This past week, we welcomed Cherylann, Father John Madden, our good friend and rock star Britsionary and Operations Center volunteer Lauren, along with our friend Rae Ann and her son Max to Haiti for one of our post-Hurricane Matthew-specific build-a-home trips. The group while small in numbers had a huge impact on an area of Grand Goâve hit especially hard by Matthew - the area near the coast, at Taino Beach.
The community that lives on the only road that heads down to Taino is especially vulnerable, as they are either just barely located above sea level. Again, while we in Grand Goâve were spared the most destructive forces that Hurricane Matthew brought to Haiti, there was no shortage of flooding along the coast and the lower-lying areas, and the family in need this past week was no exception. The rains entered their dirt-floor home, and the standing water turned the floor to mud, rendering the home inhabitable. When our friend Father Brice from the St. François Parish approached Be Like Brit, we knew we had to help! Even more fitting, St. François is the Sister Parish to St. John's of Worcester, and so having our friend and Board Member Father Madden along for this trip was especially serendipitous. What better way for the two forces to come together than through a build-a-home trip in Haiti just weeks after a major disaster?
It was wonderful to see how this group took charge and in just two full work days was able to construct a safe, hurricane reinforced home with a concrete pad as a floor, walls securely anchored in cement, and roof strapped to resist the next threatening winds and rains that will inevitably, again, come. Our commitment to Haiti and to providing jobs for our community is clear, and this week we were able to employ an additional 15 laborers for this and other construction projects we have ongoing. The evolution of our Britsionary program and the changes we've implemented from our first days operating after our own construction was completed are nothing short of amazing. What started out as a "fix a home" program has evolved, and we're not just building in our community, but we're developing our community, too - both in neighborhoods and in economy.
You may have noticed recently that when possible, we are sending some of our older children (boys and girls!) to work alongside our Britsionarys. As our children grow, and as we work with them more closely in terms of setting short-term goals and even in some cases life goals, we are learning so much about them, as they are about themselves! Fredo came to us recently and asked us if he could start to work alongside some of our carpenters, as he felt like that was something he was interested in learning. As Fredo is one of our 5 boys at the Be Like Brit Academy, we thought it was perfect to work in some professional/vocational training to his standard academics. A very generous friend learned this, and got Fredo a proper tool-belt, hammer, work gloves, and steel-toed boots! He worked right alongside the group over these two days, and his sense of pride and accomplishment is clear! He event took on the skill saw, under the close guidance and instruction of our job foreman, Nico!
I love that Nico started out with us as a laborer, became a caregiver who went through dozens of child-development trainings over the course of two years, and now is working as a foreman on our job sites. Who better than to work alongside our children as they age in to these areas of interest. This is just another way how at Be Like Brit, we're working to raise the standard of child care in the developing world. Not many programs can make the claim that their carpenters have gone through years of professional development training! We are so proud of the work we're doing here, and it's only possible because of the generosity of incredible individuals from all over the world!!!
The final house blessing was a beautiful event, with Fathers Madden and Brice on-hand to give the home the appropriate Catholic rite. So much good can come from people intent on making a difference, and this week was no exception. We are blessed to know such incredible people and to call them friends.
It occurred to me as I flew back to Haiti last week from a vacation in Santo Domingo that in just over a month, I'll mark four full years with Be Like Brit! Wow! With Cherylann here, we laughed until we cried at some of the earliest days, at some of our more challenging moments, and at how naive I once was - not understanding Haiti, not understanding the history and the nuances of culture and every day life here. It is fair to say that we've all grown in ways that we never imagined we would - and that all of the difficulties and hardships - whatever struggles they may have brought us - have all been life lessons from which we've learned, adjusted, adapted, and persevered. Much like our Haitian friends and family, with Hope, Faith, and Love, we evolve.
Just yesterday, Meghan lead a group of Britsionarys down to undertake another task - another home, in just two days! Together with Lauren (who stayed on from the previous trip, and who we're not sure we're going to be able to get rid of!), Nikki, Maggie, Alicia, and our own Madame Amanda, we know it's going to be another opportunity for us to pay it forward. Stay tuned for updates!
As always, thank you for helping us help the children - and the people - of Haiti through Be Like Brit!!!
The community that lives on the only road that heads down to Taino is especially vulnerable, as they are either just barely located above sea level. Again, while we in Grand Goâve were spared the most destructive forces that Hurricane Matthew brought to Haiti, there was no shortage of flooding along the coast and the lower-lying areas, and the family in need this past week was no exception. The rains entered their dirt-floor home, and the standing water turned the floor to mud, rendering the home inhabitable. When our friend Father Brice from the St. François Parish approached Be Like Brit, we knew we had to help! Even more fitting, St. François is the Sister Parish to St. John's of Worcester, and so having our friend and Board Member Father Madden along for this trip was especially serendipitous. What better way for the two forces to come together than through a build-a-home trip in Haiti just weeks after a major disaster?
It was wonderful to see how this group took charge and in just two full work days was able to construct a safe, hurricane reinforced home with a concrete pad as a floor, walls securely anchored in cement, and roof strapped to resist the next threatening winds and rains that will inevitably, again, come. Our commitment to Haiti and to providing jobs for our community is clear, and this week we were able to employ an additional 15 laborers for this and other construction projects we have ongoing. The evolution of our Britsionary program and the changes we've implemented from our first days operating after our own construction was completed are nothing short of amazing. What started out as a "fix a home" program has evolved, and we're not just building in our community, but we're developing our community, too - both in neighborhoods and in economy.
You may have noticed recently that when possible, we are sending some of our older children (boys and girls!) to work alongside our Britsionarys. As our children grow, and as we work with them more closely in terms of setting short-term goals and even in some cases life goals, we are learning so much about them, as they are about themselves! Fredo came to us recently and asked us if he could start to work alongside some of our carpenters, as he felt like that was something he was interested in learning. As Fredo is one of our 5 boys at the Be Like Brit Academy, we thought it was perfect to work in some professional/vocational training to his standard academics. A very generous friend learned this, and got Fredo a proper tool-belt, hammer, work gloves, and steel-toed boots! He worked right alongside the group over these two days, and his sense of pride and accomplishment is clear! He event took on the skill saw, under the close guidance and instruction of our job foreman, Nico!
I love that Nico started out with us as a laborer, became a caregiver who went through dozens of child-development trainings over the course of two years, and now is working as a foreman on our job sites. Who better than to work alongside our children as they age in to these areas of interest. This is just another way how at Be Like Brit, we're working to raise the standard of child care in the developing world. Not many programs can make the claim that their carpenters have gone through years of professional development training! We are so proud of the work we're doing here, and it's only possible because of the generosity of incredible individuals from all over the world!!!
The final house blessing was a beautiful event, with Fathers Madden and Brice on-hand to give the home the appropriate Catholic rite. So much good can come from people intent on making a difference, and this week was no exception. We are blessed to know such incredible people and to call them friends.
It occurred to me as I flew back to Haiti last week from a vacation in Santo Domingo that in just over a month, I'll mark four full years with Be Like Brit! Wow! With Cherylann here, we laughed until we cried at some of the earliest days, at some of our more challenging moments, and at how naive I once was - not understanding Haiti, not understanding the history and the nuances of culture and every day life here. It is fair to say that we've all grown in ways that we never imagined we would - and that all of the difficulties and hardships - whatever struggles they may have brought us - have all been life lessons from which we've learned, adjusted, adapted, and persevered. Much like our Haitian friends and family, with Hope, Faith, and Love, we evolve.
Just yesterday, Meghan lead a group of Britsionarys down to undertake another task - another home, in just two days! Together with Lauren (who stayed on from the previous trip, and who we're not sure we're going to be able to get rid of!), Nikki, Maggie, Alicia, and our own Madame Amanda, we know it's going to be another opportunity for us to pay it forward. Stay tuned for updates!
As always, thank you for helping us help the children - and the people - of Haiti through Be Like Brit!!!
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