Over these past few months, I’ve come to understand that living in Haiti has become the new normal for my twenty-four year old self. Visiting the USA this summer was an excellent, yet odd, situation. There are many positive memories from the summer, but in general, things did not feel quite right. Unable to properly articulate the feeling, it became increasingly powerful when I returned to LCS in August. Yes, mangoes no longer were hanging from the trees, but there was a familiarity to the place that my travels in the USA this past summer were unable to conjure. Who knew I would miss mosquitoes, rats, and tarantulas so much?
Recognizing that it has been a while, you might be curious about what has happened this past month? Well, here is a “short” run-down:
-First, a couple of US American video journalists roamed around campus for a few days, taking video clips of math classes and netwayage. Their intention is to create a documentary on education in Haiti and hope to use LCS as an example of “what works.” With funding from the Pulitzer foundation (among other sources), they proudly (perhaps a tad bit too proudly) informed me that they intended to have the final product featured on the PBS show "Frontline."
-Next, LCS recycled another 160 pounds of plastic, which netted a grand total of $10.25 USD in profit. That is, gross profit. When factoring in the transportation costs (both truck and wheelbarrow), we surely cannot be making much money. Despite the poor pay, LCS has recycled almost 1300 pounds of plastic since November 2009. Now, recycling would seem to be a good idea regardless if you were living in Columbus, Ohio or Croix des Bouquets, Haiti. But, what if the items needed to be shipped halfway across the world in order to be recycled? Is recycling still the most environmentally friendly option?
-Also, I heard a funny story the other day when I was speaking with one of our most successful graduates. He works for Catholic Relief Services and heads their “Cash for Work” program, employing over 1,000 Haitians each month. The presidential campaign season kicked off last week and apparently residents in one of his camps covered a CRS administration building with presidential posters. When he tried to explain that CRS is nonpolitical and that residents could put posters elsewhere – just not on the CRS administrative building – the people became quite angry. Rather than starting a fight, he decided to sit down, drink a coke, and wait. Seeing him sip the chilled soda, everyone simply stared. When he offered to buy them all drinks, they quickly accepted and beers were had all around. After one round, the camp residents were much friendlier and agreed to remove the posters.
Ah, the power of beer. I have never understood why beer companies don’t market this….
-In other news, one of the excellent additions to community life this year has been the emergence of poker. To play Texas hold’em, you really need five or more people who are committed to playing – and willing to ante up. This year we have six such bon moun, which has led to some excellent games that extend well past my bedtime. With a 100 gourdes buy-in (about $ 2.50 USD), we have played each of the last three weekends. No one is spectacular, but it has been tremendous fun eating fritay, drinking cokes, and losing money. I have yet to win (I nearly always choke at the end) but I have enjoyed it immensely.
-My book news is not so exciting. I finished Anna Karenina this past weekend, my first completed book in Haiti this year. Next on the list is The Little Prince, which another volunteer claims is one of his favorite books. In truth, there simply just has not been enough time for reading this year…
-In OEA news, the scholarship program continues to grow. To date we have over forty alumni on scholarship and hopefully we will be able to add a few more before the end of the year. The difficulty will be in saying no – we currently have 7 applicants for scholarships, a number that will likely grow in the next few weeks. It is no fun to tell a former student we don’t have the money to give him or her a scholarship…
Importantly, I am no longer alone in the OEA office as I now have a Junior Staff member working for me. Junior Staff are university students who work for LCS and in return receive university scholarships. He is a 2009 graduate of LCS and is studying linguistics at the State University of Haiti – the only government funded university. The earthquake came up during a conversation the other day and he explained that he had morning classes on January 12th and that he had intended to remain at his university until the evening, doing schoolwork. Apparently, he was studying in the library when he became really hungry. Instead of remaining hungry or spending money, he decided that he would just return home and finish his assignments the next day. He was riding a tap-tap home when the earthquake began. What happened to the library at his school? Completely destroyed by the earthquake. In fact, nearly all the buildings of his college (faculté) collapsed. There are separate campuses for the different colleges of the state university, but three of our alumni died at his college. How human beings deal with pain and suffering is truly fascinating. It was through laughter that he explained to me how him hunger had saved him last January…
That’s about it from my end.
Peace.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Tap Taps and Pop Tarts
Life on this beautiful Caribbean island continues unabated as I continue to settle into life as a staff member of The Haitian Project. My new office is set up and running at Manutech - which also happens to be the place where snail mail is sent. Yes, who could have guessed that I would be mimicking my four years as a Notre Dame Library mailman here in Haiti…
Regardless, my job this year has allowed me to interact more with life outside the friendly walls of LCS. This includes meeting with the dean of the private medical school, requesting donations of large sacks to store recyclable plastic, and riding a Tap Tap for the first time! This last accomplishment is easily the most exciting of the three as it is something that I had been waiting over a year to do. In case you do not know, Tap Taps are brightly colored and slightly altered Toyota Pickups that serve as “public” transportation here in Haiti. Tap Taps are privately owned but nearly every member of the public uses one on their way to school, work, or the grocery store. The concept is not unique to Haiti and in many ways they are very similar to boda bodas in Uganda and other forms of “public” transportation throughout the developing world.
Outside of Tap Taps, the most interesting news in Santo has been the appearance of Pop-Tarts near the school. Never before seen, these delicious treats are selling for 7 gourdes a package - 17.5 cents! Incredible, really, considering such items would easily fetch $1.00-1.50 in vending machines in the USA...
But where in the world are they finding Pop Tarts cheap enough that they can sell at record-low prices?? Word on the street is that USAID's food aid program in Haiti includes Pop Tarts, which are kindly being sold to this USA American in need of delectable pastry treats...
In other news, there is a sign for a grocery store near the school that just might be my favorite sign in all of Haiti. It says "More Bread," but in French this translates to "Pain Plus". Makes me smile every day.
Peace
Regardless, my job this year has allowed me to interact more with life outside the friendly walls of LCS. This includes meeting with the dean of the private medical school, requesting donations of large sacks to store recyclable plastic, and riding a Tap Tap for the first time! This last accomplishment is easily the most exciting of the three as it is something that I had been waiting over a year to do. In case you do not know, Tap Taps are brightly colored and slightly altered Toyota Pickups that serve as “public” transportation here in Haiti. Tap Taps are privately owned but nearly every member of the public uses one on their way to school, work, or the grocery store. The concept is not unique to Haiti and in many ways they are very similar to boda bodas in Uganda and other forms of “public” transportation throughout the developing world.
Outside of Tap Taps, the most interesting news in Santo has been the appearance of Pop-Tarts near the school. Never before seen, these delicious treats are selling for 7 gourdes a package - 17.5 cents! Incredible, really, considering such items would easily fetch $1.00-1.50 in vending machines in the USA...
But where in the world are they finding Pop Tarts cheap enough that they can sell at record-low prices?? Word on the street is that USAID's food aid program in Haiti includes Pop Tarts, which are kindly being sold to this USA American in need of delectable pastry treats...
In other news, there is a sign for a grocery store near the school that just might be my favorite sign in all of Haiti. It says "More Bread," but in French this translates to "Pain Plus". Makes me smile every day.
Peace
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Office of External Affairs
Bonjou!
As you might have heard, no longer am I a volunteer with The Haitian Project. Instead, I am now staff, working as the In-Country Director of the Office of External Affairs. My general responsibilities include managing scholarships for alumni, facilitating alumni employment searches, securing in-kind support from the Haitian business community, and any other random task that Mr. Moynihan (THP President) needs completed.
For example, this past week included writing the final report for one of our neighborhood housing projects (we rebuilt the home of one of our cooks - she has worked with LCS for 20 years!) as well as traveling to the largest IDP camp in the country (Petionville Country Club, 54,000 people) to interview a LCS alum for the THP fall newsletter. These tasks are in addition to slowly taking over the office, preparing to hire additional staff, and compiling an alumni database that includes all current alumni. Despite the business, I am very excited about the upcoming year. Even without Wyclef running, it is an important time to be working in Haiti...
Interviewing Mackenzie (the LCS alum who is running all 16 of Catholic Relief Services camps) easily made last Friday my best day. He is intelligent, disciplined, and has the necessary charisma of a terrific leader. Haiti is fortunate to have people like him. He gave me a tour of some of the projects he has been managing, and we ran into another LCS alum from the same promotion (99'). The other alum is now a doctor, having studied medicine in Cuba before returning to Haiti...
As you might have heard, no longer am I a volunteer with The Haitian Project. Instead, I am now staff, working as the In-Country Director of the Office of External Affairs. My general responsibilities include managing scholarships for alumni, facilitating alumni employment searches, securing in-kind support from the Haitian business community, and any other random task that Mr. Moynihan (THP President) needs completed.
For example, this past week included writing the final report for one of our neighborhood housing projects (we rebuilt the home of one of our cooks - she has worked with LCS for 20 years!) as well as traveling to the largest IDP camp in the country (Petionville Country Club, 54,000 people) to interview a LCS alum for the THP fall newsletter. These tasks are in addition to slowly taking over the office, preparing to hire additional staff, and compiling an alumni database that includes all current alumni. Despite the business, I am very excited about the upcoming year. Even without Wyclef running, it is an important time to be working in Haiti...
Interviewing Mackenzie (the LCS alum who is running all 16 of Catholic Relief Services camps) easily made last Friday my best day. He is intelligent, disciplined, and has the necessary charisma of a terrific leader. Haiti is fortunate to have people like him. He gave me a tour of some of the projects he has been managing, and we ran into another LCS alum from the same promotion (99'). The other alum is now a doctor, having studied medicine in Cuba before returning to Haiti...
Sunday, August 15, 2010
CBA Shirt
For those who might be unaware, there is a certain shirt that has been dear to my heart for many years. Ever since I first donned the shirt as a 6th grade basketball player, my "CBA Shirt" has traveled with me. Not all our journeys had the luxury of being photographed, but I have been able to scrape together a few from the archives. Enjoy!
*Columbus, Ohio. Ti Moun. (Summer 2002)
*Chicago, Illinois. High School "Senior trip" (March 2005)
*Washington DC. Iraq War protest (September 2005)
*Crater Lake, Oregon (July 2006)
*Columbus, Ohio. Relaxing with friends (August 2006)
*New Orleans, Louisiana. Gutting a water-damaged home. (October 2006)
*New Orleans. A frontal view. And yes, NOLA mostly killed the CBA shirt...
*LCS, Haiti. Painting (Fall 2009)
*LCS, Haiti. Halloween, as "Rue National 3" (October 2009)
Sadly, I did not bring the shirt to either Uganda or El Salvador. And most sadly, it seems like its final resting place will be the incinerator of Louverture Cleary School, Santo, Hait...
PS. I return to Haiti tomorrow and will be working with The Haitian Project and Louverture Cleary School for what will likely be another challenging yet fruitful year. I promise to update more this year!
*Columbus, Ohio. Ti Moun. (Summer 2002)
*Chicago, Illinois. High School "Senior trip" (March 2005)
*Washington DC. Iraq War protest (September 2005)
*Crater Lake, Oregon (July 2006)
*Columbus, Ohio. Relaxing with friends (August 2006)
*New Orleans, Louisiana. Gutting a water-damaged home. (October 2006)
*New Orleans. A frontal view. And yes, NOLA mostly killed the CBA shirt...
*LCS, Haiti. Painting (Fall 2009)
*LCS, Haiti. Halloween, as "Rue National 3" (October 2009)
Sadly, I did not bring the shirt to either Uganda or El Salvador. And most sadly, it seems like its final resting place will be the incinerator of Louverture Cleary School, Santo, Hait...
PS. I return to Haiti tomorrow and will be working with The Haitian Project and Louverture Cleary School for what will likely be another challenging yet fruitful year. I promise to update more this year!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Pi Day
In honor of the 14th of March (3/14), one of the volunteers who will likely be getting his PH.D in Mathematics very soon decided to have a special math competition and give the winners pieces of mango pie. What a pi bon idea…
Anyway, it has been a while since I last updated. These past few months have been filled with excitement and slow slow days. Below are only samplings…
-A whirlwind of random white people, engineers, doctors, soldiers, LCS alumni, reporters, and other people of note have been filtering in and out of campus. Some of the most entertaining have been the visits by a platoon of the 82nd Airborne of the USA Military. Calling LCS “the oasis,” they would stop by campus during their routine patrols in the Santo region. Most of the soldiers have already served in Iraq and are going to be shipped off to Afghanistan within months.
The first time they came to campus, it was pretty ridiculous. Mr. Moynihan, the president of the project had been driving through Santo and saw the USA military on patrol. Doing the natural thing, he jumped out of the car, found the commander, and invited them all to visit LCS. They arrived to campus with the commander flanking Mr. Moynihan with the rest following on foot, packing their full component of gear. After a few minutes some of the troops noticed some basketballs lying about, set down their very large guns and large backpacks, and began to shoot around. Thinking quickly, I gathered some of our best basketball players at the school and soon enough we had a 5-5 basketball game between our Philo students and 5 of the soldiers. Even with the soldiers using multiple subs, they were clearly outmatched and lost in a rout, 38-15.
Apparently dissatisfied with this result, the soldiers have returned time and time again, sometimes playing basketball while other times playing with some of the timoun (children) from the neighborhood or simply talking with students. During a few of the visits I was able to get in and play, which was pretty enjoyable. They were so young! The commander was a ripe old age of 24 and he was the oldest in the group. Many were in the 18-21 year old range. Craziness….
Through our budding relationship, the military has been able to support LCS in a variety of ways. We have received several shipments of rice from USAID, a steady supply of military MREs (Meals Read to Eat), and they have helped provide logistical support for some of our many work projects throughout the city. Fascinatingly, this is the most interaction I’ve ever had with the USA military. And in Haiti!
-The other major visitor of note (among the hordes) was when Cardinal O’Malley, the Cardinal of Boston, visited LCS on March 2nd. He arrived among an entourage of bishops, priests, and press. It was a hectic morning as one of the volunteers wowed him by making cinnamon rolls from scratch and he took a quick tour of campus, meeting some of our Philo students.
-Outside of visitors, school has been moving closer and closer to normal. LCS never closed following the earthquake, and within a week we were holding educational “classes” for the students at the school. Our numbers have steadily grown as the school day expanded and teachers began returning to teach. We now are teaching almost a full schedule as 300 of the 350 students were on campus during the past week. Now, we are just waiting for the ministry of education to give the green light to reopen schools. The thought is that this will happen soon after Easter, but no one really knows.
My lessons have included a mini-unit on the Rwandan genocide where my class watched Hotel Rwanda to supplement my history lectures. Following these classes, we’ve had some pretty excellent class discussions on the important themes, moments, or ideas presented by this tragic situation. Drawing parallels to Haiti’s history (role of the UN/International community, tensions between ethnic and social groups) these discussions have been enlightening and remarkably intelligent. While not as engrossing, in my Rheto class we have been reading a short story, The Most Dangerous Game, one of my favorites from high school.
-In addition to teaching we have restarted our trash collection/burning program, taking LCS students out on Route National 3 to collect and burn trash. We take plastic bottles and aluminum cans back to campus for our recycling program as well as dig multiple large holes (think 7 feet deep) to bury the unburnable metal, glass, and ash). Reminds me of the good ole days…
I also helped set up six large tents (donated from the Italian military) as temporary classrooms to replace the building we are repairing. While none of our buildings collapsed during the earthquake, two did receive significant damage, damage enough to require major repairs. This has resulted in lost dorm and classroom space. We are converting other buildings to dorm space and we have set up tents on the soccer field as temporary classrooms. Aptly named ‘Europe’, ‘Africa’, ‘Americas’, ect…These tents are an added joy to the craziness of teaching post-earthquake. And as you can imagine, these tents get quite hot around 2:00 pm.
-When I’m not teaching (or burning), outside work projects have been a major part of my life these past few months. These include short projects that last a few hours (burning trash) to week long projects (searching for documents at the Cathedral/Archbishop’s Residency). Here is a smattering:
-Demolition and removal of the Saint Louis de Gonzague wall (February 27-28).
One of the oldest Catholic schools in Haiti, Saint Louis de Gonzague was home to nearly 2,000 students before the earthquake. On January 12th, the school was rocked pretty hard, losing a significant portion of its exterior walls as well as severe damage to multiple buildings on their campus. Located in Delmas, one of the areas most devastated by the earthquake, refugees flocked to the property and it quickly became a refugee camp for over 10,000 people from the surrounding neighborhoods.
Here lies one of the biggest tensions existing in Haiti…What is to be done about the refugee camps? It is true that many many people in Haiti lost their homes and are in need of temporary and eventually permanent places to live. It is also true that many people are simply terrified of buildings, that their homes suffered superficial but not structural damage and that they could safely live in their homes but simply choose not to. Finally, it is true that the situation in Haiti was dire before the earthquake. The living conditions in regions like the sprawling urban slum, Cite Soleil, were atrocious before January 12th. Today, residents are living in “camps” where there is food, shelter, and daily medical services provided by countless NGOs – things they have never had consistent access to in their lives. The final question is: why would anyone leave such a camp?
Refugee camps are not the answer, they are only a temporary solution. And the longer people stay in the camps, the more difficult rebuilding becomes. Saint Louis de Gonzague cannot re-open as a school as long as there are 10,000 people using its grounds as a home. Many Haitians are understandably terrified to go into buildings. We can see this in our students, our teachers, even our staff. Importantly, the longer we go between aftershocks, the better it becomes. Time also helps. But the fear lingers.
Anyways, why do I mention this school? Because LCS has decided to make it a priority to help schools throughout the Port-au-Prince region work towards reopening. Beginning with something tangible and necessary, LCS choose to provide support to the school by fixing one of its exterior walls, securing its property. Without walls, masses of people flow back and forth over property. Sometimes, walls are less for “safety” and more for marking territory (as property rights can be a bit iffy at times here in Haiti…)
Anyway, over a two day period a team from LCS dismantled a 100 yard stretch of fallen concrete wall, loaded the rubble into large trucks, and built a semi-permanent wall of wood and sheet metal. Almost the entire 8 foot high wall had caved in, but it mostly remained intact as a giant slab of concrete. Using our good friend the sledgehammer, we broke the concrete into smaller pieces, chucked those pieces towards the street, and then shoveled and tossed these pieces into the trucks.
It was pretty hard work. Check that. It was extremely hard work. I was as tired as I have been probably since running track (the time I collapsed at the finish line) or playing soccer (pick any number of games/days of conditioning) during high school. By the end of the second day, I could hardly pick up a sledgehammer let alone attack a huge slab of concrete.
Beyond the physical exhaustion, it was extremely satisfying work, partly because it was so tangible. Crushing concrete, shoveling, lifting, building. It all has such a clear beginning and a clear ending. And by the end, it felt like we actually accomplished something. Here was a 100 yard stretch of wall where 48 hours ago there was only rubble…
Also, it gave me a new appreciation for just how much work lies ahead for Haiti, even if we only focus on the task of clearing rubble. Without machines, it took 20 people two full days to complete this task. Craziness…
-Another short, random activity has been burning medical waste at a hospital in downtown Port-au-Prince. This activity occurred only in February, closer to the earthquake when things were still completely ridiculous, as opposed to the usual ridiculousness that exists today. During the earthquake, the hospital (Saint Francois) sustained major damage, with an entire section of the hospital collapsing (its infant ward) with patients and staff still inside. Walking by this rubble was extremely disturbing because it was 3-4 weeks later and the rubble had still not been cleared and the bodies remained inside. It was more a tomb than a functioning hospital.
The hospital was being used as a field hospital with the medical equipment set up outside under make-shift tarps. It was here that LCS helped doctors from numerous medical mission teams (USA volunteers) to serve patients. Current Rheto and Philo students as well as alumni have served for weeks as translators for these doctors. Speaking four languages and being comfortable around white people are two pretty essential skills here in Haiti today.
Another important fact was that the incinerator of the hospital was destroyed during the earthquake and as a result, medical waste began piling up. Rats the size of small puppies were feasting and it was truly a sickening sight. The horrible death toll of the earthquake fights the imagination, but a possible second wave of deaths due to earthquake-related-diseases poses an extremely challenging problem. During these weeks of chaos, LCS was trying to do what it could, and while burning trash is not ideal environmentally, there is no better option available. So, I was part of a group of people (mostly volunteers from LCS) who would come to the hospital and burn medical waste as other organizations were pursuing more long-term solutions (CRS was trying to get a new incinerator, but it was going to take a month…)
I’ve always loved fire, and honestly burning trash is incredibly satisfying. You go to an area that is disgusting and full of trash, you start a fire and you can literally watch as you can physically remove the unwanted items from the environment. (As they say in kreyol: n’ap boule.)
Fun stuff. I just try not to think about all the cancerous fumes I’m inhaling…
-A shorter wall/debris project included clearing rubble from the street leading to the Missionaries of Charity. Mother’s Teresa’s organization has had a presence in Haiti well before the earthquake (LCS students often volunteered at the site before January 12th) and they have continued to serve the poorest of the poor during this crisis. Near the entrance of the compound a wall had fallen and was partially covering the road. A 2-3 lane road had become ¾ of a lane. Cars could pass, but barely. We worked at breaking up the large chunks of block and then sat down and watched as a large Caterpillar machine arrived (A loader) and filled over ten trucks with the materials. I think I prefer those machines to hand shovels…
I really enjoy these outside projects. They give me an opportunity to interact with the Haiti that everyone reads about in the news. Life on the campus of LCS just doesn’t match this reality.
-Another important set of projects has been rebuilding houses in our neighborhood. As part of LCS’ relief effort, we are rebuilding and repairing homes for people in our surrounding neighborhood as well as those in nearby neighborhoods that are affiliated with the project. As a result, I have helped in this process at random, whether it was helping to set up the foundation of a temporary tent shelter, or helping to distribute donations from the Colombian Red Cross. (Trust me, there were jokes about the farine, the flour, tasting extra good…) More than participating, it has been fun just to be an observer in this entire process.
-Finally, the most intense outside project by far was the week I spent working at the Cathedral and Archbishop’s residency. Beginning a little less than three weeks after the earthquake, this project is difficult to describe. Looking like a war zone, the residency (a four story building) was reduced to an incoherent pile of rubble. The Cathedral, with its four exterior walls still standing, had its entire roof cave in. It looked like a destroyed Cathedral in Europe post World War II…
It was probably one of the most challenging, frustrating and rewarding experiences of my time in Haiti. To properly understand the situation, some context is needed:
First, the earthquake devastated the Catholic Church in Haiti. The top four Haitian church officials perished during the quake (including the archbishop) in four separate locations. Churches throughout the country, particularly in the downtown were destroyed. The Cathedral as well as the residency of the Archbishop were in ruins, with the other nearby buildings being completely unusable. Knowing this conceptually is very different from being there physically amongst the ruins.
Our work was concentrated on the Archbishop’s residency, searching for items that were of practical and historical importance to the church. The Catholic Church is the largest land owner in Haiti, so we were looking for title deeds, marriage records, and financial transaction papers. We were also looking for the personal effects of the bishop and other items relevant to the history of the church in Haiti. Our role expanded as we spent more time at the site as we helped to shift rubble, save paintings from the Cathedral, and completely clean out the destroyed/ransacked sacristy. I’ve never had an experience like it in my life.
I was worried that pictures would never do justice to the sight and experiences of the cathedral but fortunately I was wrong. Betsy (another volunteer) is an expert photographer and during her short visit to the site she was able to capture some great shots. I have more photos, but perhaps this gives you a taste of the experience…
-Just so you know that it has not been all work and no play, there have been some breaks. The week of carnival is generally an important party week in Haiti. This year it was not celebrated as usual, but the volunteers were able to spend 3 days in the mountains south of Port-au-Prince relaxing and taking some time to reflect on our experiences. It was incredible and very much needed. Beautiful mountains, delicious food, a relaxing atmosphere. It was an incredible reliever of stress in the aftermath of the earthquake. Though Belo was closer to the epicenter of the quake, there was significantly less damage up in the mountains. I imagine it has to do with a larger vertical distance from the quake, but I don’t really fully understand the science. Would anyone care to explain?
-Also, I have had more free time this semester. When I am working off campus I am very busy. However, the majority of my time is spent on campus as a teacher. And because we are doing “para-curricular activities” and the fact that we have not yet divided Rheto or Philo back into two sections (I usually teach 4 sections 5x a week, but I’ve only been teaching 2 5x), I have a bit of time. I was able to finish War and Peace, which was one of my major non-academic goals this semester. Crime and Punishment is the next classic within my sights…
-Finally, it is nearly spring break! Soon we will be traveling to the “other” side of the island, La Republica Dominicana for our week of break. Besides enjoying myself, I am trying to mentally prepare for the “culture shock” of traveling to a country that shares the same island as Haiti but was over 6 times as wealthy before the earthquake. Digging deeper will be fascinating as I sit on a beach for the first time in the Caribbean…
-Before I go, I want to leave you with a happy note: It’s Mango season! Delicious fruit just falls from the sky (sometimes with a little help…) Did you know that there are many different kinds of mangoes? Some the students love (they almost battle for them), others they basically hate (they won’t touch the mangos from a certain tree). It’s a fascinating and delicious feast.
That’s all for now. I hope you enjoy these photos…
*beautiful picture of Belo
*Me outside the Cathedral carrying documents
*Cathedral
*Me inside the cathedral saving a painting.
*Inside the Cathedral.
Anyway, it has been a while since I last updated. These past few months have been filled with excitement and slow slow days. Below are only samplings…
-A whirlwind of random white people, engineers, doctors, soldiers, LCS alumni, reporters, and other people of note have been filtering in and out of campus. Some of the most entertaining have been the visits by a platoon of the 82nd Airborne of the USA Military. Calling LCS “the oasis,” they would stop by campus during their routine patrols in the Santo region. Most of the soldiers have already served in Iraq and are going to be shipped off to Afghanistan within months.
The first time they came to campus, it was pretty ridiculous. Mr. Moynihan, the president of the project had been driving through Santo and saw the USA military on patrol. Doing the natural thing, he jumped out of the car, found the commander, and invited them all to visit LCS. They arrived to campus with the commander flanking Mr. Moynihan with the rest following on foot, packing their full component of gear. After a few minutes some of the troops noticed some basketballs lying about, set down their very large guns and large backpacks, and began to shoot around. Thinking quickly, I gathered some of our best basketball players at the school and soon enough we had a 5-5 basketball game between our Philo students and 5 of the soldiers. Even with the soldiers using multiple subs, they were clearly outmatched and lost in a rout, 38-15.
Apparently dissatisfied with this result, the soldiers have returned time and time again, sometimes playing basketball while other times playing with some of the timoun (children) from the neighborhood or simply talking with students. During a few of the visits I was able to get in and play, which was pretty enjoyable. They were so young! The commander was a ripe old age of 24 and he was the oldest in the group. Many were in the 18-21 year old range. Craziness….
Through our budding relationship, the military has been able to support LCS in a variety of ways. We have received several shipments of rice from USAID, a steady supply of military MREs (Meals Read to Eat), and they have helped provide logistical support for some of our many work projects throughout the city. Fascinatingly, this is the most interaction I’ve ever had with the USA military. And in Haiti!
-The other major visitor of note (among the hordes) was when Cardinal O’Malley, the Cardinal of Boston, visited LCS on March 2nd. He arrived among an entourage of bishops, priests, and press. It was a hectic morning as one of the volunteers wowed him by making cinnamon rolls from scratch and he took a quick tour of campus, meeting some of our Philo students.
-Outside of visitors, school has been moving closer and closer to normal. LCS never closed following the earthquake, and within a week we were holding educational “classes” for the students at the school. Our numbers have steadily grown as the school day expanded and teachers began returning to teach. We now are teaching almost a full schedule as 300 of the 350 students were on campus during the past week. Now, we are just waiting for the ministry of education to give the green light to reopen schools. The thought is that this will happen soon after Easter, but no one really knows.
My lessons have included a mini-unit on the Rwandan genocide where my class watched Hotel Rwanda to supplement my history lectures. Following these classes, we’ve had some pretty excellent class discussions on the important themes, moments, or ideas presented by this tragic situation. Drawing parallels to Haiti’s history (role of the UN/International community, tensions between ethnic and social groups) these discussions have been enlightening and remarkably intelligent. While not as engrossing, in my Rheto class we have been reading a short story, The Most Dangerous Game, one of my favorites from high school.
-In addition to teaching we have restarted our trash collection/burning program, taking LCS students out on Route National 3 to collect and burn trash. We take plastic bottles and aluminum cans back to campus for our recycling program as well as dig multiple large holes (think 7 feet deep) to bury the unburnable metal, glass, and ash). Reminds me of the good ole days…
I also helped set up six large tents (donated from the Italian military) as temporary classrooms to replace the building we are repairing. While none of our buildings collapsed during the earthquake, two did receive significant damage, damage enough to require major repairs. This has resulted in lost dorm and classroom space. We are converting other buildings to dorm space and we have set up tents on the soccer field as temporary classrooms. Aptly named ‘Europe’, ‘Africa’, ‘Americas’, ect…These tents are an added joy to the craziness of teaching post-earthquake. And as you can imagine, these tents get quite hot around 2:00 pm.
-When I’m not teaching (or burning), outside work projects have been a major part of my life these past few months. These include short projects that last a few hours (burning trash) to week long projects (searching for documents at the Cathedral/Archbishop’s Residency). Here is a smattering:
-Demolition and removal of the Saint Louis de Gonzague wall (February 27-28).
One of the oldest Catholic schools in Haiti, Saint Louis de Gonzague was home to nearly 2,000 students before the earthquake. On January 12th, the school was rocked pretty hard, losing a significant portion of its exterior walls as well as severe damage to multiple buildings on their campus. Located in Delmas, one of the areas most devastated by the earthquake, refugees flocked to the property and it quickly became a refugee camp for over 10,000 people from the surrounding neighborhoods.
Here lies one of the biggest tensions existing in Haiti…What is to be done about the refugee camps? It is true that many many people in Haiti lost their homes and are in need of temporary and eventually permanent places to live. It is also true that many people are simply terrified of buildings, that their homes suffered superficial but not structural damage and that they could safely live in their homes but simply choose not to. Finally, it is true that the situation in Haiti was dire before the earthquake. The living conditions in regions like the sprawling urban slum, Cite Soleil, were atrocious before January 12th. Today, residents are living in “camps” where there is food, shelter, and daily medical services provided by countless NGOs – things they have never had consistent access to in their lives. The final question is: why would anyone leave such a camp?
Refugee camps are not the answer, they are only a temporary solution. And the longer people stay in the camps, the more difficult rebuilding becomes. Saint Louis de Gonzague cannot re-open as a school as long as there are 10,000 people using its grounds as a home. Many Haitians are understandably terrified to go into buildings. We can see this in our students, our teachers, even our staff. Importantly, the longer we go between aftershocks, the better it becomes. Time also helps. But the fear lingers.
Anyways, why do I mention this school? Because LCS has decided to make it a priority to help schools throughout the Port-au-Prince region work towards reopening. Beginning with something tangible and necessary, LCS choose to provide support to the school by fixing one of its exterior walls, securing its property. Without walls, masses of people flow back and forth over property. Sometimes, walls are less for “safety” and more for marking territory (as property rights can be a bit iffy at times here in Haiti…)
Anyway, over a two day period a team from LCS dismantled a 100 yard stretch of fallen concrete wall, loaded the rubble into large trucks, and built a semi-permanent wall of wood and sheet metal. Almost the entire 8 foot high wall had caved in, but it mostly remained intact as a giant slab of concrete. Using our good friend the sledgehammer, we broke the concrete into smaller pieces, chucked those pieces towards the street, and then shoveled and tossed these pieces into the trucks.
It was pretty hard work. Check that. It was extremely hard work. I was as tired as I have been probably since running track (the time I collapsed at the finish line) or playing soccer (pick any number of games/days of conditioning) during high school. By the end of the second day, I could hardly pick up a sledgehammer let alone attack a huge slab of concrete.
Beyond the physical exhaustion, it was extremely satisfying work, partly because it was so tangible. Crushing concrete, shoveling, lifting, building. It all has such a clear beginning and a clear ending. And by the end, it felt like we actually accomplished something. Here was a 100 yard stretch of wall where 48 hours ago there was only rubble…
Also, it gave me a new appreciation for just how much work lies ahead for Haiti, even if we only focus on the task of clearing rubble. Without machines, it took 20 people two full days to complete this task. Craziness…
-Another short, random activity has been burning medical waste at a hospital in downtown Port-au-Prince. This activity occurred only in February, closer to the earthquake when things were still completely ridiculous, as opposed to the usual ridiculousness that exists today. During the earthquake, the hospital (Saint Francois) sustained major damage, with an entire section of the hospital collapsing (its infant ward) with patients and staff still inside. Walking by this rubble was extremely disturbing because it was 3-4 weeks later and the rubble had still not been cleared and the bodies remained inside. It was more a tomb than a functioning hospital.
The hospital was being used as a field hospital with the medical equipment set up outside under make-shift tarps. It was here that LCS helped doctors from numerous medical mission teams (USA volunteers) to serve patients. Current Rheto and Philo students as well as alumni have served for weeks as translators for these doctors. Speaking four languages and being comfortable around white people are two pretty essential skills here in Haiti today.
Another important fact was that the incinerator of the hospital was destroyed during the earthquake and as a result, medical waste began piling up. Rats the size of small puppies were feasting and it was truly a sickening sight. The horrible death toll of the earthquake fights the imagination, but a possible second wave of deaths due to earthquake-related-diseases poses an extremely challenging problem. During these weeks of chaos, LCS was trying to do what it could, and while burning trash is not ideal environmentally, there is no better option available. So, I was part of a group of people (mostly volunteers from LCS) who would come to the hospital and burn medical waste as other organizations were pursuing more long-term solutions (CRS was trying to get a new incinerator, but it was going to take a month…)
I’ve always loved fire, and honestly burning trash is incredibly satisfying. You go to an area that is disgusting and full of trash, you start a fire and you can literally watch as you can physically remove the unwanted items from the environment. (As they say in kreyol: n’ap boule.)
Fun stuff. I just try not to think about all the cancerous fumes I’m inhaling…
-A shorter wall/debris project included clearing rubble from the street leading to the Missionaries of Charity. Mother’s Teresa’s organization has had a presence in Haiti well before the earthquake (LCS students often volunteered at the site before January 12th) and they have continued to serve the poorest of the poor during this crisis. Near the entrance of the compound a wall had fallen and was partially covering the road. A 2-3 lane road had become ¾ of a lane. Cars could pass, but barely. We worked at breaking up the large chunks of block and then sat down and watched as a large Caterpillar machine arrived (A loader) and filled over ten trucks with the materials. I think I prefer those machines to hand shovels…
I really enjoy these outside projects. They give me an opportunity to interact with the Haiti that everyone reads about in the news. Life on the campus of LCS just doesn’t match this reality.
-Another important set of projects has been rebuilding houses in our neighborhood. As part of LCS’ relief effort, we are rebuilding and repairing homes for people in our surrounding neighborhood as well as those in nearby neighborhoods that are affiliated with the project. As a result, I have helped in this process at random, whether it was helping to set up the foundation of a temporary tent shelter, or helping to distribute donations from the Colombian Red Cross. (Trust me, there were jokes about the farine, the flour, tasting extra good…) More than participating, it has been fun just to be an observer in this entire process.
-Finally, the most intense outside project by far was the week I spent working at the Cathedral and Archbishop’s residency. Beginning a little less than three weeks after the earthquake, this project is difficult to describe. Looking like a war zone, the residency (a four story building) was reduced to an incoherent pile of rubble. The Cathedral, with its four exterior walls still standing, had its entire roof cave in. It looked like a destroyed Cathedral in Europe post World War II…
It was probably one of the most challenging, frustrating and rewarding experiences of my time in Haiti. To properly understand the situation, some context is needed:
First, the earthquake devastated the Catholic Church in Haiti. The top four Haitian church officials perished during the quake (including the archbishop) in four separate locations. Churches throughout the country, particularly in the downtown were destroyed. The Cathedral as well as the residency of the Archbishop were in ruins, with the other nearby buildings being completely unusable. Knowing this conceptually is very different from being there physically amongst the ruins.
Our work was concentrated on the Archbishop’s residency, searching for items that were of practical and historical importance to the church. The Catholic Church is the largest land owner in Haiti, so we were looking for title deeds, marriage records, and financial transaction papers. We were also looking for the personal effects of the bishop and other items relevant to the history of the church in Haiti. Our role expanded as we spent more time at the site as we helped to shift rubble, save paintings from the Cathedral, and completely clean out the destroyed/ransacked sacristy. I’ve never had an experience like it in my life.
I was worried that pictures would never do justice to the sight and experiences of the cathedral but fortunately I was wrong. Betsy (another volunteer) is an expert photographer and during her short visit to the site she was able to capture some great shots. I have more photos, but perhaps this gives you a taste of the experience…
-Just so you know that it has not been all work and no play, there have been some breaks. The week of carnival is generally an important party week in Haiti. This year it was not celebrated as usual, but the volunteers were able to spend 3 days in the mountains south of Port-au-Prince relaxing and taking some time to reflect on our experiences. It was incredible and very much needed. Beautiful mountains, delicious food, a relaxing atmosphere. It was an incredible reliever of stress in the aftermath of the earthquake. Though Belo was closer to the epicenter of the quake, there was significantly less damage up in the mountains. I imagine it has to do with a larger vertical distance from the quake, but I don’t really fully understand the science. Would anyone care to explain?
-Also, I have had more free time this semester. When I am working off campus I am very busy. However, the majority of my time is spent on campus as a teacher. And because we are doing “para-curricular activities” and the fact that we have not yet divided Rheto or Philo back into two sections (I usually teach 4 sections 5x a week, but I’ve only been teaching 2 5x), I have a bit of time. I was able to finish War and Peace, which was one of my major non-academic goals this semester. Crime and Punishment is the next classic within my sights…
-Finally, it is nearly spring break! Soon we will be traveling to the “other” side of the island, La Republica Dominicana for our week of break. Besides enjoying myself, I am trying to mentally prepare for the “culture shock” of traveling to a country that shares the same island as Haiti but was over 6 times as wealthy before the earthquake. Digging deeper will be fascinating as I sit on a beach for the first time in the Caribbean…
-Before I go, I want to leave you with a happy note: It’s Mango season! Delicious fruit just falls from the sky (sometimes with a little help…) Did you know that there are many different kinds of mangoes? Some the students love (they almost battle for them), others they basically hate (they won’t touch the mangos from a certain tree). It’s a fascinating and delicious feast.
That’s all for now. I hope you enjoy these photos…
*beautiful picture of Belo
*Me outside the Cathedral carrying documents
*Cathedral
*Me inside the cathedral saving a painting.
*Inside the Cathedral.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Why do the walls look like they are going to hit my face?
As you might have heard, life here in Haiti has changed drastically over the past few weeks. It has been a while since my last update so let us catch up…
My time in the USA over Christmas was relaxing and rejuvenating, as I was able to eat massive quantities of chocolate, sleep later than 7:00 AM, visit family and friends, and watch a snowstorm bury one of my fund-raising plans. I was able to speak at my former grade school, Immaculate Conception, and they were supportive, offering to organize a book drive for LCS.
My much-anticipated return to Haiti occurred Sunday January 10th. The trip included traveling through a frigid Miami airport, which lacks a heating system to accommodate the abnormal 35-degree weather. Unfortunately, my checked bags did not arrive in Port-au-Prince with me and I spent the rest of Sunday and Monday returning to the airport in attempts to find my bags. Monday was the first day of school and I finally got my bags, signaling a seemingly normal beginning to the rest of the school year.
Tuesday was an excellent day in the classroom. I started a two-week unit on the Civil Rights Movement and race relations in the United States, beginning with speeches by Martin Luther King Jr. (I Have a Dream and I’ve Been to the Mountaintop) and ending with Barack Obama’s speech on race from his presidential campaign. Over Christmas, I had procured audio and text copies of the speeches so that my students not only could read them, but listen to them as well. Tuesday, I gave the historical background of the movement, provided context for MLK’s speech, and even began watching the speech in one of my classes (one section, Rheto A meets 3 times on Tuesday). The students were very responsive and loved hearing MLK’s voice. He is a tremendous speaker, a skill that seems to cross cultural and linguistic barriers. Not one of my students had ever actually heard him speak, something that certainly brightened my day.
Following classes, we had Netwayage (the cleaning of the school and the picking up of trash in the neighborhood and along Route National 3). It was my day off, so I read upstairs in the administration building during this time. Around 4:30, I went downstairs to the kitchen to begin cooking dinner with another one of the volunteers, Corey. Putting a large pot of water to boil on the stove, I began peeling potatoes alongside Corey next to the sink. It was around 4:45.
The first thing I noticed was an astonishingly loud noise. It sounded like a train wreck, a massive truck ramming into a building, or an airplane crashing (I have not actually heard any of these, but I have nothing to compare it with). Building off the sound was the sensation that the wall in front of me appeared to be moving towards my face. Disorienting shaking enveloped me as I dropped the potato peeler and clutched the sink, asking the stupid question, “What is going on?” Corey, who had experienced earthquakes before, knew exactly what it was and yelled “earthquake!” The shaking got progressively stronger and without thinking, we both bolted to the nearby door. Pots, plates, chairs, tables, everything was falling down. Pushing, the door did not budge, and as I turned around, I watched as our massive pot of boiling water (a pot big enough to cook food for 25 people) was thrown to the ground, spilling boiling water in all directions. There was a tiny bit of oil mixed with water (we add oil to the water before we boil it) that fell from the pot, causing a temporary flare up from the burner before it settled back down. After momentary confusion, Corey and I both forced our brains to work and realized that we had to pull the door, not push it. Standing in the now open doorway between the building and outside, we waited for the shaking to stop. I had to constantly brace myself against the wall to prevent myself from falling.
When the shaking finally stopped, we both immediately rushed out to check on the kids. Corey ran to turn off the burner and continued through the building, while I went out the back door. The immediate sounds will always linger in my memory, the terrified screams of the students and our neighbors.
Running towards a group of students, I looked to my left and saw that the front wall of the school had collapsed out into the street. This was the first moment that I realized some of the screaming was not just shock and fear, but actual pain and physical trauma. Ingrained in my memory is the image of Patrick Faustin, our head of maintenance and the Haitian I would most trust in a moment of crisis, sprinting full speed carrying a girl in his arms, covered in blood. I immediately began sprinting towards where they came from, the soccer field/playground. Once on the soccer field, I saw two small students carrying a screaming, apparently injured, student. I rushed over to them, grabbed the student and rushed to the front of the school. Along the way I saw two of my larger male Philo students looking like they wanted to help and I sent them to the playground to look for more injured students.
The response of the staff at LCS was undeniably impressive. Within 10 minutes of the earthquake a truck carrying all the injured students had left for the nearby medical clinic. A section of the wall by the soccer field had fallen, as had one by the playground. Students had apparently been sitting near or against the playground wall when the earthquake occurred, and the wall had fallen on those who had serious injuries. Fortunately, none of the injuries were too severe, nothing close to life threatening...
Most of the students were here on campus that Tuesday; however, one of my Rheto students was at home when the earthquake occurred. His house collapsed due to the force of the quake, with the falling ceiling being stopped by his bed only inches from his head. There was still a tiny path to safety and he followed his cat, crawling towards the light to leave the house. Days later, he came to LCS and told me his story, showing me the injuries on his leg, head, and shoulder…
Returning to Tuesday afternoon – the staff worked quickly to herd all the students to the basketball court and I did a quick search/sprint around campus to make sure that there were no students hiding injured somewhere.
One of the most striking visual images during those frantic moments occurred while running by the drinking water spigot. Located near the cafeteria, there are two gigantic 500-gallon water containers that our electric pump fills with clean drinkable water. However, during the earthquake, the connecting pipes had become detached and water was gushing out, overflowing the basin and creating a growing pool on the ground below. The sound of uncontrollable gushing water was a striking and haunting testimony to the power of the quake. In addition, the basketball hoops (backboards included) on the playground were no longer attached. It appeared as if a giant had plucked each off the hoop's base and gently set it down on the ground, over 10 feet away near the foul line. Unnerving and surreal to say the least.
Returning to the front basketball court, I was greeted by the wails of crying students and the tears of people from the neighborhood rushing into the school.
We at LCS were extremely fortunate in many ways. None of our buildings collapsed (two did receive insignificant structural damage and we will have to rebuild some interior walls as well as the supporting columns of our walking bridge) and none of our students were killed or seriously injured.
During this time of crisis, where did the leadership come from? Our vice-principal, Zamy, stepped up into the void. Addressing the students on the basketball court, Zamy was the rock that attempted to contain an overflowing river.
Meanwhile, I was running in circles, trying to guide the students to the court and doing whatever I could to provide some sense of comfort and stability. As you can imagine, my attempts were not very successful. I tried to enlist the support of some of my Philo students to help calm the younger kids, but almost all the students were too shaken to be of much comfort to others. Their thoughts began to move beyond themselves and their fear grew as worries about their family and friends increased.
On the front basketball court, we had our first of many aftershocks. It was a big one (read, I almost fell over) and any comfort and stability we had attempted to provide was completely obliterated in that moment. Fear took over and it remains one of our biggest adversaries today. Zamy held himself together remarkably well and was able to move the students to the safest place we could think of, the center of the soccer field away from buildings and trees.
On the soccer field, news from the city began trickling in. Parents arrived, checking on their children and bringing news from home. It is not possible to adequately describe the emotions of that evening as darkness fell. Fear, anxiety, helplessness, sadness, anger, frustration, and fatigue all melded amidst the whirlwind of activities.
We did successfully feed the students that night, serving the “la bwi” that the cooks had been making when the quake occurred. In addition, we brought mattresses out to the students so they could sleep on the field, stopped the flow of gushing water, and did our best to provide comfort and support to those who were suffering all around us.
It was a very difficult situation personally because every Haitian there feared for their families and friends while I knew most of my family and friends were safe, in a country far away. We all physically shared the experience of the earthquake, but I simply could not comprehend how they were struggling emotionally and psychologically…
One of our maintenance guys, Benoit, came through that night. He rigged up a series of lights and ran an extension cord from a nearby building so that there was electricity on the field. This was actually one of the most amazing things – the solar power survived the earthquake with little or no damage.
Speaking of solar power, here is a great picture of me cleaning a solar panel in the aftermath of the earthquake: http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2010/01/19/2178696.aspx
So, yes, we had electricity that night. Everyone slept on the soccer field, including the volunteers, students, and Haitian staff. We wheeled over the TV (on a cart) from the library and watched movie after movie until morning. Sleep was a rare prize as the aftershocks and tremors continued throughout the night. Feeling multiple earthquakes while lying flat on my back was certainly an “is this really happening” experience. In fact, much of Tuesday brought that question to mind.
Tuesday from 5:00 PM until bedtime on Wednesday was the longest 32 hours of my life. My journey home from Uganda was a close second, but nothing can match this. I hope nothing ever does.
Beginning Tuesday evening, the volunteers and staff went about attempting to secure things that are essential to life at LCS: food, water, diesel, natural gas, and communication with the USA.
To address food, we cooked two meals each day to feed the 316 students, staff, and neighborhood residents. When we took an inventory of our food supplies, we were pleasantly surprised. I did not realize the reason until later, but we had roughly a two-week supply of food for 400 people. Why did we have so much food? Well, it was the second day of school in a month that followed a long break. LCS had used the break to stock up for the coming semester, resulting in ample supplies of rice, beans, spaghetti, and other essentials.
Water was a larger issue because the pump was initially not working (the piping was damaged by the quake). By the end of Tuesday, we ran out of water in the large 500-gallon blue containers that store drinkable water. However, through the help of James, Samuel, Corey, and me, we reconnected pipes and were able to get the water system working again by late Wednesday morning. Important to the functionality of our pump is electric power and the solar panels performed marvelously in this respect. I have always been very thankful for their existence, but this disaster made them absolutely essential to the existence of the school.
Tuesday night we moved barrels of diesel from the front of the school (next to the broken wall) to the Moynihan house across the street. In addition, we determined that a gas line in the school kitchen had broken and we took the full gas containers to the staff and Moynihan kitchens in order to prepare meals.
Communication with the USA came Wednesday evening, when our rear neighbors – behind the walls by the soccer field/playground – offered to let us use their internet. They are a religious NGO that runs a nearby orphanage and actually had a high school mission group visiting when the earthquake occurred. The kids were stuck in the country for nearly a week before they were able to make it home.
In addition to logistics, we also cooked food for the entire community. Inexperienced at cooking massive quantities on small stoves, it took us four hours (9-1) to cook spaghetti for the 316 students and 20 staff members. In addition, it took us nearly as long to cook a delicious dinner of rice and beans. Industrial quantity cooking in small pots is no joke...
Some stark memories of Wednesday remain. The refugee camp look and feel of the soccer field/playground. The mattresses and sheets set up to form makeshift tents in order to protect students from direct sunlight. The overwhelming stench of urine. Kids were too frightened to enter buildings, even to use the bathroom, so they were just peeing anywhere, hence the smell. Trash was everywhere. It was truly a depressing, overwhelming, incomprehensible sight.
Wednesday night we slept in the Moynihan house for the first time, completely drained and exhausted. A friend of the project from the Haitian business community arrived Tuesday night and his presence had an unbelievably calming effect on the volunteers and staff. He checked in several times again on Wednesday, and he was extremely supportive throughout the crisis.
Thursday was a new day and we began rebuilding. Zamy organized Netwayage and no longer did the soccer field/playground have the look of a dilapidated refugee camp. Trash disappeared and slowly the smell of urine dissipated.
Removing physical and visual reminders of the earthquake became a way to psychologically cope with the situation. Whether it was cleaning up a broken flower pot, putting my room back together, or removing rubble, these were incredibly uplifting experiences.
In addition, on Thursday many of the Haitian staff were able to physically begin moving beyond their personal suffering and started providing support for operating the school. In particular, Bellegarde and Stecy were saviors as they helped with the cooking of “Haitian” food. We had already made spaghetti as well as beans and rice, but our meals were noticeably not “Haitian”. The students and staff were very appreciative of the Haitian staff’s efforts to make real Haitian food.
I could not have lasted too many more Wednesdays but Thursday turned an obtuse, unmanageable, and highly stressful situation into a demanding but ultimately doable problem. There were answers and we finally had the resources to provide them without destroying ourselves physically and mentally.
Routines began to form, although the kids continued to sleep and basically live on the field throughout the following week. Cooking became our life and it was a satisfying life in many ways. Word was that Mr. Moynihan was trying to arrive as soon as possible but there was no confirmation on when he would be able to get into the country. American Airlines had stopped all flights and it was a pretty complex and challenging puzzle to find a way into the country. We joked about Mr. Moynihan swimming to Haiti…
We knew from our phone call with the USA on Tuesday that the earthquake was international news and our parents had been contacted, but we did not know the scope of the event. However, bits and pieces of news did trickle in from the radio and staff members over the next few days.
News that buildings throughout the country had collapsed shocked us. Things like the National Palace, the UN headquarters, the Caribbean Market (the nicest grocery store in the country, we had shopped there several times last semester), several hotels we had visited – all collapsed during the earthquake. The universities that many of our junior staff attend are broken and unusable. The ministry of justice building and the national prison – gone.
It was only when Elissa returned from the neighbors Wednesday afternoon that I realized the scope of the disaster. She saw on the internet that early reports indicated that between 100-200 thousand people died during the earthquake. Shocked, dismayed, and confused, this number vastly exceeded even my worst estimates.
It seems clear today that the earthquake is threatening to break the spirit of the Haitian people. Some of the most intelligent, capable, confident Haitians that I know have returned from the city devastated and in shock. One member of the Haitian staff, who is incredibly intelligent and typically has a very positive attitude, spoke in despair upon returning, remarking: “Haiti is dead.” Attitudes have improved over the last week and life continues, but it certainly has been drastically altered for our entire community. Yet, somehow, hope remains. Despite the severity of the death and destruction, our community, staff, and students are persevering.
Friday, Patrick Moynihan finally returned, having flown to the Dominican Republic, prepared to take a helicopter to Haiti. Instead, he was able to finagle himself into a private jet alongside two journalists (a Swedish television reporter and a German journalist from Der Spiegel.) Patrick brought a comforting presence to the situation and things have continued to stabilize since his arrival. Over the past week, we have been able to secure our food supplies, fix the gas leak in the kitchen, and bring our cooks back. We have also begun structured activities for the students, including half days of “school”. The national government has canceled school for the month, releasing our teachers from their obligation to teach. However, the volunteers and staff have been holding classes, though they are much more informal than before. The number of students on campus has consistently dropped, especially following the return of classes. We were down to 100 on Friday and only around 60 remained this past weekend (23-24). I am hopeful that more will return this afternoon.
Have I mentioned the aftershocks? Yes, these “minor” earthquakes have been happening ever since the initial quake. I have probably felt somewhere between 30-40 of these “fun” jolts of energy. They range from shaking entire buildings to being indistinguishable from the window rattling caused by USA army helicopters and massive transport planes. Regardless, each one reminds us of that catastrophic day. Aftershocks are pretty devastating psychologically for the students and many of the staff, uncontrollably bringing memories of the terror and destruction into the physical reality of the present.
Sunday was a day of rest and we took a day-trip to the mountains south of Port-au-Prince. On the way, we glimpsed some of the devastation in Delmar and Petionville. Crushed buildings, rubble everywhere, makeshift refugee camps in open fields and parks. Certainly not an easy drive.
The reality of the news media in Haiti has been at times both fascinating and frustrating. There seems to be enormous interest in the situation across the world, which can be a good thing as it brings aid and support to people in desperate need. However, there is also the risk that the situation on the ground is not accurately represented and isolated incidents are extrapolated into inaccurate generalized statements. Importantly, news organizations and journalists often look for a particular story that fits into a preconceived box rather than reporting as objectively as they can. I won’t mention any specific organizations, but there have been a number that either I personally witnessed or I learned about through others...
I have only read a few news articles but my Dad continues to send me ones that mention LCS and journalists continue to swarm the country alongside the NGOs and other aid organizations. The Swedish journalist who arrived alongside Patrick later did a story about rebuilding in Haiti. He focused on LCS and our students, videotaping them playing basketball and moving the fallen concrete blocks away from the broken walls.
Moving these blocks was actually one of the most satisfying moments of the entire week. Grabbing some of the Philo students, as well as anyone else who wanted to help, we moved all of the large concrete blocks away from the walls and stacked them in orderly piles alongside one of the walls still standing. Man, those things were heavy. The blocks will eventually be crushed (perhaps reused?) but they needed to be moved. They needed to be moved because the fallen walls were tangible and visible reminders of the earthquake. In my experience, one of the most important steps to recovery is returning the campus and our living situation to as close to normal as we can. Something as simple as cleaning up a flowerpot obliterated by the earthquake has tremendous psychological benefits. It has been my goal to try to eliminate as many earthquake reminders as I can. The added benefit of moving rubble was the involvement of my students. They were ready to work, they desperately needed to work. It was a way for them to begin to move past the trauma of the earthquake, for them to physically begin fixing what was in disorder and to regain control over a seemingly intractable situation.
I continue to be impressed by our students as they have traveled through the city to help in relief efforts. Groups of students have helped in the wound clinic of the Missionaries of Charity, translated for Jamaican doctors at another medical clinic, and cleared out a warehouse that will be used for storing medical supplies. A supporter of the project from the Haitian business community offered the Red Cross/Red Crescent warehouses and buildings to set up their base of operations. Nearby, my students, young men from Santo 5, and myself helped to clear out one of the warehouses so that Catholic Relief Services (CRS) could use it as a supply depot for food and logistics. We finally finished Saturday (23rd), after days of carrying merchandise, removing items from the walls, and moving very heavy furniture. The work was extremely satisfying and it feels invigorating finally to be able to physically contribute to ameliorating the situation. Every little bit helps.
Speaking of journalists, there should be articles in the Wall Street Journal and Der Spiegel on Monday (1/25) about LCS. Patrick has been making contacts like he usually does and he was able to convince journalists from both newspapers that LCS was THE story about rebuilding in Haiti. Clause (I’m actually not sure how to spell his name), the German reporter, was quite impressive. He is one of Der Spiegel's USA correspondents and he is apparently a pretty big deal in Germany. He has written five books (one has been translated to English) and Der Spiegel is one of the best news magazines in Europe (easily the best in Germany). He compared it to Time, Newsweek, and the Economist. Not a bad peer group…
Anyway, they followed Patrick around for much of the week and asked us all questions. I’m not sure if I will make it into the stories, but LCS will certainly feature prominently. Pretty neat really.
One of the interesting things that never really understood before is how a massive influx of foreigners affects a country with a poor infrastructure like Haiti. There are only select roads that are paved and the massive growth of foreigners (NGOs, aid organizations, journalists) by the airport has turned that zone into an almost impassable area. Unfortunately for us, the airport is between LCS and Port-au-Prince. The first few days after aid began arriving, we suffered through god-awful traffic. A 20-minute drive became 2 or 3 hours. Recently, to avoid the brunt of the traffic we have been taking back roads down to the river, driving across it with our Land Cruiser. Fortunately, it’s the dry season and the river actually looks like a medium sized stream. My heart always races each time we cross it, but we have made six successful crossings thus far!
Life in general, is good. Things are certainly different and there is a host of new challenges, but moving forward to meet these challenges is the purpose of LCS. I want to thank everyone for their support; it has certainly been helpful in these trying times.
Over Christmas, I had these grand ideas of bringing large quantities of new and better books to improve the LCS curriculum. Well, the earthquake has completely transformed the reality on the ground and honestly, money for food, for building repairs, for wall construction, for rebuilding the neighborhood surrounding the school – all of these are much more important than books. Please support our school as we move forward and rebuild Haiti. Donations can be made through our website: www.haitianproject.org/donations/htm
Thank you for everything and please feel free to send me an email if you have any questions or concerns: butler1986@gmail.com
Peace
My time in the USA over Christmas was relaxing and rejuvenating, as I was able to eat massive quantities of chocolate, sleep later than 7:00 AM, visit family and friends, and watch a snowstorm bury one of my fund-raising plans. I was able to speak at my former grade school, Immaculate Conception, and they were supportive, offering to organize a book drive for LCS.
My much-anticipated return to Haiti occurred Sunday January 10th. The trip included traveling through a frigid Miami airport, which lacks a heating system to accommodate the abnormal 35-degree weather. Unfortunately, my checked bags did not arrive in Port-au-Prince with me and I spent the rest of Sunday and Monday returning to the airport in attempts to find my bags. Monday was the first day of school and I finally got my bags, signaling a seemingly normal beginning to the rest of the school year.
Tuesday was an excellent day in the classroom. I started a two-week unit on the Civil Rights Movement and race relations in the United States, beginning with speeches by Martin Luther King Jr. (I Have a Dream and I’ve Been to the Mountaintop) and ending with Barack Obama’s speech on race from his presidential campaign. Over Christmas, I had procured audio and text copies of the speeches so that my students not only could read them, but listen to them as well. Tuesday, I gave the historical background of the movement, provided context for MLK’s speech, and even began watching the speech in one of my classes (one section, Rheto A meets 3 times on Tuesday). The students were very responsive and loved hearing MLK’s voice. He is a tremendous speaker, a skill that seems to cross cultural and linguistic barriers. Not one of my students had ever actually heard him speak, something that certainly brightened my day.
Following classes, we had Netwayage (the cleaning of the school and the picking up of trash in the neighborhood and along Route National 3). It was my day off, so I read upstairs in the administration building during this time. Around 4:30, I went downstairs to the kitchen to begin cooking dinner with another one of the volunteers, Corey. Putting a large pot of water to boil on the stove, I began peeling potatoes alongside Corey next to the sink. It was around 4:45.
The first thing I noticed was an astonishingly loud noise. It sounded like a train wreck, a massive truck ramming into a building, or an airplane crashing (I have not actually heard any of these, but I have nothing to compare it with). Building off the sound was the sensation that the wall in front of me appeared to be moving towards my face. Disorienting shaking enveloped me as I dropped the potato peeler and clutched the sink, asking the stupid question, “What is going on?” Corey, who had experienced earthquakes before, knew exactly what it was and yelled “earthquake!” The shaking got progressively stronger and without thinking, we both bolted to the nearby door. Pots, plates, chairs, tables, everything was falling down. Pushing, the door did not budge, and as I turned around, I watched as our massive pot of boiling water (a pot big enough to cook food for 25 people) was thrown to the ground, spilling boiling water in all directions. There was a tiny bit of oil mixed with water (we add oil to the water before we boil it) that fell from the pot, causing a temporary flare up from the burner before it settled back down. After momentary confusion, Corey and I both forced our brains to work and realized that we had to pull the door, not push it. Standing in the now open doorway between the building and outside, we waited for the shaking to stop. I had to constantly brace myself against the wall to prevent myself from falling.
When the shaking finally stopped, we both immediately rushed out to check on the kids. Corey ran to turn off the burner and continued through the building, while I went out the back door. The immediate sounds will always linger in my memory, the terrified screams of the students and our neighbors.
Running towards a group of students, I looked to my left and saw that the front wall of the school had collapsed out into the street. This was the first moment that I realized some of the screaming was not just shock and fear, but actual pain and physical trauma. Ingrained in my memory is the image of Patrick Faustin, our head of maintenance and the Haitian I would most trust in a moment of crisis, sprinting full speed carrying a girl in his arms, covered in blood. I immediately began sprinting towards where they came from, the soccer field/playground. Once on the soccer field, I saw two small students carrying a screaming, apparently injured, student. I rushed over to them, grabbed the student and rushed to the front of the school. Along the way I saw two of my larger male Philo students looking like they wanted to help and I sent them to the playground to look for more injured students.
The response of the staff at LCS was undeniably impressive. Within 10 minutes of the earthquake a truck carrying all the injured students had left for the nearby medical clinic. A section of the wall by the soccer field had fallen, as had one by the playground. Students had apparently been sitting near or against the playground wall when the earthquake occurred, and the wall had fallen on those who had serious injuries. Fortunately, none of the injuries were too severe, nothing close to life threatening...
Most of the students were here on campus that Tuesday; however, one of my Rheto students was at home when the earthquake occurred. His house collapsed due to the force of the quake, with the falling ceiling being stopped by his bed only inches from his head. There was still a tiny path to safety and he followed his cat, crawling towards the light to leave the house. Days later, he came to LCS and told me his story, showing me the injuries on his leg, head, and shoulder…
Returning to Tuesday afternoon – the staff worked quickly to herd all the students to the basketball court and I did a quick search/sprint around campus to make sure that there were no students hiding injured somewhere.
One of the most striking visual images during those frantic moments occurred while running by the drinking water spigot. Located near the cafeteria, there are two gigantic 500-gallon water containers that our electric pump fills with clean drinkable water. However, during the earthquake, the connecting pipes had become detached and water was gushing out, overflowing the basin and creating a growing pool on the ground below. The sound of uncontrollable gushing water was a striking and haunting testimony to the power of the quake. In addition, the basketball hoops (backboards included) on the playground were no longer attached. It appeared as if a giant had plucked each off the hoop's base and gently set it down on the ground, over 10 feet away near the foul line. Unnerving and surreal to say the least.
Returning to the front basketball court, I was greeted by the wails of crying students and the tears of people from the neighborhood rushing into the school.
We at LCS were extremely fortunate in many ways. None of our buildings collapsed (two did receive insignificant structural damage and we will have to rebuild some interior walls as well as the supporting columns of our walking bridge) and none of our students were killed or seriously injured.
During this time of crisis, where did the leadership come from? Our vice-principal, Zamy, stepped up into the void. Addressing the students on the basketball court, Zamy was the rock that attempted to contain an overflowing river.
Meanwhile, I was running in circles, trying to guide the students to the court and doing whatever I could to provide some sense of comfort and stability. As you can imagine, my attempts were not very successful. I tried to enlist the support of some of my Philo students to help calm the younger kids, but almost all the students were too shaken to be of much comfort to others. Their thoughts began to move beyond themselves and their fear grew as worries about their family and friends increased.
On the front basketball court, we had our first of many aftershocks. It was a big one (read, I almost fell over) and any comfort and stability we had attempted to provide was completely obliterated in that moment. Fear took over and it remains one of our biggest adversaries today. Zamy held himself together remarkably well and was able to move the students to the safest place we could think of, the center of the soccer field away from buildings and trees.
On the soccer field, news from the city began trickling in. Parents arrived, checking on their children and bringing news from home. It is not possible to adequately describe the emotions of that evening as darkness fell. Fear, anxiety, helplessness, sadness, anger, frustration, and fatigue all melded amidst the whirlwind of activities.
We did successfully feed the students that night, serving the “la bwi” that the cooks had been making when the quake occurred. In addition, we brought mattresses out to the students so they could sleep on the field, stopped the flow of gushing water, and did our best to provide comfort and support to those who were suffering all around us.
It was a very difficult situation personally because every Haitian there feared for their families and friends while I knew most of my family and friends were safe, in a country far away. We all physically shared the experience of the earthquake, but I simply could not comprehend how they were struggling emotionally and psychologically…
One of our maintenance guys, Benoit, came through that night. He rigged up a series of lights and ran an extension cord from a nearby building so that there was electricity on the field. This was actually one of the most amazing things – the solar power survived the earthquake with little or no damage.
Speaking of solar power, here is a great picture of me cleaning a solar panel in the aftermath of the earthquake: http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2010/01/19/2178696.aspx
So, yes, we had electricity that night. Everyone slept on the soccer field, including the volunteers, students, and Haitian staff. We wheeled over the TV (on a cart) from the library and watched movie after movie until morning. Sleep was a rare prize as the aftershocks and tremors continued throughout the night. Feeling multiple earthquakes while lying flat on my back was certainly an “is this really happening” experience. In fact, much of Tuesday brought that question to mind.
Tuesday from 5:00 PM until bedtime on Wednesday was the longest 32 hours of my life. My journey home from Uganda was a close second, but nothing can match this. I hope nothing ever does.
Beginning Tuesday evening, the volunteers and staff went about attempting to secure things that are essential to life at LCS: food, water, diesel, natural gas, and communication with the USA.
To address food, we cooked two meals each day to feed the 316 students, staff, and neighborhood residents. When we took an inventory of our food supplies, we were pleasantly surprised. I did not realize the reason until later, but we had roughly a two-week supply of food for 400 people. Why did we have so much food? Well, it was the second day of school in a month that followed a long break. LCS had used the break to stock up for the coming semester, resulting in ample supplies of rice, beans, spaghetti, and other essentials.
Water was a larger issue because the pump was initially not working (the piping was damaged by the quake). By the end of Tuesday, we ran out of water in the large 500-gallon blue containers that store drinkable water. However, through the help of James, Samuel, Corey, and me, we reconnected pipes and were able to get the water system working again by late Wednesday morning. Important to the functionality of our pump is electric power and the solar panels performed marvelously in this respect. I have always been very thankful for their existence, but this disaster made them absolutely essential to the existence of the school.
Tuesday night we moved barrels of diesel from the front of the school (next to the broken wall) to the Moynihan house across the street. In addition, we determined that a gas line in the school kitchen had broken and we took the full gas containers to the staff and Moynihan kitchens in order to prepare meals.
Communication with the USA came Wednesday evening, when our rear neighbors – behind the walls by the soccer field/playground – offered to let us use their internet. They are a religious NGO that runs a nearby orphanage and actually had a high school mission group visiting when the earthquake occurred. The kids were stuck in the country for nearly a week before they were able to make it home.
In addition to logistics, we also cooked food for the entire community. Inexperienced at cooking massive quantities on small stoves, it took us four hours (9-1) to cook spaghetti for the 316 students and 20 staff members. In addition, it took us nearly as long to cook a delicious dinner of rice and beans. Industrial quantity cooking in small pots is no joke...
Some stark memories of Wednesday remain. The refugee camp look and feel of the soccer field/playground. The mattresses and sheets set up to form makeshift tents in order to protect students from direct sunlight. The overwhelming stench of urine. Kids were too frightened to enter buildings, even to use the bathroom, so they were just peeing anywhere, hence the smell. Trash was everywhere. It was truly a depressing, overwhelming, incomprehensible sight.
Wednesday night we slept in the Moynihan house for the first time, completely drained and exhausted. A friend of the project from the Haitian business community arrived Tuesday night and his presence had an unbelievably calming effect on the volunteers and staff. He checked in several times again on Wednesday, and he was extremely supportive throughout the crisis.
Thursday was a new day and we began rebuilding. Zamy organized Netwayage and no longer did the soccer field/playground have the look of a dilapidated refugee camp. Trash disappeared and slowly the smell of urine dissipated.
Removing physical and visual reminders of the earthquake became a way to psychologically cope with the situation. Whether it was cleaning up a broken flower pot, putting my room back together, or removing rubble, these were incredibly uplifting experiences.
In addition, on Thursday many of the Haitian staff were able to physically begin moving beyond their personal suffering and started providing support for operating the school. In particular, Bellegarde and Stecy were saviors as they helped with the cooking of “Haitian” food. We had already made spaghetti as well as beans and rice, but our meals were noticeably not “Haitian”. The students and staff were very appreciative of the Haitian staff’s efforts to make real Haitian food.
I could not have lasted too many more Wednesdays but Thursday turned an obtuse, unmanageable, and highly stressful situation into a demanding but ultimately doable problem. There were answers and we finally had the resources to provide them without destroying ourselves physically and mentally.
Routines began to form, although the kids continued to sleep and basically live on the field throughout the following week. Cooking became our life and it was a satisfying life in many ways. Word was that Mr. Moynihan was trying to arrive as soon as possible but there was no confirmation on when he would be able to get into the country. American Airlines had stopped all flights and it was a pretty complex and challenging puzzle to find a way into the country. We joked about Mr. Moynihan swimming to Haiti…
We knew from our phone call with the USA on Tuesday that the earthquake was international news and our parents had been contacted, but we did not know the scope of the event. However, bits and pieces of news did trickle in from the radio and staff members over the next few days.
News that buildings throughout the country had collapsed shocked us. Things like the National Palace, the UN headquarters, the Caribbean Market (the nicest grocery store in the country, we had shopped there several times last semester), several hotels we had visited – all collapsed during the earthquake. The universities that many of our junior staff attend are broken and unusable. The ministry of justice building and the national prison – gone.
It was only when Elissa returned from the neighbors Wednesday afternoon that I realized the scope of the disaster. She saw on the internet that early reports indicated that between 100-200 thousand people died during the earthquake. Shocked, dismayed, and confused, this number vastly exceeded even my worst estimates.
It seems clear today that the earthquake is threatening to break the spirit of the Haitian people. Some of the most intelligent, capable, confident Haitians that I know have returned from the city devastated and in shock. One member of the Haitian staff, who is incredibly intelligent and typically has a very positive attitude, spoke in despair upon returning, remarking: “Haiti is dead.” Attitudes have improved over the last week and life continues, but it certainly has been drastically altered for our entire community. Yet, somehow, hope remains. Despite the severity of the death and destruction, our community, staff, and students are persevering.
Friday, Patrick Moynihan finally returned, having flown to the Dominican Republic, prepared to take a helicopter to Haiti. Instead, he was able to finagle himself into a private jet alongside two journalists (a Swedish television reporter and a German journalist from Der Spiegel.) Patrick brought a comforting presence to the situation and things have continued to stabilize since his arrival. Over the past week, we have been able to secure our food supplies, fix the gas leak in the kitchen, and bring our cooks back. We have also begun structured activities for the students, including half days of “school”. The national government has canceled school for the month, releasing our teachers from their obligation to teach. However, the volunteers and staff have been holding classes, though they are much more informal than before. The number of students on campus has consistently dropped, especially following the return of classes. We were down to 100 on Friday and only around 60 remained this past weekend (23-24). I am hopeful that more will return this afternoon.
Have I mentioned the aftershocks? Yes, these “minor” earthquakes have been happening ever since the initial quake. I have probably felt somewhere between 30-40 of these “fun” jolts of energy. They range from shaking entire buildings to being indistinguishable from the window rattling caused by USA army helicopters and massive transport planes. Regardless, each one reminds us of that catastrophic day. Aftershocks are pretty devastating psychologically for the students and many of the staff, uncontrollably bringing memories of the terror and destruction into the physical reality of the present.
Sunday was a day of rest and we took a day-trip to the mountains south of Port-au-Prince. On the way, we glimpsed some of the devastation in Delmar and Petionville. Crushed buildings, rubble everywhere, makeshift refugee camps in open fields and parks. Certainly not an easy drive.
The reality of the news media in Haiti has been at times both fascinating and frustrating. There seems to be enormous interest in the situation across the world, which can be a good thing as it brings aid and support to people in desperate need. However, there is also the risk that the situation on the ground is not accurately represented and isolated incidents are extrapolated into inaccurate generalized statements. Importantly, news organizations and journalists often look for a particular story that fits into a preconceived box rather than reporting as objectively as they can. I won’t mention any specific organizations, but there have been a number that either I personally witnessed or I learned about through others...
I have only read a few news articles but my Dad continues to send me ones that mention LCS and journalists continue to swarm the country alongside the NGOs and other aid organizations. The Swedish journalist who arrived alongside Patrick later did a story about rebuilding in Haiti. He focused on LCS and our students, videotaping them playing basketball and moving the fallen concrete blocks away from the broken walls.
Moving these blocks was actually one of the most satisfying moments of the entire week. Grabbing some of the Philo students, as well as anyone else who wanted to help, we moved all of the large concrete blocks away from the walls and stacked them in orderly piles alongside one of the walls still standing. Man, those things were heavy. The blocks will eventually be crushed (perhaps reused?) but they needed to be moved. They needed to be moved because the fallen walls were tangible and visible reminders of the earthquake. In my experience, one of the most important steps to recovery is returning the campus and our living situation to as close to normal as we can. Something as simple as cleaning up a flowerpot obliterated by the earthquake has tremendous psychological benefits. It has been my goal to try to eliminate as many earthquake reminders as I can. The added benefit of moving rubble was the involvement of my students. They were ready to work, they desperately needed to work. It was a way for them to begin to move past the trauma of the earthquake, for them to physically begin fixing what was in disorder and to regain control over a seemingly intractable situation.
I continue to be impressed by our students as they have traveled through the city to help in relief efforts. Groups of students have helped in the wound clinic of the Missionaries of Charity, translated for Jamaican doctors at another medical clinic, and cleared out a warehouse that will be used for storing medical supplies. A supporter of the project from the Haitian business community offered the Red Cross/Red Crescent warehouses and buildings to set up their base of operations. Nearby, my students, young men from Santo 5, and myself helped to clear out one of the warehouses so that Catholic Relief Services (CRS) could use it as a supply depot for food and logistics. We finally finished Saturday (23rd), after days of carrying merchandise, removing items from the walls, and moving very heavy furniture. The work was extremely satisfying and it feels invigorating finally to be able to physically contribute to ameliorating the situation. Every little bit helps.
Speaking of journalists, there should be articles in the Wall Street Journal and Der Spiegel on Monday (1/25) about LCS. Patrick has been making contacts like he usually does and he was able to convince journalists from both newspapers that LCS was THE story about rebuilding in Haiti. Clause (I’m actually not sure how to spell his name), the German reporter, was quite impressive. He is one of Der Spiegel's USA correspondents and he is apparently a pretty big deal in Germany. He has written five books (one has been translated to English) and Der Spiegel is one of the best news magazines in Europe (easily the best in Germany). He compared it to Time, Newsweek, and the Economist. Not a bad peer group…
Anyway, they followed Patrick around for much of the week and asked us all questions. I’m not sure if I will make it into the stories, but LCS will certainly feature prominently. Pretty neat really.
One of the interesting things that never really understood before is how a massive influx of foreigners affects a country with a poor infrastructure like Haiti. There are only select roads that are paved and the massive growth of foreigners (NGOs, aid organizations, journalists) by the airport has turned that zone into an almost impassable area. Unfortunately for us, the airport is between LCS and Port-au-Prince. The first few days after aid began arriving, we suffered through god-awful traffic. A 20-minute drive became 2 or 3 hours. Recently, to avoid the brunt of the traffic we have been taking back roads down to the river, driving across it with our Land Cruiser. Fortunately, it’s the dry season and the river actually looks like a medium sized stream. My heart always races each time we cross it, but we have made six successful crossings thus far!
Life in general, is good. Things are certainly different and there is a host of new challenges, but moving forward to meet these challenges is the purpose of LCS. I want to thank everyone for their support; it has certainly been helpful in these trying times.
Over Christmas, I had these grand ideas of bringing large quantities of new and better books to improve the LCS curriculum. Well, the earthquake has completely transformed the reality on the ground and honestly, money for food, for building repairs, for wall construction, for rebuilding the neighborhood surrounding the school – all of these are much more important than books. Please support our school as we move forward and rebuild Haiti. Donations can be made through our website: www.haitianproject.org/donations/htm
Thank you for everything and please feel free to send me an email if you have any questions or concerns: butler1986@gmail.com
Peace
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
The march to Christmas
Wow...It's been a while. Many many things have happened during the last month. Here are only some of the highlights:
-Thanksgiving in Haiti- During the week of Thanksgiving we had visitors! Arriving from the United States, our visitors spent an exhilarating week teaching classes, learning about the school, and helping out with work projects around campus. From cataloging books in the library, to cleaning out the incinerator, to washing the floor of the chapel, they truly embodied the mission of the school: If you don't work, you don't eat. Fun stuff. Thanksgiving Day was a pretty normal day except after clean-up time (netwaye) we had our much-anticipated American Football game. Probably the most memorable part of the game was when our quarterback (a volunteer) gave these directions: "Now, I want you to go deep to the incinerator..."
After the game, we all showered and then shared a delicious Thanksgiving feast alongside the guests, the president of the project and his family, the American volunteers, and the Haitian Staff (About 45 people in total). The variety of food easily surpassed my usual Thanksgiving meal in the USA...
-"Man-up" Weekend- One of the most important programs at LCS is "Celebrate Women," which is held on weekends throughout the year and focuses on empowering the female students at the school. Culturally, socially, and economically there remain many barriers to women's empowerment, but Louverture Cleary has successfully eliminated one: disproportionate representation in higher education. Yes, Louverture Cleary has finally reached parity in terms of the physical number of males and females attending the school. This might sound like a small feat when we think of the USA, but in Haiti this is significant. In addition, it brought a smile to my face when I learned that the best students in the older classes(Rheto and Philo) are female (10 of the top 12).
Naturally, the male students on campus have begun to feel a little "left out" and so we have started "Man-up" weekends for the oldest male students to emphasize responsibility, good leadership, and the importance of a stable family life. Our first weekend was held December 4th and it went very well as we had the proper mixture of fun/games and serious discussions. The weekend kicked off smoothly with a basketball tournament of randomized teams. Following basketball, we had a series of talks Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, which were led by several alumni as well as the principal and the head of discipline. Friday evening we watched a movie, Remember the Titans, and we enjoyed popcorn and iced cokes. Following the movie, we discussed the different leadership styles of the two coaches and the kids continue to impress me with their insights. One of my Philo students said it best when he told me that it was one of the most meaningful experiences he had ever had at LCS.
-Christmas Approaching- As the calendar turned to December, you could sense the anticipation growing among the kids as all of a sudden interest and attention ran elsewhere.
In my final class of the season, I allowed my students a treat: we played a game. But yes, they still had to use their English - we played an alternative form of "Boggle". I gave them 10 random letters and told them to in groups make as many English words as they could. After 5 minutes each group would write their list on the board and the group with the most correct words got a point. Pretty fun stuff, especially as they got really in-to the game.
The last day of "class" was actually a school-wide Christmas celebration. Among the festivities was a "highly anticipated" staff versus Philo basketball game. 3 of my students in particular had been trash talking me for weeks about the upcoming game. Sadly, the staff did not show up to play (a lot of bad shots, some poor teamwork) and the philo kids won by 5. But trust me, there will be a rematch...
With the Christmas celebration comes the holiday season and a break from school - a four week break in fact. I have returned to the USA to spend Christmas with my family and I will roaming about until early January. In theory, I should be more accessible either by phone or email. Looking back, it was a wonderful semester, full of joy, hope, inspiration, and opportunity. I know of no better visual that demonstrates what the students of Louverture Cleary are capable for doing for Haiti...
Merry Christmas!
-Thanksgiving in Haiti- During the week of Thanksgiving we had visitors! Arriving from the United States, our visitors spent an exhilarating week teaching classes, learning about the school, and helping out with work projects around campus. From cataloging books in the library, to cleaning out the incinerator, to washing the floor of the chapel, they truly embodied the mission of the school: If you don't work, you don't eat. Fun stuff. Thanksgiving Day was a pretty normal day except after clean-up time (netwaye) we had our much-anticipated American Football game. Probably the most memorable part of the game was when our quarterback (a volunteer) gave these directions: "Now, I want you to go deep to the incinerator..."
After the game, we all showered and then shared a delicious Thanksgiving feast alongside the guests, the president of the project and his family, the American volunteers, and the Haitian Staff (About 45 people in total). The variety of food easily surpassed my usual Thanksgiving meal in the USA...
-"Man-up" Weekend- One of the most important programs at LCS is "Celebrate Women," which is held on weekends throughout the year and focuses on empowering the female students at the school. Culturally, socially, and economically there remain many barriers to women's empowerment, but Louverture Cleary has successfully eliminated one: disproportionate representation in higher education. Yes, Louverture Cleary has finally reached parity in terms of the physical number of males and females attending the school. This might sound like a small feat when we think of the USA, but in Haiti this is significant. In addition, it brought a smile to my face when I learned that the best students in the older classes(Rheto and Philo) are female (10 of the top 12).
Naturally, the male students on campus have begun to feel a little "left out" and so we have started "Man-up" weekends for the oldest male students to emphasize responsibility, good leadership, and the importance of a stable family life. Our first weekend was held December 4th and it went very well as we had the proper mixture of fun/games and serious discussions. The weekend kicked off smoothly with a basketball tournament of randomized teams. Following basketball, we had a series of talks Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, which were led by several alumni as well as the principal and the head of discipline. Friday evening we watched a movie, Remember the Titans, and we enjoyed popcorn and iced cokes. Following the movie, we discussed the different leadership styles of the two coaches and the kids continue to impress me with their insights. One of my Philo students said it best when he told me that it was one of the most meaningful experiences he had ever had at LCS.
-Christmas Approaching- As the calendar turned to December, you could sense the anticipation growing among the kids as all of a sudden interest and attention ran elsewhere.
In my final class of the season, I allowed my students a treat: we played a game. But yes, they still had to use their English - we played an alternative form of "Boggle". I gave them 10 random letters and told them to in groups make as many English words as they could. After 5 minutes each group would write their list on the board and the group with the most correct words got a point. Pretty fun stuff, especially as they got really in-to the game.
The last day of "class" was actually a school-wide Christmas celebration. Among the festivities was a "highly anticipated" staff versus Philo basketball game. 3 of my students in particular had been trash talking me for weeks about the upcoming game. Sadly, the staff did not show up to play (a lot of bad shots, some poor teamwork) and the philo kids won by 5. But trust me, there will be a rematch...
With the Christmas celebration comes the holiday season and a break from school - a four week break in fact. I have returned to the USA to spend Christmas with my family and I will roaming about until early January. In theory, I should be more accessible either by phone or email. Looking back, it was a wonderful semester, full of joy, hope, inspiration, and opportunity. I know of no better visual that demonstrates what the students of Louverture Cleary are capable for doing for Haiti...
Merry Christmas!
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