Rolling into February!

It's hard to believe we are already a full month into the new year, and 2015 is looking like it will be fabulous! We are so excited that we have two Britsionary groups booked each month, almost to year's end, and with exciting things happening with medical and dental initiatives for Be Like Brit, we are holding on for a busy, busy month!

This past week, we welcomed Amanda back to Haiti after a long weekend in Florida! Amanda was especially happy, not only because her beloved Patriots won the Superbowl, but because she got to celebrate it with her father ~ an equally avid fan of New England! Amanda's trip was delayed by two days, as a transportation strike in Haiti on Monday and Tuesday this past week had halted public transportation, making a drive from Port-au-Prince to Grand Goâve too unpredictable to chance it! I think she was happy to have two extra days of rest and relaxation, but I do know the awesome feeling it is to come back home to BLB! I think these smiles say it all!

It wasn't long before Amanda was back into the full swing of things! The children had missed her, and they were anxious to get back into Amanda's ABCMouse room! Amanda has managed this program for all of our children, and developed a great after-school enrichment program schedule which allows for daily use, at a minimum of 30 minutes each! Add guitar and piano lessons and English classes by Peterson in the mix, as well as their standard 2 hours of instruction and homework time, and our kiddos are definitely busy! Of course we know the importance of some good old-fashioned fun, and so free time and play is part of the day, every day! With all of the scooters and the few bicycles we have down here, it can get pretty chaotic! We do our best to "divide and conquer" and keep the children as safe as we can! Sometimes, though, accidents happen - just like in any house with children!

I was off this weekend and spent two days in Port, and yesterday morning received a call from Be Like Brit. One of our tiniest guys, Jean Roodly, had taken a spill on his bicycle (just trying to get on it!) and knocked his head on one of the columns in the building! Thanks to our great relationship with the Director of the local hospital, and our friendship with Dr. Anna Mirta, a Cuban Pediatrician who staffs the clinic, Peterson was able to bring Jean Roodly down for the two little stitches he needed! We're very proud of our little man and he's even prouder! Not more than 15 minutes after he returned from the clinic, Jean Roodly was running around the courtyard with a soccer ball, laughing and having fun! We do have helmets here, but we don't have enough! A future Wish List Wednesday item, for sure!

Here's our brave boy just shortly after getting two stitches!

We know he looks rough - but he was a trooper through the whole ordeal! If any of you feel like donating bike helmets for our kiddos (ages 2 to 16) feel free to drop them off at the 'OC' at 66 Pullman Street, Worcester, MA 01606! You may ship them there, too!

Don't think that your friends in Haiti haven't been following along with what many of you have endured this winter! Wow! We can't get over the amount of snow you've had, and as I write this, there's another one on the way! Being from Upstate New York, I've seen my friends and family back home dealing with temperatures well below zero! I will say that there are times that I would enjoy a nice snowfall, but feel assured that this winter is one that I am happy to have missed! Here we are in February, and Amanda continues to bring the children to the beach every Saturday (in two groups!), enjoying some of the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen! Jealous? You can certainly sign up to be a Britsionary and enjoy the beaches at Taino at least one day while you are here! 

Don't they look like they are having a blast?

As you know, we have recently been talking with UMASS Medical, trying to explore ways that we might be able to work together to bring some of the best health care available down to Be Like Brit! While we are still working on all the details, we are happy to announce that we will be hosting three medical personnel in the coming months from UMASS, and we can't wait for them to arrive! We will first welcome Dr. Michael Taylor later this month! With incidents like Jean Roodly's visit to the local hospital, it is so assuring to know that so many exceptional professionals in medicine are willing to give of their time and skills to the children of Haiti at Be Like Brit! 

Cherylann has been busy, too, working with Dr. Scott Siemen and his wife Katie, who have so graciously taken on the responsibility of heading up the dental clinic at Be Like Brit. In our 1200 square foot clinic, we have a dental chair, complete with all of the necessary tools and supplies we need to operate! Dr. Siemen and Katie have both been to Haiti and have seen first hand the extent of the need for proper dental care in the area! While our children are fortunate to have the benefits of proper hygiene and oral health care, that is an exception, not the rule! Through Scott and Katie's efforts, we've had dentists and hygienists down to Haiti three times already! This is huge for us and we can't thank them enough for all of their hard work!

CHILD SPOTLIGHT: Shilove

Shilove has only been with us at Be Like Brit since November. When Shilove came to us, she had been living with friends of the family following her mother's sudden illness and untimely death. Shilove was very shy and timid, and it definitely took a bit of time for her to warm up to us! Fortunately for us, many of our caregiver staff come from the same communities as our children do, and so Shilove quickly found a good friend in one of our part-time caregivers - Nadege. Nadege was actually Shilove's neighbor, and knew her well! A familiar face was all it took to get Shilove to open up, and she's a happy and spirited little girl who brings us so much joy and laughter!

Even in the short amount of time she has been with us, it's clear the benefits of Child Sponsorship and a clean environment with basic medical care! Just take a look at how much she's changed in just a few months!

We can't thank all of you enough for all you continue to do! We are truly humbled with the ongoing outpouring of love and support for these beautiful children! Thank you for helping us help the children of Haiti at Be Like Brit! Have a great week!

Amitye ~ Friendship

Ekip Amitye, or Team Friendship has been with us over the course of this past week! This great group was a sort of synthesis of a group of friends from Halifax and a group from the Boston area. We were blessed to have many returning Britsionarys, and new ones, too! The dynamics of merging two groups of people is always interesting, and this group solidified a great relationship as friends right out of the gate!

As is often the case, a family in great need was identified ahead of the Britsionary group's arrival to Haiti. This time, we found a mother and two young children living in absolute squalor - a 10X10 area of pieced together scraps of metal, wood, and tarp. The evening rains flooded the home, meaning often the family had to sleep outdoors under a tarp in order to avoid laying in mud - which was the floor of their 'home'. The coming rainy season would surely have wiped away the tenuous shelter, exposing the mother and her two young children to all of the elements. Here, you can see the happiness on their faces, while you can also see what was home just a week before in the background...

The end result is much more suitable for their needs, and we know it will keep them safe and secure for years to come...

Among the group were our great Canadian friends, returning from last year, Gillian and Judy! Gillian came down as our medical Britsionary and worked hard in the clinic! She spent some very long days checking up on our children and seeing almost everyone on our staff - as we are committed to not only our children but to our staff as well. Indeed, we are a family here at Be Like Brit and when we have a resource on hand to share, we do what we can! Judy has incredible organizational skills, too, and so I was so relieved when she offered to take care of some filing for me! They make a great team and we're so thankful for the Ambassadors we have in Jill and Judy ~ they have really brought Be Like Brit's message to Canada and as we grow, we look forward to hosting more and more groups from our friends and neighbors to the north!

As we discuss our friends and our commitment to community, I feel compelled to introduce you to a new addition to Be Like Brit. Two weeks ago, while on a weekend off in Port au Prince, my phone rang after 6pm. It was Gama. He called to tell me that the government entity in charge of the welfare of children was at Be Like Brit, and were asking us to assume the custody and care of a sixteen year old girl. My first response was to protest! "Our program is not designed for children of that age", I argued. "We are not obligated to accept any children from the government without a legal order", I continued. Yet as the inspector with the IBESR office began to explain the urgency of the situation, and essentially begged me to help, I made the decision.

We've enrolled our newest friend, and child number 67 in to Brit's Orphanage. Meet Aseline! She will be with us for a few months, and we want her to feel right at home. We're glad she has already said that here she feels safe and secure. When the government called just yesterday to check on her, I was proud to hear the official tell me how Aseline told him she feels right at home here, that it is a good place that is safe and that the children are very much loved. There's no better compliment to our collective efforts than the praises of a child!

While we welcomed Aseline a few weeks ago, we had to say goodbye to another friend at Be Like Brit! Most of you will remember that we brought Petit Bruno down to Haiti in September of 2014, just a puppy of 3 months at the time! Our thoughts were that having a dog would encourage some of the children to take responsibility. Who doesn't love a pet when you are a child!? Ti Bruno's presence here was very helpful for many of our children. Some of the more aggressive children seemed to find great pride in assuming the responsibility of him, and we noticed many behaviors improve just with this simple addition. Indeed, there is great value in having man's best friend around!

Of course we knew that this breed of dog would require some special attention in a place like Haiti. Not exactly the type of dog that does well here, we know of dozens of people who bring English Bulldogs in to Haiti. The veterinarian's office in Petionville told us of countless customers who own Bulldogs here, and so we figured we could keep him comfortable in the areas of the orphanage which are air conditioned.

This worked, but we soon learned that Bruno much preferred to be outside, running around with the children and playing! Given his breed, that just wasn't feasible, and so we made the tough decision to bring Bruno back to the United States so that he could run and be free no matter where he was! Our children understood, and were remarkably matter-of-fact about it. "So he can breathe better and be outside" one of the children said. There were a few tears at his departure, but we know Bruno is better off with Papi Len and having control of the whole house!

We can't thank the Animal Care Center in Petionville and Missionary Flights International enough for all of their help and professionalism in helping us get this not-so-petit Petit Bruno back to the United States!

Amanda left yesterday morning ahead of our group for a weekend in Florida. She says she went so that she could watch the Superbowl with her father (they are huge Patriots fans!), and we hope she has a great, recuperative weekend in the USA. I wonder what treats she will bring back for me? I mean, for the children!

It's unusually cool here in Haiti these past two days. Cloudy skies and afternoon rains, with a cool breeze sweeping up the mountain. It's the perfect time to grab some light blankets, put on a movie, and enjoy the quiet that comes with this kind of weather in Haiti. People tend to stop and while I know it's nothing like the blizzard our friends in the Northeast just endured, I like to think of it as our own kind of snow day.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend, and as always, thank you for helping us help the children of Haiti at Be Like Brit!