Choix Executive Director Laura Hartman and K1 DIRECT colleague Josiah survey a maternity and pediatric hospital that was destroyed by last month’s earthquake (Maniche, Haiti).
Update From Haiti
A 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck the Southwest region of Haiti on August 14, 2021, causing widespread property and infrastructure destruction, injuring more than 12,000 people, and claiming over 2,000 lives. The region was hit by storms from tropical depression Grace just a few days later and, according to the Haitian Civil Protection General Directorate, over 800,000 Haitians were impacted by these tragic events.
As we reported in our prior communication, Choix’s campus was spared but when Haitians suffer, our community suffers. We mean this statement both at a deeply empathetic level as well as a practical level. We have several staff members with family in the impact zone and they suffered significant property damage, and tragically some lost people who were close to them. We have dear friends who also have close family in that region, and who lost homes and more. Most in Haiti know someone who has experienced a loss.
Laura and Josiah meet with representatives from Samaritan’s Purse to learn about their water purification capabilities.
Our Executive Director, Laura Hartman, joined the front lines with the relief effort as part of a team deployed by K1 Britannia Foundation (based in Sint Maarten). In collaboration with World Hope International, GSD (Global Support & Development), the U.S. Military (SOUTHCOM), World Food Programme, USAID, Mission of Hope, other nonprofits, and local individuals, they assisted with emergency logistics at the Port-au-Prince airport, loading planes with much-needed items, including meals from Choix partner Feed My Starving Children, among other supplies that have been sent to Haiti for distribution.
Laura and others also flew south to meet with Choix board member Georgette Jean-Louis to conduct a needs assessment of the region just north of Les Cayes, including Maniche, Marcelin and Camp Perrin. They were able to gather first-hand accounts from survivors, which they then provided to key stakeholders so that assistance could be brought to the areas where it is most needed.
Working in partnership with colleagues from other NGOs, such as Rapid Response (Jonathan, left), supplies such as food, tents and tarps were air-lifted to southern Haiti from Port-au-Prince airport.
Many of us involved with Haiti or with Choix encounter people who have doubts about Haiti’s future. Some individuals have said to us that the need in Haiti is simply overwhelming and they feel discouraged that there is no quick fix to the problems that the country faces – whether due to natural disasters or other causes. Certainly, we understand the urge to support the country at this time through funding of relief efforts. But we also know that Haiti needs sustainable institutions for its long-term future success. So, while we acknowledge its present conditions, we continue to plan for a prosperous future.
These recent events – whether the assassination or the earthquake – do not deter us, our students or our staff from our mission. Instead, they serve to remind us of its profound importance.
Your partnership allows us to be here for our students – today and tomorrow.
Students and family members return to Choix’s campus this week to register and to receive their uniforms!
Back to School!
Speaking of “tomorrow,” our youngest students already have begun to arrive on campus to register for the beginning of our 10th year of operations! Choix’s faculty, staff and administration are so excited to welcome all of our students back to campus for classes on September 6th.
The summer was a bit tumultuous, in particular, for our 9th grade Choix graduates, who are required to sit for Haiti’s mandatory exams. Following the president’s assassination on July 7th, those national exams were delayed slightly but not cancelled. Choix had planned to continue helping our students to prepare throughout the summer period and, though the circumstances and environment had changed, we fulfilled our commitment to continue study club through the participation of four of our Choix faculty. All of our 9th grade students sat for the examinations and we await their results.
Choix’s Nurse Nancy and Nurse Jeaniel review local COVID-19 case data and information on a daily basis while continuing to strategize about our campus pandemic prevention protocols. Our students’ return to Choix is a critical moment for our nurses to evaluate their overall health following the summer away from campus.
Since that time, we have been preparing our campus diligently to ensure that all pandemic protocols are in place, that Choix’s campus is ready for student registration, and so our students can begin their new school year safely and with their full attention to their studies.
We want to thank all of you who have been our partners all along, who sponsor our students and support our graduates through scholarships, and those of you who already have contributed recently – in addition – to partner with us through these particularly difficult times! For those of you who agree with us that sustainable institutions like Choix represent a positive pathway for Haiti’s future, and that quality education is the means by which it will get there, please consider partnering with us in our work for our next decade through a contribution today
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