I will be forever changed by this experience.

I have worked for nonprofits my whole life. I have wanted to volunteer in a developing country to give back, pay forward and create a ripple effect into the world with my heart, hands and donations. I did not know what would await me on this journey with a small group of huge hearted volunteers.

Gabriel and Ahaji founded Love Orphanage. They followed a calling to fight for the basic rights and needs of children in Haiti. They have used their frame of influence to gather support and rolled up their sleeves to create a safe place, where 18 children now have a permanent home.

It all began after the earthquake. Gabriel saw children walking unclothed in the streets of Haiti drinking water from contaminated puddles and drains. He knew in that moment he needed to do something.

Just days later he shared his commitment to create a home for children orphaned by the disaster or other circumstances. The woman he was speaking to offered him a two-room apartment to help. Within 7 days five children, who had been living on the streets, were brought to Gabriel for help. Weeks later that same woman would introduce Ahaji and Gabriel.  And then these two exceptional people launched Love Orphanage and We the Village.

Four critical things happened in Haiti that these countrymen faced, survived and adapted to:

1. The Haitian people revolted against the French conquestors in 1804, reclaiming their land and freedom. After the slaves declared themselves free and the country independent, France, with its allies, demanded that the newly formed country pay the French government and French slaveholders for the loss of their “property”. Haiti was forced to pay France reparations for the next one hundred years, 90 million gold francs ($21 billion today), for its independence and taking back their own country, thus subsequently becoming and remaining the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere.

2. In the 1980’s, A small outbreak of swine flu lead the US and Dominican Republic to fund, at a cost of $23M, the slaughter of over 400,000 creole pigs over a two-year period. Making these pigs extinct. What these two governments did not understand in their haste to protect the potential transfer of this disease to their countries, is that the pig had been used as a financial resource to pay for school, weddings, funerals and emergencies. The year after all the pigs in Haiti were killed, enrollment in rural schools dropped 30%. In addition, agricultural productivity went down, as did protein consumption. The US did try to bring back a pig population, but they could not survive the climate and not eating for up to two days in a row as the creole pig was accustomed.

3. The Clinton administration forced Haiti to drop tariffs on imported subsidized on rice which came mostly from the State of Arkansas. The flood of cheap imported rice destroyed the agricultural infrastructure of the country and created a dependence on rice from the USA. Haitian farmers could not compete, and the country could not be self-sufficient. In 2010 Clinton apologized for this policy and admitted that it was a mistake to try to take the burden of agriculture out of the hands of pre-industrial nations to try to help them mobilize industry. In the long-term it detrimental to the country it is intended to support.

4. Eight years ago, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake upended life in Haiti, killing more than 300,000 people by some estimates and destroying hundreds of thousands of homes. As a result of the earthquake and flooding, families were torn apart and swept away, and thus many children have been left to fend for themselves. For those left homeless, malnourished and orphaned, life still hasn’t returned to normal.

Now I know more. As Ahaji said: “The strength of the soul permeates all things.”

We pulled into the orphanage that first day and the kids came pouring out of the house. They gathered enthusiastically around all of us as we got out of the van.  All of them giving grateful hugs to complete strangers who could not speak one another’s language. Tears flowed as a homecoming for some of the volunteers. You could feel the exchange of energy; their need for us and our need for them.

Gabriel and his huge smile come bounding down the stairs to greet all of us, interpreting between English and Creole.

We all walk the neighborhood together to a tree at the end of the lane. Each child shares something about their year at school, their favorite class, and if they passed their exam to move to the next grade. They all reported their success with great pride!! Everyone moved ahead. Woot woot!!

Before we head back, Ahaji was able to announce that she had secured funding for all them to attend school again next year!!!

Each day starts off with yoga, then outdoor play with the many balls, games and jump ropes we brought for them to keep. We play catch, keep away, soccer, basketball, ….

They love that we want to be with them, play with them and participate. They need the attention, the interaction and the connection, just as much as we do.

Most days are filled with at least one art activity, paints, coloring, beads, making flags, t-shirts,  signs….. anything that will allow them to be creative, touch a crayon, understand what glitter is, be able to make a bracelet or necklace for themselves or one another.

The art helps us communicate with the kids in a different way too. You must go slow, use the interpreter and mime to create a dialog together. Art allows the kids use a different part of their brain. Giving them the freedom to manipulate different material and to express themselves, however they wish, in an unstructured way with materials they may never have seen before.

Along with an art project, we dance, we all dance, a dance party, freeze dance, dance offs…… it is so much fun and they love it. Adults can be goofy kids too!! 2019 the year of dance!!

Then it is onto board games, thinking games, Uno, Legos, puzzles…. time spent one on one or with a small group. This year two volunteers got their hair braided daily by the older girls…. everyone loved it!!

And after four years a long-term volunteer learned to count to 10 in French!!! Learning goes two ways!!

Before you know it, it is 5pm and we are on our way back to our accommodations. We sit outside and talk about the day.  We have created our own slogan of having a “family moment” where we can say things, free of judgment, allowing us to be all of who we are as we seek to understand. (things we saw, heard, questions, thoughts for the next day, best parts of the day. We talk about poverty, race, family, sacrifice, voluntourism, needs, wants and everything in-between)

And then we get to have another day with the kids!!

Quote of the week: “How can you have a bad day with a conga line?”

We cut the ribbon on their new home. It could not have been summed up better than watching them run through the structure, twirl around and dream of the finished rooms. Volunteers and donors who have never been to Haiti but have heard the stories from those who have gone –donated funds, time, art and even plaques with each child’s name on them to hang on their new walls. It is the first time they will ever have things like this on their walls. And never have they had anything with their own names on it.  From Jeff: “ This day is magnificent.”

When we back to the house, we shared candies the children had never eaten before. Our interpreter’s wife just had a baby and Ann one of our kids takes her candy to the interpreter and tell him to please take it home to the baby. A little girl with nothing, giving away what she had to show love to another.

Priceless.

We know there are funds for school next year, but we cannot guarantee we will have funds to make sure each child graduates’ high school. After they complete high school, the chances of them going to college is slim. They all will need to learn a trade.

They would need $25,000 a year to operate successfully, which would include food, water, propane, gas, school tuition hygiene, medical, —-right now they have confirmed for two years $9,000 a year. We need $500 a month to make sure they have nutritious food and water daily. $6,000 to feed 18 kids’ nutritious meals and appropriate hydration for one year.

They have a family.

They have a safe place to rest their head.

They are learning to trust.

They know the power of love.

They live knowing they are expected to help, expected to do well in school, expected to become good Haitian citizens.

We are changed. We see that life is about interaction, showing up, being present, and participating. You do not have to speak the language to make a connection. We are all connected. The children are resilient, strong, smart, caring, kind, playful, funny and engaging. They take what comes to them and make it the best it can be. They go all in with each activity. They are grateful and we are grateful that we get to be in their presence. We are grateful that they allowed us into their home and hearts.

We know that by providing them with a stable and safe foundation of love, care, food, water and education, the children will grow to be positive contributors to their community and their nation.

We can make a difference one ripple at a time.

To make a difference in the life of another as well as our own, it will take all of us, the whole village, to stand up and lean in. Thank you, Gabriel, and Ahaji for showing us the way.