Summer 2007
Paul Farmer Keynotes first Annual "Heartbeat for Haiti"
CHP held its first annual benifit, "A Heart beat for Haiti," on Feb. 10th, at St. John's Episcopal Cathedral in Denver. The evening began with a lecture by Dr. Paul Farmer, on "Global Health Equity: Lessons Learned From 20 Years in Haiti," followed by a question and answer period. Dr. Farmer is an internationally renowned medical anthropologist and humanitarian, and co-founder of Partners in Health, the international health and social justice advocacy agency that began in Cange, Haiti. The evening's master of ceremonies was Bishop Rob O'Neill, who introduced Father Kesner Gracia. Tickets to the General Lecture were priced at $15 so that cost would not be an obstacle to hearing Dr. Farmer. The Cathedral sanctuary was filled, with 650 attending the lecture.
The Lecture was followed by an authentic Haitian dinner for 100 in the Cathedral's Dagwell Hall, catered by Pat and Antonio Laudisio. After dinner, there was a panel discussion with Paul Farmer, Father Kesner and Bishop Rob O'Neill, and another question and answer period. Proceeds from the event totaled $20,829 and went to support CHP's Annual Fund. Heartfelt thanks to our Event Co-Chairs, Cheryl Ladd and Anita Bunch, and our stout-hearted volunteers; to Peter Eaton, Dean of St. John's Cathedral, and Duncan Withers, Dean's Verger, for their support; and to our underwriters: Mark and Marcella Gershien, Pat and Mike Glinsky, Pat and Antonio Laudisio, and Giuliana Imports.
Women's Vocational Training Begins at Women's Center
Grant from Trinity Wall Street Underwrites Full Year
In September, another milestone was passed: the first vocational courses for women began at the Women's Center, fulfilling a dream of Father Kesner. Start-up funding was provided by a gift from CHP's Annual Fund, an anonymous donor, and a $1,000 grant from the Celtic Cross Society of the Church Divinity School of the Pacific. The venture began with one instructor, Laumene Augustin, and 60 students in two classes. For the inaugural classes, Father Kesner chose two-year programs in Cuisine (professional cooking/catering) and Couture (professional tailoring), both of which lead to a government-issued certificate. Kesner chose these two areas because they are most likely to lead to employment or graduates, and because they are well-suited to self-employment for women in Petit Trou.
In December, CHP received news that our grant application had been approved by Trinity Wall Street Foundation to fund all costs of both courses for a full year, including salary, supplies and equipment, appliances, and furniture. Trinity made an un-expected and happy addition to the grant: a graduation gift for each graduate designed to aid her journey toward economic independence: a sewing machine for each Couture graduate and a kitchen equipment kit for each Cuisine graduate.
In the photograph, Deacon Janet Fullmer of Denver's Ascension Episcopal Church launches her "Fabric into Cash" project. first supplying the couture class with fabrics and patterns purchased through CHP's Annual Fund, Janet then asked the class to try simple clerical robes and alter linens. finished items will be brought back to the US by CHP missioners and marketed by Janet at her alma mater, Church Divinity School of the Pacific. Proceeds from the sales will be sent back to the vocational program, to purchase fabric from Haitian sources in Port-au-Prince in the future.
What a Tough Assignment
A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
By now you are well aware of the many exciting things happening at our flagship mission in Petit Trou de Nippes...the phenomenal growth in student enrollment at St. Paul's School, a growing vocational program for women, the formation of a community advisory committee, the beginning of a relationship with Fonkoze, the commencement of engineering work on a community water project and more.
I have been extraordinarily blessed in that I have the opportunity to travel to Haiti numerous times each year. Many of my friends and acquaintances have asked, "What exactly do you do down there?" More times than not I respond a bit facetiously, "I just hang out." The reality of this statement is not too far off. And the value of just hanging out should not be diminished.
On behalf of the Colorado Haiti Project, I work closely with Pere Kesner and the local community to assist with the management of the many projects and programs CHP supports. I provide a measure of oversight and accountability. In collaboration with Pere Kesner and members of the local community, I strive to understand the issues that the community deems important. The people of Petit Trou are eager to share. Each day is both a challenge and a joy, as a myriad of problems and difficulties, all waiting for solutions, present themselves. And just because I happen to be there, "hanging out," opportunities arise each day to share a smile with a child, a story with an old woman or a joke with a good friend. None of this would be possible without first taking the time to build meaningful relationships...taking time to learn the language, taking time to listen, taking time on a regular basis to "just hang out." What a tough assignment!
Each visit reinforces the notion that while we live in different worlds and while there are cultural differences to be respected, our basic needs, our hopes and our dreams are much the same. As we continue this journey hand in hand with our Haitian brothers and sisters, I want to thank each of you for your ongoing support of the work of the Colorado Haiti Project. And if by chance you have the time and are so inclined, I hope you will find your way to this beautiful country and come to love it as much as I do.
DON SNYDER ~ JUNE 2007
Dear All,
The social transformation, the school construction and the Women's Center at Saint Paul's give many people opportunities to a better life considered as hopeless before. It really symbolizes a testimony of your faith, solidarity and love for the poorest in the world. The work done with each financial gift through CHP to the poorest ones in Petit Trou de Nippes is wonderful, marvelous and tremendous.
This pragmatic solidarity of all our friends and supporters in Colorado to shoulder the people in Petit Trou de Nippes reflects a strong love expressly dedicated to human development, specifically to the hungry, the needy and the abandoned, according to the Millennium Development Goals. It means to us too, that we are One in Christ, despite of all different ethnicities, cultures and languages.
In order to keep working to improve life, on behalf of the people, I thank you so much for your continuing support and invite other friends, everyone to embark in this loving boat of CHP and to continue to work for a changing life for all in Petit Trou de Nippes, where people are facing the most extreme poverty.
A trip to Haiti will tell you so much. Just come and see and you will receive more than what you can give. Your heart will be touched, your eyes and mind will open. You will get a better understanding about the true meaning of the poor.
Compassion and mercy will be born and arise from the bottom of your heart. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in Heaven. Matthew 5:16
God bless you.
FR. KESNER GRACI
January 2007 Medical Mission
The team saw 1,636 patients in 5 days. A big part of the work was 492 student physicals. For many of the doctors and nurses who join our Annual Medical Mission, it is the highlight of their working year. Many have been going with us for years to serve the people of Petit Trou.
Have you ever wanted to go, even though you are NOT a doctor, nurse, or dentist? Usually about half of the team are not, and work together with the health professionals taking patient information, weighing patients, filling bottles with over-the-counter medications, handing out health care kits to the students, and helping to direct traffic.
It can be a life-changing experience. Our next Medical Mission is scheduled for January 17 - 28, 2008. For more information, go to our home page and click on "Medical Missions".
February Mission Launches Community Survey
Pat Laudisio Returns to Petit Trou
On Feb. 16-23, 2007, Pat Laudisio led an Insight Trip to Petit Trou after a long absence. With her went her husband Antonio, Leslie Sosnowski from St. John's Church in Boulder, Jennie March-Aleu (Photo-Journalist), Aimee Heckel (Staff writer for the Boulder Daily Camera), and Warren Berggren, MD (Board member and Research Coordinator). Here are excerpts from Pat's trip report:
It was Carnaval time; and for the first time in three years, people were able to celebrate.So, in spite of Fr. Kesner's best intentions, both the school and women's center were closed on Monday and Tuesday.
This mission was the opportunity for Warren to begin the first survey for further program development, based on the criteria established for the UN Millennium Development Goals. To learn more, go to www.unmillenniaumproject.org/goals From my perspective, this was the most important part of the trip. It was also a personal opportunity for me to get a glimpse of how community development work begins. The high point for me was the moment I stepped into the classroom, just as Warren was ending his full day of teaching the women what the survey was about and how they could go out to collect the necessary information. The women stood up, sang a hymn, one woman offered a prayer and then they picked up their folders with surveys and sharpened pencils and walked out the door to begin their task.
Seven Cuban doctors came to stay with us during this three day period. This gave us the opportunity to learn more about their work in this region and how they are connected to the larger network of Cuban doctors in Haiti. Dr. Elieser Gonza- lez Reina and Alina Hernandez Sanchez, nurse, are currently living in the staff house at St. Paul's and providing ongoing medical care to the community. They are enthusiastic about making the connection with CHP and greatly appreciate having the medical supplies that were left by the January Medical Mission group. They can often feel quite isolated.
Our group included a team of journalist and photojournalist, Aimee Heckel and Jennie March-Aleu, who came to gather material for a series of articles in the Boulder Daily Camera. Leslie, Aimee and Jennie were able to take walks, visit people in their homes, visit the potential water sources, participate in a wonderful Sunday service, observe part of a community meeting and two teaching sessions about the survey, watch a soccer game, meet the women from the Couture class who were wearing the dresses (uniforms) which they had made. They got to dance in the streets of Petit Trou on the night of Carnaval, and do some coloring and play games with the children.
May Mission Sees Arrival of Microcredit at St. Paul's
Fonkoze Program Promises to Boost Local Economy
For me, the highlight of the mission week took place on Tuesday, watching 75 people from Petit Trou file into the 2nd grade classroom to hear a briefing by 3 loan officers from Fonkoze. This was a long-awaited milestone in the economic development of Petit Trou. Fonkoze is Haiti's premier microcredit agency, modeled on the Grameen "Banking for the Poor" model invented by Mohammad Yunus, winner of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize. Fonkoze makes very small unsecured loans to poor women in "solidarity groups" of five, who co-sign each other's loans and attend progress report meetings as a group. To pre-qualify, a client must take classes in literacy, business planning, budgeting, health care practices, and self- empowerment. Repayment rates average 98-99%. (to learn more, go to www.fonkoze.org)
Over two years ago, Fr. Kesner and Don Snyder began negotiations with Fonkoze to locate a satellite office at St. Paul's Mission. There is intense competition among Haitian communities to "land" a Fonkoze office. Persistence and the completion of our Women's Resource and Education Center convinced Fonkoze that we were committed long-term to the women of Petit Trou.
Although Mohammad Yunus is an economist who invented a radical banking strategy, he won the Nobel Prize in Peace, not Economics. Alternative banking for the poor is a tested means for an individual to pull herself out of hopeless poverty, the birthplace of violence. The genius of microcredit is combining the power of group support and accountability with the spirit of entrepreneurial individualism.
I felt privileged to be present at this first recruitment meeting. It was a special thrill to watch the faces of the women and see hope being born there. Throughout the meeting, I watched an elderly woman in the front row, who listened intently, nodding and smiling widely, as though decades of her experience were at last being validated.
MELISSA MAHANEY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Trinity Cathedral Boys Choir to Sing at Diocesan Convention
Appearances in Ft. Collins, Boulder, and Evergreen
Les Petits Chanteurs, the Boys Choir of Holy Trinity Cathedral Music School in Port-au-Prince, will be coming to Colorado October 5-8, 2007, as part of their U.S. tour. This renowned group consists of forty singers and a chamber orchestra of four violins, two violas, two cellos, a double bass, a flute and a tambour or drum. They will be touring the East Coast with a concert of Haitian music, stopping in areas with strong Haitian-American popula- tions, including Boston, Washington, D.C., New Jersey, New York, and Montreal. This year we have persuaded them to add Colorado to their tour before returning to Haiti, and are happy to announce that Les Petits Chanteurs will be singing at the opening Eucharist for the Colorado Episcopal Diocesan Convention, on Oct. 5th at St. John's Cathedral in Denver.
The purpose of this tour is to promote a better image of Haiti, to share Haitian music and culture with others, and to learn from other cultures. The Holy Trinity Music School currently enrolls about 1,000 students from all economic backgrounds and a teaching staff of 45 full and part-time professionals. It is the only music school of its kind in Haiti, and its orchestras and choral groups are a source of inspiration and hope to all who hear them. Proceeds from the concerts will support Holy Trinity Music School.
New Staff Housing and Guest Quarters Open
For the past few months, construction has gone forward to build staff housing units for the teachers, located as a second floor above the Women's Resource and Education Center. The staff housing provides lodging for teachers joining the faculty from Port-au-Prince. The new housing is also used by the Cuban doctors and nurse who now working at St. Paul's Mission.
When an Insight Trip group arrives, the rooms are lent to us as guest quarters. For those accustomed to sleeping in tents at the Mission, the guest quarters look like the Ritz! Imagine it - each locking room has two full beds (with sheets), a fan, screened windows, and an overhead light. There are two bathrooms, each with shower, sink and a flushing toilet. The external hallway is breezy and wide, perfect for late night sessions with a Prestige or two.
$100,000 Challenge Grant: it's a 50-50 Proposition IA
A MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
CHP has received a $100,000 commitment from an anony- mous donor in Durango, in the form of a "50-50" Challenge Grant to all of us. Here's the Challenge: your new gift will be matched if you divide it equally between the Konbit Program and the Three Bishops' Fund to complete the second floor of the school. Our anonymous donor is making a point for all of us: help expand the programs inside the school at the same time you help expand the building. Call or write me, or go to our website to take up the "50-50 Challenge."
Watching the Work in Progress
I've recently returned from my annual trip to Petit Trou, and the week was jammed with meetings and activities. But some of my most vivid memories are of standing in the grove of trees outside the half-built school, listening to classes going on inside and watching the workmen building the walls of the second floor classrooms. The students and teachers are accustomed to going on with the lessons while a truck unloads a large pile of gravel right outside their classroom door. At recess, the children dodge between the ladders and wheelbarrows, over the concrete chunks, unfazed. But I'm plenty fazed, stumbling through the gravel and rubble. Since there's no permanent roof, the rain collects in puddles along the first floor corridors and in the stairwells. If I could transport you to the same grove of trees, you would feel the same urgency to finish the school. What a milestone it will be!
A Virtual Visit to St. Paul's Mission
Go on an adventure with a long-time Konbit supporter who visited Petit Trou de Nippes for the first time last February. At our website, click on "Colorado Haiti Project Series" and then select the article titled "An Island of Stability."
MELISSA MAHANEY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Three Bishops' Fund Report
$50,000 needed to finish St. Paul's School Building
There is a Haitian Kreyol proverb that goes: "Pitit se riches maiere." It means: one's hope and riches lie in the future of one's children...
Since September 2006, CHP has raised an additional $36,100 through the Three Bishops' Fund for the construction of Phase II of St. Paul's School. Phase II will add the second floor and permanent roof, with 7 additional classrooms, a library and an administrative office. On completion, the two 30,000 gallon cisterns built during Phase I will be filled. The CHP Board of Directors recently voted to proceed with Phase II construction, while fund raising continues to raise the final $50,000 needed to finish the St. Paul's School Building.
On our May mission, we walked around the partially built second floor walls. You can visualize the seven additional classrooms, ad see where some of the windows will go in. There will be a fine view from the second floor. The teachers will have an extra office, and there will be a library for books and computers. Once the permanent roof is in place, there will be no more puddles in the first floor corridors, and rainwater will collect in the giant cisterns. Then all the children and teachers will have safe water to drink at their school. Looking down at the ground level, we could visualize the day when St. Paul's building is completed, and the grounds are cleared of gravel and cinder block. There will be set paths from the mission gates to the school building, so the children can stay out of the mud, and shady benches under the group of trees in front of the school.
But first, we need to raise the final $50,000 we need to complete the second floor. Please accelerate your pledge to the Three Bishops' Fund, if you can. If you have not yet contributed to the school building, won't you step forward now to help us finish the project by Thanksgiving?
2007-2008 MISSION TRIPS
- INSIGHT TRIP - September 21st - September 28th, 2007
- SCHOOL MISSION - October 11th - October 21st, 2007
- MEDICAL MISSION - January 17 - 28, 2008
- ENVIRONMENTAL MISSION - March 21st - March 31st, 2008
- INSIGHT TRIP - May 16th - May 23rd, 2008
- YOUTH MISSION - (16 and older) June 13th - June 22nd, 2008
What's New?
- The Colorado Haiti Project is moving! After July 1st, we'll be located at 1414 Arapahoe Avenue, Suite 208; Boulder, CO 80303, with the same phone number and same website.
- Sharon Caulfield has joined the CHP Board. Sharon is a Senior Partner of Caplan and Earnest, LLC, and is the Vice-Chancellor for the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado.
- The Rev. Ruth Woodliff-Stanley has joined the CHP Board. Ruth is a principal in AIR Consulting and Psychotherapy of Denver, and was called in May to become Priest-in-Charge of St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Denver.
- Michael Coffey has resigned his position as Treasurer of the CHP Board, to take a faculty position at the University of the South in Tennessee.
- Dr. Ted Lewis was given the Russell T. Tutt Award by the El Pomar Foundation at its 2006 El Pomar Awards for Excellence Program.
- Check website.October 5 -7 the Boys Choir of Saint Trinite Episcopal Cathedral in Port-au-Prince will be touring Colorado.