, it is also true that our partners in Petit Trou have made remarkable progress, and that progress is more precious and important than ever. Things in Petit Trou are far from perfect—St. Paul’s School is in urgent need of improved infrastructure as enrollment grows, hunger and food security remain challenges for too many, refugees are living beneath tarps in the courtyards of loved ones.
But it is peaceful and stable in Petit Trou, and the pathways and partnerships that allow resources to reach the hands of community leaders are stronger than ever.
Locally Haiti’s Mission Statement reads:
We advocate for and invest in locally led initiatives to support the vision of our partner communities in rural Haiti.
These verbs are more essential than ever.
Invest in a moment of increasing need. The return on this investment is food for a growing population, it’s children with access to education, it’s a community of 40,000 with a new hospital. There are families fleeing the violence of the capital, wondering if there will be room in the inn, if there will be room in the school, room in the hospital. Because of your investment, there is.
Advocate in a moment when it may feel easier to throw our hands in the air, to move on to other challenges or causes, to give up on recognizing Haiti as part of the real world, made up of real people, the world that is characterized by ands.
Port-au-Prince is in crisis, and we are making a real difference through steadfast partnership.
Whether the verb that fits for you in this moment is invest, advocate, or both, we thank you for believing in this work and for standing with the people of Haiti this year.
Next year promises to bring more challenges and more opportunities to meet them, and we are incredibly grateful to count you as part of this extraordinarily generous and committed community.
As always, thank you for your support and solidarity - please know it is making a very real difference for leaders and families in Petit Trou. If you missed our year-end video narrated by Project Coordinator Johnny Verneus, click here and see the light of our local leaders in Haiti.