Like A Local!

It's not easy being a 6' tall bald-headed white man in Haiti.  People tend to notice you.  They tend to point and yell "blan! blan!" - which is to be expected.  After all, who am I to them?  Why on earth am I here?  Sometimes I wonder what locals think when they see me driving through their city streets, or walking through their communities, almost always escorted by one or two Haitians, clipboard in hand, looking for children we have heard about in need.  I wonder how they feel about my presence - do they like me?  Do they hate the fact that I'm combing their neighborhoods?  Are they largely indifferent towards me?  Do they wonder if I'm a Missionary or if I'm someone there looking to give money to a large-scale project?  All of these questions run through my mind on an almost regular basis.  I certainly have never felt like a local.  Yesterday, however, I did something for the first time that made me feel more "local" than anything else I have done so far while in Haiti:  I went to the market!

(Photo credit: Thony Belizaire/AFP/Getty Images).

Those of you who have traveled the world and visited these open-air markets know that there's nothing quite as hectic and lively as the public market in any given town.  Having only the markets in Rwanda to compare this experience to, I expected to be swarmed by merchants and market-goers alike, pulled in different directions, asked to buy lots of items - hear things like "good price for you blan", etc.  Imagine my surprise when none of this happened!  Sure, there were stares and a few people who chose to follow me fairly closely, but there was none of the overwhelming inundation of pressure and attention that I found to be the case in any public market I visited in Kigali.  I even ran into a few familiar faces, people who called me out by name!  I couldn't resist carrying the 50 lb. bag of rice on my head as we walked back out of the chaos towards National Route 2 (still chaotic!) where my car sat waiting to carry me and the two market-goers I had joined back up the hill.  That sight alone earned much more comments, gawks, stares, and laughter than any other throughout the experience.  I may have been caught up in the excitement of it all, or perhaps searching for something deeper where perhaps everything was at face value - but for the first time since my arrival to Haiti I felt more like a local than I ever had previously.  It was a very awesome sensation.

Then, there are experiences like this:

Earlier this week, Rosenie and I received a phone call from a man who claimed to know of some thirty children who were true orphans and in desperate need of assistance.  He claimed to know of Be Like Brit through an employee of ours, and so reached out and asked us if we would make the 20 minute or so drive to the neighboring town to meet these children and the adults with whom they were living to see if we might be able to help them at all.  We agreed to meet him at 9am, which, let's be honest, could mean anywhere between 9am and 10am in Haiti.  Naturally, the man needed some phone minutes transferred from my phone to his so that he could make the arrangements and call each of the respective families.  Given that he only asked for 20 goudes (about 50 cents) I didn't really hesitate.

Rosenie and I set off with one of our security guards towards Petit Goâve on time, me at the wheel.  As we approached the predetermined spot, Rosenie made a phone call to announce our arrival.  Her tone immediately shifted from professional and very matter of fact to stern and authoritative.  While I am somewhat impressed with my Haitian Creole language skills, I wasn't able to catch everything that was exchanged.  I did, however, decipher that the man we were to meet was not where he said he would be.  Instead, he was a bit further West, in a town he failed to mention before, and asked if we could just drive there to meet him.

We obliged, irritated, but hey, it's Haiti, and if you get easily irritated you may not want to visit.  Plans change, specifics and details are sometimes lost in translation or just held to a different standard than we uptight, by-the-minute scheduling Westerners consider important.  We laughed a bit - even more so when we found the radio station blaring the Backstreet Boys as we all sang along.

We then arrived at this next town.  Rosenie made the call - and again, I listened as her tone changed, this time coupled with a drastic increase in modulation.  She was flat out screaming at this guy - and I found it to be quite hilarious!  It seemed, yet again, that he was not in the town he told us he was in, but instead, just "a little bit further" down the road.  As I picked up on some choice phrases and expressions she had for this man, we decided to call the drive and time a loss, and head back to Grand Goâve.

Rosenie was ready to fight! 

Frustration and annoying days are what you make of them anywhere, but in Haiti, there's almost always an option A, B, or C to turn to.  We did just that, and because of our morning frustration and the wild goose chase we found ourselves on, we were able to stop off and make a different visit.  The home of Fredo, Kerby and Davidson, our newest three children here at Be Like Brit.  I don't often travel with enrollment documents in my bag, but that day I had, anticipating that from this supposed group of 30 orphans we would be enrolling at least a few.  So, while frustrated and having racked up a few miles on the car, our day did not end without some awesome results.  We welcomed our three newest boys home to Be Like Brit that afternoon, long before Rosenie had a chance to take any swings at the deceitful man who was leading us all over Haiti.

Fredo, Kerby, and Davidson - with a Rosenie much happier than just a few hours earlier! :)

We had taken a few weeks off from bringing children in to allow for our first group to adjust and establish a routine.  We can't believe it that we are already 1/3 of the way towards our goal of 66 children!!!

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention another wonderful thing that happened this week here at Be Like Brit.  For those of you who have followed us, you know we are blessed with some very talented professionals who volunteer their time and money to help us in all sorts of different ways.  If you've been a faithful follower of our Facebook page (we have over 13,000 now!) you absolutely have heard how wonderful it is that we have a 60,000kw generator as emergency backup for the all-too-common rolling blackouts we are faced with here in Grand Goâve.  Until this week, that generator was housed in a storage room inside the building.

Greg and Chris Love!

Greg Smith has been one of those wonderful people.  After 6 trips in to Haiti to help with electrical projects at Be Like Brit, Greg came back to help us with the very important and difficult task of moving this generator to a secured outbuilding.  We decided to move the generator for several reasons - including needing the space to store all of the wonderful donations all of our friends and supporters continue to send.  It's also, as you may imagine, a very loud machine when it runs.  We wanted to keep the environment inside Brit's Orphanage as free from noise pollution (and the smell of diesel!) as possible.  Greg flew down specifically to help us with this gargantuan task!  We can't thank him enough!  Now, when the power is out, we don't even realize it, as the generator kicks on and is far enough away from the building that we can't even hear it over the hum of the ceiling fans and the chirping of crickets!

A new home for the generator!

What's wrong, Chris Love?

Ok, come with me buddy!

"Must you take so many pictures!?" 

Again, it's been another week of blessing for us here at Be Like Brit.  We continue to work hard to provide the best home and environment for our children to grow and learn - and another "first" for me this week was being the "parent" at school on report card day, collecting 20 "carnet scholaires" for all of Brit's Children enrolled at the school at Mission of Hope International.  To say I was nervous is an understatement.  I found it a bit comical when Renèe Edmee came up to me and said, "in a sea of all of these heads, your white shiny head sticks out a bit!"  Indeed, it did.  And while some of our children have room for improvement, we couldn't be more proud at their ability to perform as well as they did given the drastic changes in their lives in such a short period of time.

For most of our children, their first day of school ever in their lives was after January 21, 2013, when they came home to Be Like Brit.  Having been removed from their homes, brought to a new place filled with new people, new rules, new expectations, and enrolled into school almost immediately, I believe firmly that our children are doing amazingly well.  We have one more term before the end of the school year, and each of our children knows they have a bit of work to do.  Like any parent, though, they know that as long as they work and they try, we will be beaming with pride - and amazed at how well they have adapted and adjusted to a life so unlike that which they were living before.

Kervins and his report card! (He's VERY good at drawing squares, by the way!) :) 

Saradina!

Sherly!

Thanks for reading, all.  We'll see you next week!

Jonathan

Back to Work!

Mariette poses proudly with the Easter cake she made for the children here at Be Like Brit!

Easter Sunday started like most mornings here at Be Like Brit do.  As the roosters started to crow and the chirping of birds began to fill the air, the sounds of the children rising from their slumbers mixed in.  From my room in Be Like Brit, I listened carefully as the children exchanged words filled with excitement:  "It's Easter Sunday!", or "my new dress is so beautiful!" - Indeed, there is an anticipation and an excitement in the voices of these children that is so refreshing and so rejuvenating.  They wear this anticipation and excitement openly on their faces each and every day.

Ready for Church!

I just returned to Haiti and to BLB after my first week off after 3 months here as Program Director.  I can't really believe it.  Here we are, swiftly moving into April, and the changes in my own life are far too many to count.  My own reality between September 19, 2012 when I applied for this position up to today is one that I still can't quite grasp entirely.  Five months ago I was working in the Sociology department of a state university, teaching undergraduate classes to some very well-off (mostly) American teenagers, and today by 8a.m. I've spent two hours helping orphaned children in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere get ready for church in their donated clothes with smiles more genuine than any I have seen before.  It's quite a shift from life in the States.

We take so many things for granted.  I think that may be what struck me the most during my visit home last week.  Surrounded by family, friends, food, drink, all of those comforts of home we in the developed world "need" in order to survive.  A hotel bed, king sized of course; wifi a necessity; a rental car (because who wants to walk in the cold!) - all of these things seem so wasteful when you return back to a place like Haiti.  While I don't fault myself or any of us who know this as our own realities, it really is so trivial and so selfish to think we need any of those things.  That's something that Haiti has taught me, we really don't need much.  We just need to know different.

I definitely feel a bit rejuvenated after my first week off.  Part of my contract mandates that every three months I take a week to avoid burnout and fatigue.  This is a good thing, really, because Haiti demands the most from a person both mentally and physically - especially in a position like mine.  Living where you work brings a whole new meaning to being dedicated to your job, and the children at Be Like Brit mean very much to me like I imagine my own children would.  Watching things happen here at Be Like Brit on Facebook while I was away was so strange for me - and being removed from it only underscored how much these kids mean to me.

Rolson, Alexander, Kervins, Medlens, and Whenly (L-R)

I was so blessed my last two weeks in Haiti before my vacation to have Debra Pallatto-Fontaine on hand, as well as a visit from my cousin, Giovanina.  Debbie is a member of our Program Committee, and she wears many different hats!  Debbie is a Minister and an educator.  Her expertise and guidance over her two week stay was invaluable to our staff and children here at Be Like Brit.  Through caregiver training, modeling of behaviors, helping to implement schedules and routines, and her overall guidance have made life a bit less chaotic and much more ordered!  Our caregivers and our staff alike miss Debbie already, and we can't wait for her return again this spring to lend another hand in her gentle, patient, and generous way.

Debbie with Saradina and Kervins

My cousin Giovanina Bucci from Plattsburgh, NY decided to spend her spring break from her master's program in School Psychology here at Be Like Brit.  Part of me is convinced it's because she missed me so very much (Ha!) but I also know how excited she was to get the chance to work with the children here!  Giovanina and I are cousins, but we are and have been inseparable for as long as I can remember.  Something like kindred spirits comes to mind - At any rate, Giovanina wasted no time in jumping right in with our children, bringing along with her hundreds of dollars worth of art supplies, paint, brushes, paper, etc., so that she could share her talents and skills with Brit's children.  For those of you who missed it, she and one of our own caregivers, Willman LaGuerre, were able to paint an incredible mural in our courtyard - in just two days!  This mural has brightened up an area in the orphanage where the children spend much of their time playing, and together they produced a magnificent and culturally relevant piece of art which will remain on these walls for years to come! Bon Travay!

Willmann and Giovanina work hard on their mural which now brings new life to the courtyard at Be Like Brit!

During my week off, of course I attended to some business.  I am fortunate to Skype with members of the Program Committee every week back in the States to seek their advice and guidance on a whole range of issues I run in to on a regular basis.  From sponsorship policies, to visitors, rules, discipline, staffing, issues with children, etc., I have unwavering support from our Program Committee which includes a nurse, child psychologists, a priest, a minister, college professors, and more!  After a few days back in my hometown, where I was lucky enough to visit the 4th grade classroom of a good friend to talk about Be Like Brit and after visiting and catching up with my amazing and supportive family and friends, I set off for Boston to meet with a few members of the Program Committee.

While they are all important and valuable assets to me, I speak most regularly with Christine Steinwand, Len's older sister and the Chair of the Program Committee.  Chris and I Skype two times a week - sometimes for just a few minutes, sometimes for more than an hour.  Chris is a great source of support and guidance for me - and so meeting up with her while I was up north was wonderful!  Along with Susan Johnson and Suzanne Brady, we had a great dinner and evening together.  We even ran into Bernie Gengel while we were out grabbing dessert from Modern Bakery in Boston's North End.  I think it's safe to say we were all pretty content that night!

Susan Johnson and I in Boston

Suzanne Brady and Christine Steinwand, Program Committee members (and dinner dates extraordinaire!)

Blurry, but group!

While in Boston, I was even able to meet up with Tim and Mike, Team Leaders from the St. John's Group of Britsionarys we had here back in February!  We went out for dinner and had a great evening catching up! It was so nice to see that the relationships we formed while they were here as Britsionarys carried over into life after the fact.  The next night, two of the students, Tim and Quinn drove out to Boston from Shrewsbury to say hello and catch up, too!  These trips are about more than just coming to Haiti and doing some work - they are about forming lasting friendships and connections and common bonds - and seeing these guys put forth the effort to meet up was so awesome!

So, after some brainstorming and some rest (okay - a LOT of rest - gotta love those king-sized beds, the ones with the pillow tops - worth every penny!) it's time to get back to work!  As most of you know, we have 20 children.  Our goal is to bring another 12 children in by the end of May.  This, of course, requires us to bring in and train an entire new group of caregivers.  Rosenie and I will begin the process of identifying children and families in need, venturing our into the community to visit and interview them, and making those tough decisions all over again.  This time, however, I will have the benefit of some practice and some experience - and definitely the advantage of speaking enough Creole to know when I am being talked about!  This round will be different.  As the number of children grows here at Be Like Brit, my role shifts.  As much as I love being hands on with the children and being a part of their every day lives, I know realistically that working in that capacity is not sustainable nor is it in the best interest of the children who will call Be Like Brit home.

As I shift a bit and delegate more responsibility and autonomy to our caregivers, I do so with some anxiety.  I know with the help of my co-director Gama (Mr. Incredible, indeed!) and through supports from the Program Committee that in just a few months I will likely be reminiscing and exclaiming my disbelief that we now have 32 children - how I can't believe it was only January 21st when we brought our first child home to Be Like Brit - how I can't believe what little hair I have left hasn't fallen out!  I know the support and prayers from all of you who have been so good to Be Like Brit will help along the way, too!

We have lots of exciting new things in the works at Be Like Brit! I'm in the process of working out relationships with several U.S. universities who are considering Be Like Brit as a placement for graduate level social work and public health students.  We have other long-term volunteer (Britsionary) applications in the works, projects being considered, and networking and collaborations in progress.

Stay tuned for some great new happenings here in Haiti - and remember that it's only because of the support and generosity of our friends and the hard work of those committed to our cause that these wonderful things are possible.

Happy Easter! Please enjoy some photos from our Easter Egg Hunt, and stay tuned for more exciting updates!

Thanks for reading,
Jonathan

How many eggs did we hide in the toy box?

Nashca is looking!

Sherly found her two!

Loobens!

Saradina ignores an attempted high five from Giovanina! Ha!

Saradina found her two eggs!

Ephesiens is all smiles!

Gotta love that Love na! 

Shnaider is proud!

Mirna!

Whenly!

Socrate!

Daphney!

Madame Sintana wanted in on the hunt, too. Tisk, tisk!

Caregiver Carline snuck in on the hunt after Sintana! 

Three Months On...

Sometimes it's hard to believe that I have been here in Haiti working for Be Like Brit for 3 months.  In so many ways the time has flown, while in others it feels like I've been here all along.  As I prepare to take my first week off, I wanted to reflect a bit on what has happened here in this building, in this community, and the impact this experience has had on my own life.

The 'B' from above, October 2012.

For those of you who don't know where I came from and why I am here, I'll start by telling you that never in my life would I have imagined I would find myself living and working in Haiti.  I first got in to international work back in 2001 when I went to work in international business, spending much of the year working and traveling all throughout Asia.  I loved so much about the travel - new places, new cultures, new friendships.  As my work in China's manufacturing sector went on, I started to struggle with the conditions factory workers were forced to spend their days and nights in.  Finally giving way to my conscience, I left my job in Asia and returned to my hometown to go back to school.

A few years later, I ended up in graduate school at Tulane University in New Orleans, LA.  I chose to pursue a master's degree in social work, as my commitment to issues of social justice and human rights naturally led me in that direction.  I chose Tulane because in a post-Katrina environment, the need was great for people looking to do the kind of work I hoped to get involved with.  The city of New Orleans had always fascinated me; a unique blend of cultures coexisting in an environment not quite like any other place in the U.S.  Tulane offered an accelerated program and offered the chance to concentrate in global social work and development.  All of these options attracted me to the program.  After my first year of grad school, I applied to Tulane's select global social work program and found myself placed at an orphanage in Kigali, Rwanda, where I was to assist the staff social worker with the development of a social services program.

Me with some of the boys from the Rwandan Orphans Project in Kigali

My experience in Rwanda sparked something inside of me, and from the moment I arrived there, I knew I wanted to do this type of work - international setting with a vulnerable population.  After my final semester of grad school in Rwanda, I returned to New Orleans, graduated, and took a position as a lecturer in the Department of Sociology with the State University of New York system.

In September of 2012, I started to feel that overwhelming desire and need to "get out" - to get out of my comfort zone and find something which would challenge me.  I so wanted to work with a sense of purpose and appreciation.  Social Work in the United States doesn't always foster a sense of thanks - in fact, it seems in our "developed" society, we've managed to bury all the good effort in piles of paperwork, red tape, and unwieldy bureaucracy.  I wanted to be somewhere on the ground and working hands on.  As I started my job search, I came across an opening with Be Like Brit.  I applied and hoped for the best.  A month later, Len and Cherylann brought me in to Haiti to check out the orphanage and interview.  A week after that trip, I signed my 3 year contract!

Signing my 3 year contract!

I finished the year out teaching, and in the midst of a massive snow storm, flew out of Burlington, VT on December 26, 2012.  20 hours later, I had arrived at Brit's Orphanage in Grand Goâve - only this time, it was to stay.

Since then, I've been so fortunate to come to know so many amazing people.  From the Gengels to our staff, friends, supporters, and members of the community, each new relationship makes Haiti feel a bit more like home.  The work that I am doing here is not easy - it requires so many different skills and qualities - some of which I have and some of which I need to improve upon.  The learning curve is certainly present, and no two days in Haiti are ever the same.  Perhaps that is what I love the most - new challenges requiring new approaches and new resources.  Living where you work of course brings with it its own stresses and demands, and so when Len and Cherylann insisted that I take a break every three months, I felt encouraged by their keen awareness to things like burnout and fatigue.

Looking back over these 3 months, I can't really believe how much we as an organization have achieved.  We started the year by having our opening and dedication ceremony, successfully hosting over 60 friends from the States and around 40 guests from Haiti.  After the craziness and chaos from that weekend wore off, we welcomed our first child, Kervins, on Brit's birthday!

Kervins! 

In the past three months, I have personally interviewed 60 families with children they were hoping to have brought in to Be Like Brit.  This has been done through community outreach - using contacts and stakeholders in the community to help us identify families in need and some of the most vulnerable children in the area.  From these 60 families, we have brought 20 children home to Be Like Brit.  We are almost a third of the way there - and it's incredible to me that we have come this far in just 2 months! As our family has grown, our staff has too - and we now have 34 full-time staff helping us to maintain and manage Be Like Brit in Haiti.

As the Program Director, I am responsible for all things related to the children.  This includes the staff that works with them and our visitors and Britsionarys who want to spend time with them.  While boundaries are important, I can't help but feel very personal about these children - with the help of Rosenie I'm the one who has found these children, met their families, visited their homes, and ultimately decided to bring them in to Be Like Brit.  They are all of our sons and daughters - but I have a unique emotional connection to them and a sense of duty to protect them.  It makes doing good work all the more important when it comes to these kids.

Kervins and Love na - our youngest two!

I recently finished the book, Heartache and Hope in Haiti.  I had to pinch myself as I sat on the roof of the building and read the final chapter - in disbelief that I am such an integral part of the Be Like Brit Orphanage.  It's such an awesome project.  It's so inspiring and offers so much hope to not only those children who will call Be Like Brit home, but to anyone who has faced loss or tragedy.  The ability of the human spirit to persevere and grow and the nature of good people are all represented at Be Like Brit. To be a part of it is truly humbling.

I'm looking forward to my week off and being able to share my excitement and stories with my friends and family. At the same time, I am anxious about leaving and will miss each of those precious faces every day!  I understand the value of a break, and a place like Haiti definitely requires them.  After working hard for 3 months with no days off, I most look forward to sleeping in a day or two!

Thanks for reading! See you all next week!
Jonathan

Community Building

Students from Becker College and Boston University work on a house in Grand Goâve, Haiti, as part of their Britsionary service trip

This past week, we at Be Like Brit were fortunate enough to host a group of 22 students and faculty from both Becker College and Boston University through our Britsionary program.  This was our first group of this size and our first venture into hosting a group coming from two different places.  Being able to brings these two groups together to work towards a common goal proved that despite where we come from and what differences we may have, we all can be a force in strengthening communities together.

We started out the week with some intense labor, in true Britsionary fashion.  As many of you know, we at Be Like Brit are committed to community enrichment and reciprocity - giving back to those who have given so much of themselves throughout the process of building Be Like Brit and helping us to feel welcome here in Grand Goâve.  Part of this community enrichment piece is reaching out to a local family or two and identifying a need, brainstorming, and together with the family deciding how we can best serve them.  This week we were able to join forces and help two families in very simple but very meaningful ways.

Gama, our "Clerk of the Works" helps secure tarps to keep the house dry during Haiti's heavy rains

With the help of Gama, our groups were able to find two families in need.  Many families live in one and two room "houses" made up of little more than sticks, banana leaves and mud.  With the rainy season just around the corner, Gama thought it would be helpful to help make two of these houses a bit more secure by wrapping them in tarps and rope in order to protect the children and families inside.  These tarps cost little more than $20.00 each, but would otherwise be unobtainable for the families to whom they now provide added shelter.

While our groups were busy building relationships with members from the community, it was also great to see how these two groups sort of became one throughout the course of their Britsionary experience.  It's not always easy to bring large numbers of people together in a place which demands so much from you both emotionally and physically.  These two groups of college students, along with several faculty members did a great job at coming to Haiti to do the kind of work that Brit felt so passionate about!

The end result!

Securing the walls.

 The two groups took things beyond just protecting the family and their house from the elements! While touring their respective houses, the students noticed that neither family had proper table and chairs for dining, and asked if the families could benefit from this sort of contribution.  After it was decided that this would be useful, the teams went out and purchased the necessary supplies to build each of the families they were helping a much needed table and chairs.  They even built a crib for one of our security guards who recently had a baby and was sleeping on the floor!  It's this kind of work that makes all of us here at Be Like Brit proud and exactly the kind of project that keeps Brit's spirit alive and strong!

A very proud group!

Another part of our Britsionary program includes the building of a given number of homes per year in the community of Grand Goâve.  This year, we have plans to build four houses!  Our groups from Becker and Boston University helped with an important first step:  Building a security wall!  The groups started by loading blocks by hand into the pickup truck, hauling them up the mountain, and laying them out one by one. This is an arduous and labor intensive task!  Aside from the unforgiving Haiti sun, the group found themselves up against a mighty force.  Tarantulas! Our Haitian crews got a good laugh at watching the students scatter every time they found one - which was rather often!

Blocks (and spiders!) 

We're very proud of our Britsionary groups!  Every group we host is different.  Some get along great, some take longer to warm up to each other and form a sense of group identity.  These two groups of young adults had quite a few differences - yet as the week progressed, the common bond they shared allowed them to form an organic solidarity - a natural transformation born out of the desire to serve others less fortunate.  Through their compassion, their differences were set aside, and the work they did delivered real, necessary and lasting change to families a world away.  Indeed, their presence here in Grand Goâve from a far away place will not soon be forgotten.  We are so very grateful to them for their service, and their commitment to "Be Like Brit".

For more information on our short-term or long-term Britsionary programs, please go to our website at www.belikebrit.org/britsionary

Please enjoy some more photos from the week, and as always, thanks for reading!

Jonathan