Heading to Haiti

Seems like ages since I was in Haiti, but to put a timeline on it, I was there during Tropical Storm Sandy that then moved up the coast and devastated the northeast coastline as Hurricane Sandy. Much has happened since then and this trip will be for 10 days starting April 14^th. Here is a list of the projects to be worked on when I get there:

1. Meet with the 8 teachers at the Marmalade School. We need to listen to their needs, both personal and professional. We still pay below market, so these teachers pay a price to work at the school. They are a real blessing.
2. Next we visit the school where we now send our kids after they complete the 6^th grade at the Marmalade school. We now have five students in the 7^th grade. We pay this school a fee for teaching each of our students. This is my first visit and the beginning of what I hope will be a long-term relationship to get our kids through high school.  A high school education is step one to becoming an employable and productive citizen in Haiti.
3. Inspect Pastor Villen’s new home that is almost complete. The walls, roof, floor, doors and windows are all in place. A few more details and it will be completely finished. Very exciting! It is amazing that since Tropical Storm Sandy, Pastor Villens has gone from homeless to homeowner.
4. We will visit the gardens we provided garden irrigation kits to on the last trip. We will sample the soil to see if we can improve the soil and their production from the gardens. I am bringing soil sample kits with me. Hopefully we can help them grow more food and earn more money to help support the Marmalade school.
5. We will make a trip from Cap Haitien to Port au Prince to visit Universite Quisqueya with RoseMarlaine Suprevil, who will attend there in the Fall. She will complete high school this Spring and we have raised enough funds to pay for her first semester of college. She and Roseline Presume will travel with us. Roseline runs the orphanage where RoseMarlaine lives and is very excited to have one of her girls go to college. This will be a very busy and long day for all of us.
6. I will be traveling with Rudly Raphael who is Haitian and lives in Chicago. He is a small business owner/entrepreneur who has an idea for a new business in Haiti. We will be meeting with numerous people in the Cap Haitien area to investigate how viable his idea might be. Rudly wants to provide jobs for Haiti and his idea could produce lots of them. Local transportation in big cities like Cap Haitien is problematic with no organized public transportation system in place. This would be a company that addresses this problem. Knowing you can get a safe ride from the airport to your hotel, office or the home of a relative is not available in Cap Haitien today.  Safe and reliable short-distance transportation in and around the city could be a good business. Help for Haiti is committed to helping build companies that create jobs in Haiti for Haitians. As a not for profit charity we cannot invest in the company, but will do all we can to promote the idea locally in Haiti with the people we know and find private investors who might invest if they believe the idea can be successful.

Well, thanks for reading and stay tuned for my report when I get back. Please remember these projects in your prayers, knowing that if God wants it done, anything and everything is possible. Thanking Him daily for all of you. Jim Willey PS  Don’t forget our 125,000 meal Help for Haiti Mobile Food Pack on Saturday, May 18^th at The Frank Jones Center in Portsmouth NH. We need 700 volunteers and $34,000 to make it happen. Please come join us! Here is the link to volunteer and donate. http://volunteer.fmsc.org/Register/mobilepack/event.aspx?event=1305-90P