From Haitian Roots
By Shannon Allred Cox, Haitian Roots
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. The average Haitian family lives on less than a dollar/day. The average cost for a year of schooling in Haiti is $250, so the majority of children have little, inconsistent, or no education. The Global Campaign for Children’s Education released a report last month which listed Haiti as one of the the two worst countries in the world for a child to be a student in 2010 (alongside Somalia). However, as stated in this and many other reports and research throughout the past decade, “There is unambiguous proof that education BEATS poverty.”
Haitian Roots is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, founded in 2005. The organization is run by unpaid volunteers who love Haiti and are committed to the future of the country and her children. Haitian Roots’ main purpose is to provide educational opportunities. We started with a scholarship program for just 23 children and grew steadily for the next 4 school years. We formed alliances with strong leaders in Haiti and learned more about education, the culture, and how the family functions in Haiti. The 2010 school year began with 135 children in our program. Nine of these children were orphaned in the January 2010 earthquake, several lost at least one parent, approximately one half of them lost their homes, and none of them were unaffected in some traumatic way by this catastrophe. However, education continues to bring light and hope to their lives. Our board consists of US families with adopted Haitian children as well as Native Haitians. We have a strong team in Utah, Florida, and on the ground in Haiti. Haitian Roots is a licensed and registered NGO in the country of Haiti.
As we have been able to provide educational opportunities, we have seen a significant change in not only the life of the children in our program but in their families. Hope is kindled. There is no need to coax the children into getting an education or to try and convince parents that it is important. Somehow the Haitians intrinsically know that education is the key to breaking the poverty cycle.
Although we believe that education is truly the key to changing the future of Haiti, it cannot be accomplished when the children’s most basic needs are not being met. Since the quake, Haitian Roots has also acquired 7.41 acres of prime land in Croix de Bouquets, Haiti. We are partnering with an organization called Bel Haiti to create a “Children’s Village”. We will have a school, volunteer headquarters, and an orphanage (run by Bel Haiti) in our village. This will allow us to meet the needs of the whole child. We will partner with the children’s home to provide housing for children who have lost their families or who are currently in dire home situations. Orphans brought into the orphanage will also have a hope for the future, whether or not they are ever able to join permanent families, because we will provide them with education and training. We will also have volunteer quarters, a small medical clinic, playground, soccer field, and farming in our “village”.
H.G. Wells once said, “Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe.” It often feels that we truly are in a race. When we feel discouraged, we like to remember these words of Abraham Lincoln: “I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live up to what light I have.”
We may not save every child in Haiti, but with the light that we have, that is shines brighter and brighter with each one of you, we can make a difference. We ARE making a difference. Thank you for your support!
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Thank you Haitian Roots for emailing me this beautiful article.
Sincerely yours,
Shamera Thomas
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(So with every 8.5 comments here it's education and food for a month...)
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Six Seeds Thank you
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I am proud to know you
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Education is truly the way to break the cycle of poverty, thank you Haitian Roots for all the work you do in Haiti and thank you Six Seeds for partnering with Haitian Roots and donating for each post!!
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Please support this org in any way you can.
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-Kajsa
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We LOVE our sweet little cousin from Haiti so much.
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In the article it states the Haitian people understand that education is the way out of poverty. How can we, as Christians, not help by teaching them? Thank you Haitian Roots for all that you do!
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