Note: Molly Hightower was a distant cousin of
mine. I would have been thrilled to know her. Oh, that she
had had the opportunity to fulfill her potential. Molly died in the great Haitian Earthquake of 2010. William McDonald, PhD
525,600 Minutes
How do you measure a year?
Note: The photos did not transfer so you will see photo titles w/o pictures through out this blog. (You can access this blog with photos by typing in "525,600 Minutes - Molly Hightower Blog" on a web search). To read this particular blog properly, you should scroll down to the bottom, and scroll upwards in ascending date order.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Molly is no longer able to add to her blog, her body was recovered from the wreckage of the Fr. Wasson Center in Petion-Ville, Haiti following the January 12th earthquake.
Molly's family is very proud of what she has done in her 22 years on this earth and hope that you will learn from Molly's writings what drove her to leave a life full of family, friends, hot water, clean water, plentiful food and peppermint frappuccinos, to a life of cold showers, bug bites, rice and beans everyday, and hot muggy days. Its very simple, THE CHILDREN. In Haiti she found unconditional love, simple pleasures, smiles all day and a second family. And it made her smile.
If you would like to help continue Molly's dream and journey, please follow the listed link to the Friends of the Orphans web site set up in Molly's name.
http://www.friendsoftheorphans.org/molly
Posted by her loving and extremely sad family, both of them
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Christmas came and
went, and was filled with mixed emotions. On one hand, I was devastated to be
away from my family for the first time for the holidays. On the other, I was so
happy to be with the children for the eventful week. You wouldn’t know it was Christmas
in Haiti except for a few random inflatable Santas on the roofs of some of the
buildings in Petionville. The weather, or course, is not wintery at all! We had
a fake tree upstairs which mysteriously disappeared the week of Christmas. It
really seemed to come out of nowhere, without the decorations, shopping and
constant Christmas music!
On the 23rd, there was the St. Germaine staff party, including a gift exchange. I drew Dominique, and bought him a couple shirts at Target when I was home for vacation. Everyone was so excited to find out who their marraine or parraine was, and it became quite a game. A person started, and went to grab their gift. They came back into the room and approached several people and offered them the gift and a kiss on the cheek, before whipping it away to give it to the actual person. You were never sure if you should reach out and return the kiss, or refuse because you were being played! Anyway, I received 2 beautiful shirts from Juna, one of my favorite people here, and they were exactly my style! Dominique also seemed to really like his shirts, especially because they were from the US.
The 24th, there was a mass and piñata party at the orphanage. The volunteers had a dinner afterwards of potatoes, hot dogs without the bun and wine. Caterina gave me a candle, Maeve gave me a funny Christmas hat, and Lucrezia gave me a beautiful beaded necklace. We made our wishes for each other for the coming year, and I think everyone’s for me started with “Molly, you’re so young…” I was sad that my American volunteers weren’t there, but it was fun all the same! I then escaped the adult conversation to watch Christmas Eve on Sesame Street.
Christmas itself was spent in Kay Christine with their party. There was tons of food, and gifts for all the kids and staff. Everyone was enormously excited to receive their presents! Yvonne showed all 75 people her new purse and necklace, and Kenzie would not stop racing his toy car around the crowded room! It was very fun to see the kids so worked up and receiving so much attention. I then took the staff bus back down to Petionville to sleep in my own bed (which is now Robin’s queen size!) and see Johny and Renand.
The day after, some American visitors came and cooked a big dinner for the volunteers in Petionville. We had turkey and mashed potatoes and all that good stuff. At the end, they gave us little treat bags with all the food we've been missing from the US!
We had a very difficult situation on the 28th. Father Rick received a call from the American Embassy that a boy had been abandoned there by his mother and they needed a place for him for a day or 2. He was in the states with his family, and called and asked me to handle it. Renand drove me to the Embassy, where we picked up Jacques Christo and took him to the hospital. He’s 7 years old, and very, very smart. He calmly told me his mother left him and wouldn’t be coming back, and that he thinks his dad is in Miami. Jacques was born in Brooklyn, so he’s an American citizen, but neither of his parents are. He speaks English and Creole fluently. He was born with a cleft palette and has already had several surgeries, but needs another soon. Maybe his mother didn’t receive a visa to go to the US with him for the surgery, or maybe she couldn’t afford to send him on her own. I’m trying to give her the benefit of the doubt- but what kind of mother just leaves her child, especially when he’s old enough to know he’s being left? We spent the evening eating M&Ms and Doritos in the guest house, and then I put him to bed. At first he was having a good time, but after awhile he realized he wasn’t going home and was upset and scared. He kept asking if he could call his mother and ask her to come back. I spend almost everyday with the abandoned babies in the hospital, and it’s difficult to comprehend why and who would ever give them up. I’ve never encountered an abandoned child who is so aware of his situation, or one who feels the pain so freshly. It broke my heart. We played with the babies in the hospital the next day, and Jacques was excited to meet Moise, who also had a cleft palette. I took him back to Petionville for the night, and am taking him to the embassy later today. They say his mother will be there, but she has to meet with a lot of social services.
7 year olds do keep the energy up, and Jacques has me on my toes. From coming over to my bed and screaming “WAKE UP!” in my ear at 4:30 AM to telling me he doesn’t go to sleep until 100 o’clock, he is definitely an interesting kid. He fell in love with Renand and has been following him around all morning. We will see what happens with him, but he is definitely better off than the other abandoned children, because if anything, he will fall into the American foster care network instead of an overcrowded orphanage in Haiti.
RACHEL COMES TODAY!!!!
On the 23rd, there was the St. Germaine staff party, including a gift exchange. I drew Dominique, and bought him a couple shirts at Target when I was home for vacation. Everyone was so excited to find out who their marraine or parraine was, and it became quite a game. A person started, and went to grab their gift. They came back into the room and approached several people and offered them the gift and a kiss on the cheek, before whipping it away to give it to the actual person. You were never sure if you should reach out and return the kiss, or refuse because you were being played! Anyway, I received 2 beautiful shirts from Juna, one of my favorite people here, and they were exactly my style! Dominique also seemed to really like his shirts, especially because they were from the US.
The 24th, there was a mass and piñata party at the orphanage. The volunteers had a dinner afterwards of potatoes, hot dogs without the bun and wine. Caterina gave me a candle, Maeve gave me a funny Christmas hat, and Lucrezia gave me a beautiful beaded necklace. We made our wishes for each other for the coming year, and I think everyone’s for me started with “Molly, you’re so young…” I was sad that my American volunteers weren’t there, but it was fun all the same! I then escaped the adult conversation to watch Christmas Eve on Sesame Street.
Christmas itself was spent in Kay Christine with their party. There was tons of food, and gifts for all the kids and staff. Everyone was enormously excited to receive their presents! Yvonne showed all 75 people her new purse and necklace, and Kenzie would not stop racing his toy car around the crowded room! It was very fun to see the kids so worked up and receiving so much attention. I then took the staff bus back down to Petionville to sleep in my own bed (which is now Robin’s queen size!) and see Johny and Renand.
The day after, some American visitors came and cooked a big dinner for the volunteers in Petionville. We had turkey and mashed potatoes and all that good stuff. At the end, they gave us little treat bags with all the food we've been missing from the US!
We had a very difficult situation on the 28th. Father Rick received a call from the American Embassy that a boy had been abandoned there by his mother and they needed a place for him for a day or 2. He was in the states with his family, and called and asked me to handle it. Renand drove me to the Embassy, where we picked up Jacques Christo and took him to the hospital. He’s 7 years old, and very, very smart. He calmly told me his mother left him and wouldn’t be coming back, and that he thinks his dad is in Miami. Jacques was born in Brooklyn, so he’s an American citizen, but neither of his parents are. He speaks English and Creole fluently. He was born with a cleft palette and has already had several surgeries, but needs another soon. Maybe his mother didn’t receive a visa to go to the US with him for the surgery, or maybe she couldn’t afford to send him on her own. I’m trying to give her the benefit of the doubt- but what kind of mother just leaves her child, especially when he’s old enough to know he’s being left? We spent the evening eating M&Ms and Doritos in the guest house, and then I put him to bed. At first he was having a good time, but after awhile he realized he wasn’t going home and was upset and scared. He kept asking if he could call his mother and ask her to come back. I spend almost everyday with the abandoned babies in the hospital, and it’s difficult to comprehend why and who would ever give them up. I’ve never encountered an abandoned child who is so aware of his situation, or one who feels the pain so freshly. It broke my heart. We played with the babies in the hospital the next day, and Jacques was excited to meet Moise, who also had a cleft palette. I took him back to Petionville for the night, and am taking him to the embassy later today. They say his mother will be there, but she has to meet with a lot of social services.
7 year olds do keep the energy up, and Jacques has me on my toes. From coming over to my bed and screaming “WAKE UP!” in my ear at 4:30 AM to telling me he doesn’t go to sleep until 100 o’clock, he is definitely an interesting kid. He fell in love with Renand and has been following him around all morning. We will see what happens with him, but he is definitely better off than the other abandoned children, because if anything, he will fall into the American foster care network instead of an overcrowded orphanage in Haiti.
RACHEL COMES TODAY!!!!
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
I just got back from
home last week, and had an awesome time aux etats unis. My parents met me at
the airport with Diet Dr Pepper and Taco Bell around midnight on Tuesday. I
spent Friday in Naselle with the fam, Saturday in Tacoma at the wedding, Monday
taking the stupid GRE and Tuesday in Portland with friends. I ate at 10
different fastfood places and drank copius amounts of grande peppermint mocha
frappachinos. For Christmas, I then received a frappachino maker which I sadly
had to pack away. It was 90 degrees when I left Port au Prince and 14 degrees
when I arrived in Seattle.
So now I'm back, and after spending the night in the Fort Lauderdale airport (my least favorite airport in the entire world), I slept for 2 days straight. I woke up to entertain some visitors, and then had dinner with some American actors who came down to see Father Rick- Annalynne Mccord from 90210, Olivia Wilde from House and Jimmy Jean Louis, the Haitian from Heroes. It was really weird.
Currently, I'm trying to figure out Christmas scheduling here. There's the St. Germaine party in Tabarre tomorow, the hospital party on Christmas eve and Kenscoff's celebration on the 25th. Alot of places to be at, but I'll pick and choose, and make sure that I'm somewhere quiet where I can watch Christmas Eve on Seasame Street on the 24th like every year.
Its very weird to think that my trip is more than half over at this point. Since school started up in September, it really has flown by. I have a ticket back to Seattle on June 8th, so really, I'm only here for 5 more months and some odd days. My frappachino maker is waiting for me.
So now I'm back, and after spending the night in the Fort Lauderdale airport (my least favorite airport in the entire world), I slept for 2 days straight. I woke up to entertain some visitors, and then had dinner with some American actors who came down to see Father Rick- Annalynne Mccord from 90210, Olivia Wilde from House and Jimmy Jean Louis, the Haitian from Heroes. It was really weird.
Currently, I'm trying to figure out Christmas scheduling here. There's the St. Germaine party in Tabarre tomorow, the hospital party on Christmas eve and Kenscoff's celebration on the 25th. Alot of places to be at, but I'll pick and choose, and make sure that I'm somewhere quiet where I can watch Christmas Eve on Seasame Street on the 24th like every year.
Its very weird to think that my trip is more than half over at this point. Since school started up in September, it really has flown by. I have a ticket back to Seattle on June 8th, so really, I'm only here for 5 more months and some odd days. My frappachino maker is waiting for me.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Thanksgiving was very fun, with 5 Americans and 40 Haitians to
cook for. We made 2 turkeys plus all the regular other stuff, and had a big
celebration in the living room of the Father Wasson center.
We have a problem
everyday getting TiBeth off the school bus (“ti” like “petit”= little beth).
She’s probably 10 years old and has Downs Syndrome. She rarely smiles, but
rather stares at you very seriously while refusing to do anything you say. When
we get to school or get back to the center, she sits quietly in her seat and
tells us she’s too scared and to leave her alone, please. If you touch her to
help her off, she screams and it’s no use trying to lift her because she’s a
heavy girl who knows how to squirm away. It takes a lot of coaxing and often
bribing her with my sunglasses to get her to stand, and even then you have to
pull her. Last week, she was almost off the bus, but then decided to jump into
the driver’s seat and scream madly that she wanted to go to Port au Prince
while trying to shift the gears. Yesterday, I went upstairs to the living room
on the 6th floor after we came back with the kids. 30 minutes later, I heard
the very familiar voice talking in the stairwell, and found TiBeth talking to a
statue on her way upstairs. She somehow bypassed at least 20 employees to climb
6 stories, and still just stared at me when I tried to help her down the
stairs. She sat down and refused to budge, so some staff members came up to
literally force her downstairs. She is one of my favorites. When her dad comes
to pick her up, he puts her right on the back of his motorcycle and she has
absolutely no problem with that form of transportation.
TiBeth in one of her happy moments
Recently, my photocopy
Robin has decided that her time in Haiti is up for the moment. After being
volunteer coordinator and getting me here, she moved up to Assistant National
Director, and then to National Director while Father Rick was out of the
country so much. I will miss her quite a bit, but we have had several goodbye
parties for her so far which usually involve gin and tonic. Here’s a picture of
us on the roof of the hospital with our drinks and Mexican pringles.
Today was the
Universal Day for the Handicapped, so we had a big program at Kay St. Germaine
with the preschoolers and some of the Kenscoff kids coming down as well. The
volunteers started off at mass at the hospital, with Father Rick back in town.
After that, we went to bless the babies that died in the hospital the night
before, which I’ve never done before. It was devastating to see them be
unwrapped, cleaned, blessed and rewrapped to be buried. 2 children died last
night, and 3 more the night before so there were several bodies on the tables.
The hospital, on average, loses 2 or 3 children a day.
The kids have been working on their dancing and singing for a month now, and were so cute in their dresses and ties. At the end, they all received presents from Santa Clause, who we have been calling on the phone every morning in class to remind. It was my last day of work in Tabarre before I leave for vacation in the states early next week.
The kids have been working on their dancing and singing for a month now, and were so cute in their dresses and ties. At the end, they all received presents from Santa Clause, who we have been calling on the phone every morning in class to remind. It was my last day of work in Tabarre before I leave for vacation in the states early next week.
Nazarelle, from the preschool
Emmanuel
My Aunt Christina, who
did NPH in Honduras, did a shoe drive at her school and raised a lot of
awareness and supplies for the orphanage. I
made this video with the kids to say thanks!
After I figured out how to use the movie making program on my computer, I made one of today’s festivities, too:
I’ll be home on Tuesday and am so freaking excited to see everyone! I plan to get Starbucks in Ft. Lauderdale, McDonalds in Atlanta, and Taco Bell in Seattle. Love you all! See you soon.
After I figured out how to use the movie making program on my computer, I made one of today’s festivities, too:
I’ll be home on Tuesday and am so freaking excited to see everyone! I plan to get Starbucks in Ft. Lauderdale, McDonalds in Atlanta, and Taco Bell in Seattle. Love you all! See you soon.
Monday, November 16, 2009
My aunt's godson, Jameson. We decided we're cousins.
Jefferson
This week was an interesting one, with lots of visitors, a new volunteer to introduce to Haiti, and a 2 year old to babysit! I spent the week showing Lucretcia all there is out of Kenscoff, including the hospital, Kay Germaine in Tabarre and Kay Elian in Petionville.
Jennifer, an American woman who works in our fundraising office, was here with a big group of visitors and to visit the baby boy she and her husband are adopting. Damian Frechette (after St. Damien hospital, where he was abandoned, and Father Rick, who gives his last name to the abandoned children) is 2 years old and the cutest kid you could imagine. Jennifer first met him in the tap tap room of the hospital, where my therapy babies come from, and wanted to adopt him immediately! They told her he was already being adopted, but it didn’t work out, and 9 months later, he was still in the abandoned baby room. Erin found her and asked if she was still interested. She was and they’re in the process now! How cool is that story? It’s wonderful to see the good that can come out of that room, because those children are still available to be adopted where as the children at our orphanage are not.
So Erin and I babysat Damien on Wednesday night so Jennifer could go to a business dinner with Robin, and had a great time! He’s running around everywhere and talking up a storm (in creole, of course) like a normal 2 year old. He wanted to throw pillows and eat chocolate chips and stare at all the cars out the window all night, so we let him, because volunteers are meant to spoil the children from the hospital!
This week was an interesting one, with lots of visitors, a new volunteer to introduce to Haiti, and a 2 year old to babysit! I spent the week showing Lucretcia all there is out of Kenscoff, including the hospital, Kay Germaine in Tabarre and Kay Elian in Petionville.
Jennifer, an American woman who works in our fundraising office, was here with a big group of visitors and to visit the baby boy she and her husband are adopting. Damian Frechette (after St. Damien hospital, where he was abandoned, and Father Rick, who gives his last name to the abandoned children) is 2 years old and the cutest kid you could imagine. Jennifer first met him in the tap tap room of the hospital, where my therapy babies come from, and wanted to adopt him immediately! They told her he was already being adopted, but it didn’t work out, and 9 months later, he was still in the abandoned baby room. Erin found her and asked if she was still interested. She was and they’re in the process now! How cool is that story? It’s wonderful to see the good that can come out of that room, because those children are still available to be adopted where as the children at our orphanage are not.
So Erin and I babysat Damien on Wednesday night so Jennifer could go to a business dinner with Robin, and had a great time! He’s running around everywhere and talking up a storm (in creole, of course) like a normal 2 year old. He wanted to throw pillows and eat chocolate chips and stare at all the cars out the window all night, so we let him, because volunteers are meant to spoil the children from the hospital!
I spent a long weekend at the orphanage, going up on Thursday and relaxing in the cool, quiet mountains. We had visitors Saturday so the kids had a big program with lots of dancing and music. The girls are such good dancers and are beautiful in their costumes! I left Kay Retreat at 9:30, and before I even made it to the office at 10:00 I had been knocked down by a very excited special needs girl giving me a hug, helped an 8 year old out of the wet cement she stepped in, and proofread a speech someone wanted to give in English. It was a normal day!
Some of the boys ready for mass
Erin and Vicky ,the
youngest kid at the orphanage
The girls after the
program
Kay Christine is always an experience. Often I will sit and embroider with the older residents who are done with school in the mornings, which I enjoy very much. Sometimes its silent, and sometimes Daniel starts pacing the room in his walker so Selena decides to try to knock him over and he starts to yell incoherently. And then Yvonne comes in and between hitting anyone who touches the scarf she always carries, sings at the top of her lungs “YVONNNNNE YVONNNNNNE YVONNNNNE”. As always, Innocent is making trouble, and while he’s sitting on the toilet will grab the mop and start poking people as they walk by the bathroom yelling for Maeve or I to come give him a kiss. Rose Therly comes home during recess and starts dancing to no music, and then steals my sunglasses and has people take pictures of her. Cedline is as always sitting outside in the sun yelling to herself, and then Alexei bites down on his lip and 5 people jump up to try to make him unclench his jaw before he starts to bleed. Kay Christine is always moving.
Kay Christine is always an experience. Often I will sit and embroider with the older residents who are done with school in the mornings, which I enjoy very much. Sometimes its silent, and sometimes Daniel starts pacing the room in his walker so Selena decides to try to knock him over and he starts to yell incoherently. And then Yvonne comes in and between hitting anyone who touches the scarf she always carries, sings at the top of her lungs “YVONNNNNE YVONNNNNNE YVONNNNNE”. As always, Innocent is making trouble, and while he’s sitting on the toilet will grab the mop and start poking people as they walk by the bathroom yelling for Maeve or I to come give him a kiss. Rose Therly comes home during recess and starts dancing to no music, and then steals my sunglasses and has people take pictures of her. Cedline is as always sitting outside in the sun yelling to herself, and then Alexei bites down on his lip and 5 people jump up to try to make him unclench his jaw before he starts to bleed. Kay Christine is always moving.
Daniel
Of course, there’s always sadness to focus on if you choose to. You’ll look down and see the burns someone put on Yvonne’s legs, maybe in an attempt to burn the seizures she often has out of her. Clotaire will get to excited from singing to us and have an epileptic fit. And then Watner, who was found burning in a pile of garbage as an infant, wanders over from the kindergarten looking for a treat. He only has half his fingers and scalp.
But then, Fabien comes in and trips all over herself to run and give you a hug, and Inderra makes eye contact with you from across the room and starts to laugh uncontrollably. You gotta focus on the good.
That’s the new from Haiti. Miss you all.
Of course, there’s always sadness to focus on if you choose to. You’ll look down and see the burns someone put on Yvonne’s legs, maybe in an attempt to burn the seizures she often has out of her. Clotaire will get to excited from singing to us and have an epileptic fit. And then Watner, who was found burning in a pile of garbage as an infant, wanders over from the kindergarten looking for a treat. He only has half his fingers and scalp.
But then, Fabien comes in and trips all over herself to run and give you a hug, and Inderra makes eye contact with you from across the room and starts to laugh uncontrollably. You gotta focus on the good.
That’s the new from Haiti. Miss you all.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
-Work, work, work:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday: Classroom from 8-9:30,
Hospital from 9:30-10:30
Pool from 10:30-12:00
Autistic/least functioning children therapy from 12:30-1:30
Wednesday: Horse riding with the kids, autistic/least functioning therapy in the afternoon
Friday: Early intervention, embroidery with the special needs childrens' mothers
I get home early (2:30 ish) but am still working on translating documents from French to English for the hospital and always have embroidery to catch up on.
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday: Classroom from 8-9:30,
Hospital from 9:30-10:30
Pool from 10:30-12:00
Autistic/least functioning children therapy from 12:30-1:30
Wednesday: Horse riding with the kids, autistic/least functioning therapy in the afternoon
Friday: Early intervention, embroidery with the special needs childrens' mothers
I get home early (2:30 ish) but am still working on translating documents from French to English for the hospital and always have embroidery to catch up on.
-The day of the dead included a trip to the Hotel Ollefson for a voodoo death ceremony, where I was blessed by a voodoo priestess. I don't really know what that means, but I'll roll with it. Erin and I then preceded to (kind of) break into an empty (maybe?) room to check it out. We were found and escorted out, butthen convinced our escort to give us a complete tour of the hotel grounds.
-All Saints Day started with mass at the hospital, a trip to the public morgue and then a trip to the cemetary where we bury the abandoned dead. A terrible day.
-We went back to the cemetary where Emilie is buried to say a blessing, and saw several voodoo offerings and burnt ground from past rituals. Haitian cemetaries rent their plots out, and when the family cannot pay any longer, the body of their dead relative is unceremoniously pulled out of the grave and burned against the cemetary wall. We saw many bones, alot of garbage, and alot of empty graves.
-I saw the inside of Cite Soleil with Father Rick and entourage, where he went to pick up some metal art made from oil drums to sell to our fundraising offices. Terrible poverty with frequent violence, but it was a calm and quick trip just through the barriers. There were tons of children who saw us and yelled "HEY YOU! HEY YOU!", a habit they apparently picked up from the UN.
-Saw more of this metal art at a festival, where I spent my monthly stipend buying some awesome things. Pictures to follow.
-Good times with Erin and Robin, the other American ladies here. I'm very glad to have them.
-Devestation when I went to the hospital to discover my Jolene girl had been transferred to an unknown orphanage the evening before. I don't know where she is, but I'm trying to find her to force her caregivers to bring her in for physical therapy. She was so close to walking on her own, and they left her orthopedic shoe behind. They ended up doing a complete overworking of the tap tap room, with all my abandoned babies being sent out (including Carmella and Cassandra). Annabelle is the only one still there. On a more positive note, however, Liliana and Joseph (2 of my abandoned therapy babies) have been deemed healthy enough and promoted to the tap tap room. With them comes Moise (Mo-ese) a little boy with a cleft pallette and a little malnourished girl whose name I don't recall at the moment. Jo's bed is empty at the moment, and her names is still on the wall.
-I learned to make pizza from scratch.
I'm coming home for a week one month from today. Be excited.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
It's been awhile, but I've been very busy with work and such.
School is in full swing, and I have a slew of new responsibilities and
activities to take my time.
Now at school, I'm working with the most special needs children who are unable to learn in our school and tend to disrupt. Taisha is autistic, unresponsive and uncontrollable. Chrisitian is the same, but will babble to himself and steal from the other children. Clara is content to lay on the floor, and if you try to pick her up (which is difficult, because she is a heavy girl) she hits, screams and lays back down in the end anyway. Working individually with these kids is part of my day, trying to get them to sit, control their movements, listen to direction and letting them exert all the energy outside.
Still swimming with the kids several times a week, though for shorter periods of time. The kids need to be in class, so its more of a cool off/recreation time than actual lessons. The school day is also shortnened, because the kids really cannot handle more than 6 hours. Instead of taking the bus home at 3, it leaves at 1:30 which leaves considerably less time to get everything I want to done. I come back to Petionville and embroider or translate documents for the hospital for a few hours and call it a day.
My babies at the hospital are all doing fine now after a little drama in the last few weeks. Going to the hospital has become so difficult, because I have to search for the weaker babies every time I go. They are constantly moved from recovery to urgent care to special needs, and without a parents to sit with them when they are in the sick room, I have become that person. I sit with the other Haitian mothers for as long as I can holding whichever baby is sick, but this leaves less time for therapy with the healthier kids. Last week, I went to my newest girl's bed to find her having a seizure. She's being medicated but her malnutrion has caused neurological damage.
After all this stress, I got very sick for about a week. It doesn't help that when the children are sick, their parents send them to school anyway. Several of our kids had the flu and were still put on the school bus, where they wilted in the heat of Tabarre and couldn't stay sitting up in class. I caught the flu from Cindy, a little girl with downs syndrome who crawled in my lap when she was too sick for her chair anymore. I went to the doctor and was told I had the flu, laryngitis and a respritory tract infection and laid around all week.
After all that, I prioritized and cut back at the hospital. I will continue to work with the special needs children there, but will not take responsibilty for any more malnurished children. I will only take 2 of the 6 children I have to St. Germaine for therapy, because the walk there is hot, humid and draining for the babies. They don't have the strength to be moved and face the heat like that.
Its been a challenging few weeks, and I'm looking forward to coming home for a break in December. My newest problem is deciding when to come back to Haiti. I could come back after a week at home and meet some celebrities that are coming to visit (James Franco and Charlize Theron) and spend Christmas here OR spend another week and a half at home and see everyone. Its cheaper to come back later and lord knows I'm broke, but it would be cool to meet these people and spend Christmas with the kids. On the other hand, I need a break and I don't know if a week will do it. I'm very open to suggestions here.
Now at school, I'm working with the most special needs children who are unable to learn in our school and tend to disrupt. Taisha is autistic, unresponsive and uncontrollable. Chrisitian is the same, but will babble to himself and steal from the other children. Clara is content to lay on the floor, and if you try to pick her up (which is difficult, because she is a heavy girl) she hits, screams and lays back down in the end anyway. Working individually with these kids is part of my day, trying to get them to sit, control their movements, listen to direction and letting them exert all the energy outside.
Still swimming with the kids several times a week, though for shorter periods of time. The kids need to be in class, so its more of a cool off/recreation time than actual lessons. The school day is also shortnened, because the kids really cannot handle more than 6 hours. Instead of taking the bus home at 3, it leaves at 1:30 which leaves considerably less time to get everything I want to done. I come back to Petionville and embroider or translate documents for the hospital for a few hours and call it a day.
My babies at the hospital are all doing fine now after a little drama in the last few weeks. Going to the hospital has become so difficult, because I have to search for the weaker babies every time I go. They are constantly moved from recovery to urgent care to special needs, and without a parents to sit with them when they are in the sick room, I have become that person. I sit with the other Haitian mothers for as long as I can holding whichever baby is sick, but this leaves less time for therapy with the healthier kids. Last week, I went to my newest girl's bed to find her having a seizure. She's being medicated but her malnutrion has caused neurological damage.
After all this stress, I got very sick for about a week. It doesn't help that when the children are sick, their parents send them to school anyway. Several of our kids had the flu and were still put on the school bus, where they wilted in the heat of Tabarre and couldn't stay sitting up in class. I caught the flu from Cindy, a little girl with downs syndrome who crawled in my lap when she was too sick for her chair anymore. I went to the doctor and was told I had the flu, laryngitis and a respritory tract infection and laid around all week.
After all that, I prioritized and cut back at the hospital. I will continue to work with the special needs children there, but will not take responsibilty for any more malnurished children. I will only take 2 of the 6 children I have to St. Germaine for therapy, because the walk there is hot, humid and draining for the babies. They don't have the strength to be moved and face the heat like that.
Its been a challenging few weeks, and I'm looking forward to coming home for a break in December. My newest problem is deciding when to come back to Haiti. I could come back after a week at home and meet some celebrities that are coming to visit (James Franco and Charlize Theron) and spend Christmas here OR spend another week and a half at home and see everyone. Its cheaper to come back later and lord knows I'm broke, but it would be cool to meet these people and spend Christmas with the kids. On the other hand, I need a break and I don't know if a week will do it. I'm very open to suggestions here.
Thanks for tuning in!
From June 2009 to
2010, I'll be living and working in Haiti with NPFS, an aid organization for
orphaned and abandoned children. I'll mainly be working with the special needs
kids at an outpatient facility in Tabarre.
Contact Information
Molly Hightower
NPFS Haiti
7175 SW 47th St. Suite 207
Miami, FL 33155
(Most of the mail will be going directly through security at the airport in carry on luggage, so it cannot include food, drink or dangerous weapons)
NPFS Haiti
7175 SW 47th St. Suite 207
Miami, FL 33155
(Most of the mail will be going directly through security at the airport in carry on luggage, so it cannot include food, drink or dangerous weapons)
Things I like to look at
- www.nph.org
- www.compassionweavers.com
- www.textsfromlastnight.com
- www.saintdamienhospital.wordpress.com
- www.postsecret.blogspot.com
Followers
I'm a 22 year old from Port Orchard, WA, who
just graduated from the University of Portland and is avoiding getting a job. I
majored in Psychology, Sociology and French, and plan to get my masters in
special ed, counseling or education.
Blog Archive
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Luco
Carmella
Here are some pictures of my abandoned babies at the hospital. I
have 4 currently, and I take them to Saint Germaine for physical therapy 2 to 4
times a week depending on how healthy they are. Norma has shown me how to
massage them, how best to help Jolene walk and little stretching exercises to
do in the pool. I never thought I'd be doing any sort of physical therapy here,
but I enjoy it!
- My first little girl is Jolene, whose been with me since the begining and IS STARTING TO WALK! I took a video of her walking in her crib on the soft service and posted it on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIs3EvIASgc
You can compare that to her walking on solid ground, which is more difficult for her in this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCQ4j26mMdg&feature=related
She's doing great and is very happy with all the attention. I take her 4 times a week, everyday that I'm in Tabarre. She is a trooper, who had meningitis, tuberculosis and malnutrition when she was abandoned and has come back to be a normal little girl. She doesn't speak yet, but that doesn't worry me much, because in all other ways she acts like a normal 2 and half year old. She makes eye contact, laughs, plays, reaches, eats, attempts to walk and is moving all the time.
-My second little girl is Lilianna, who is making progress despite an uncertain medical history and profound mental retardation. She rarely acknowledges anyone, doesn't speak, attempt to walk or change facial expressions often. She was abandoned when she was a little older, I'm assuming when her family saw her issues. She's probably 3. She is always is chewing on something, usually her finger, but doesn't seem to feel alot of the pain it would cause you and me. She will reach for something if I hold it out in front of her, just so she can put it in her mouth. The reaching is progress enough for me, and the muscles she usually hold so tightly are loosening with physical therapy.
-My first little boy, Joseph Junior is tiny tiny tiny. He was extremely malnourished, and has absolutely no muscle mass right now. He is very aware of what is going on around him, but can't lift his head to observe things. The Haitian physical therapists are afraid to work with him because he's so small, so I bring him to Saint Germaine when Norma is there to work with him. The other days, I massage his limbs and give him attention. He's too small to go in the pool.
-My newest little boy, Gilot, is still battling malnutrion, and is unable to move without pain. His skin is flaking off and he's lies with his arms and legs pulled to his chest with a feeding tube in his nose. I've seen improvements in his health in the last 2 weeks he's been with us at the hospital with medication and proper food. I massage lotion into his skin and try to move his joints while we wait for him to get stronger.
-Finally, here's a video of my abandoned babies in the Tap Tap room. They are all healthy and 2 of them (Cassandra and Luco) are waiting to be adopted by hospital administrators. I play with them every week day:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XkZuVXE-f8&feature=channel
Friday, September 25, 2009
Me and Ingrid
The plaza where we had dinner, with a view of Columbus' son's house
The oldest church in the Americas
Back from the DR, which was an awesome trip. I stayed with the Conaways in their beautiful 19th story apartment over looking the ocean. Sammy Sosa lives upstairs in the penthouse, but he wasn’t around this weekend, otherwise we probably would have hung out. We went to watch some baseball on Saturday, and then to dinner in the colonial district. We went to a restaurant which claims to be the oldest pub in the Americas, down the street from the actual oldest church in the Americas, across the plaza from Columbus’ son’s house (more of a castle, but whatever). Santo Domingo is an actual city, extremely different from Port-au-Prince. There are tall buildings, modern stores and its alot cleaner than what I'm used to over here. It was cool.
Sunday was the orphanage, where I got to catch up with my friend Ingrid from college. It’s a very different set up than Haiti, with everything all spread out in a field as opposed to in the mountains with trees and a breeze. It’s a newer home, so their houses are definitely a lot more modern than ours! They have so many volunteers and I met several more than the 6 I already knew.
That night, the Conaways let me do laundry IN A LAUNDRY MACHINE which was beyond exciting. I also got to go to Wendys and learned that Baconator is the same in English and Spanish. The bus trip back and forth wasn’t too bad at all, with air conditioning, a bathroom and comfortable seats. The border was slightly terrifying, with my passport being taken and transferred to different buildings and tons of people trying to help me with my bag or beg for money. Sometimes, I think if I hear “BLAN BLAN!” one more time, I’m going to scream.
The weekend for everyone here in Haiti was terrible, however, as we lost another girl in Kay Christine. Audelina was 15 years old and confined to a wheel chair, unable to speak with some breathing problems. She had meningitis as a baby, and was battling pneumonia which she was just not strong enough to fight. She died on Saturday after Norma tried to revive her, the same as she had tried to do with Emilie. Gena rushed back from her vacation in Ireland 2 weeks early for the funeral on Monday, which I missed because of damn UN roadblocks. Needless to say, I am very tired of losing children.
Yesterday, a former volunteer, Erin, returned for another year with us. She went to college in Seattle, which is cool (even if it was UW). We went out for drinks and pizza, and then to a club in Petionville. It was fun.
The plaza where we had dinner, with a view of Columbus' son's house
The oldest church in the Americas
Back from the DR, which was an awesome trip. I stayed with the Conaways in their beautiful 19th story apartment over looking the ocean. Sammy Sosa lives upstairs in the penthouse, but he wasn’t around this weekend, otherwise we probably would have hung out. We went to watch some baseball on Saturday, and then to dinner in the colonial district. We went to a restaurant which claims to be the oldest pub in the Americas, down the street from the actual oldest church in the Americas, across the plaza from Columbus’ son’s house (more of a castle, but whatever). Santo Domingo is an actual city, extremely different from Port-au-Prince. There are tall buildings, modern stores and its alot cleaner than what I'm used to over here. It was cool.
Sunday was the orphanage, where I got to catch up with my friend Ingrid from college. It’s a very different set up than Haiti, with everything all spread out in a field as opposed to in the mountains with trees and a breeze. It’s a newer home, so their houses are definitely a lot more modern than ours! They have so many volunteers and I met several more than the 6 I already knew.
That night, the Conaways let me do laundry IN A LAUNDRY MACHINE which was beyond exciting. I also got to go to Wendys and learned that Baconator is the same in English and Spanish. The bus trip back and forth wasn’t too bad at all, with air conditioning, a bathroom and comfortable seats. The border was slightly terrifying, with my passport being taken and transferred to different buildings and tons of people trying to help me with my bag or beg for money. Sometimes, I think if I hear “BLAN BLAN!” one more time, I’m going to scream.
The weekend for everyone here in Haiti was terrible, however, as we lost another girl in Kay Christine. Audelina was 15 years old and confined to a wheel chair, unable to speak with some breathing problems. She had meningitis as a baby, and was battling pneumonia which she was just not strong enough to fight. She died on Saturday after Norma tried to revive her, the same as she had tried to do with Emilie. Gena rushed back from her vacation in Ireland 2 weeks early for the funeral on Monday, which I missed because of damn UN roadblocks. Needless to say, I am very tired of losing children.
Yesterday, a former volunteer, Erin, returned for another year with us. She went to college in Seattle, which is cool (even if it was UW). We went out for drinks and pizza, and then to a club in Petionville. It was fun.
Friday, September 18, 2009
I’m back in Tabarre working in the pool again, and it’s much
different with all the kids in school. From the 15ish kids I had all summer, 50
seems like so much! I’m adjusting well to having so many children demanding my
attention, and look forward to a semi-permanent schedule for the next several
months.
The nurses have given me 2 new babies to work with at the hospital in addition to my 2 girls, Jolene and Liliana. Both boys are extremely small and look less than 6 months old, despite being a year and 18 months old. Neither are strong enough to go in the pool, and my newest is too small to even leave the hospital. Both will benefit from physical therapy, be it at St. Germaine, or just with me helping them bend their legs and arms in their cribs. I’ll take some pictures soon. Norma is confident that with work, Jolene will be walking in the next month, so I will be bringing her to physical therapy 4 days a week in the afternoon until this happens. She now has an orthopedic shoe and can semi-walk with me holding both her hands. She is stubborn though, and refuses to put weight on her bad leg. The other 2, Joseph and Lilana will trade off mornings for the 4 days of the week I’m in Tabarre, and every day I will spend 20ish minutes with my newest boy in his crib.
So with the babies, the pool with the older kids on Tuesday and Thursday, and helping out in class in between all of this, my days are very full. I have made a little friend in Shamana, a 4 year old autistic girl who falls asleep in my lap every morning and afternoon on the school bus. She functions at about a 2 year olds level, I believe, but is tough and isn’t fazed by the constant noise of the school. We have many more boys than girls and I think Shamana is the youngest.
A French woman who just returned to spend another few years in Haiti working for an agricultural organization came to visit the Father Wasson Center yesterday, and Robin, Johnny and I went to have a drink with her next door. The hotel is finally coming together, although they say it won’t be finished until 2011. Behind all the construction, they’ve already opened a beautiful restaurant and bar which is fancier than anything I ever went to in Portland. It has funky furniture, chandeliers and a nice view down to Port-au-Prince. The view from my balcony will be a lot nicer when everything is completed, but I’ll be gone by that point!
Besides that, I’m just getting ready to go to the DR tomorrow. Bus leaves at 10 and I’ll arrive hopefully by 5.
The nurses have given me 2 new babies to work with at the hospital in addition to my 2 girls, Jolene and Liliana. Both boys are extremely small and look less than 6 months old, despite being a year and 18 months old. Neither are strong enough to go in the pool, and my newest is too small to even leave the hospital. Both will benefit from physical therapy, be it at St. Germaine, or just with me helping them bend their legs and arms in their cribs. I’ll take some pictures soon. Norma is confident that with work, Jolene will be walking in the next month, so I will be bringing her to physical therapy 4 days a week in the afternoon until this happens. She now has an orthopedic shoe and can semi-walk with me holding both her hands. She is stubborn though, and refuses to put weight on her bad leg. The other 2, Joseph and Lilana will trade off mornings for the 4 days of the week I’m in Tabarre, and every day I will spend 20ish minutes with my newest boy in his crib.
So with the babies, the pool with the older kids on Tuesday and Thursday, and helping out in class in between all of this, my days are very full. I have made a little friend in Shamana, a 4 year old autistic girl who falls asleep in my lap every morning and afternoon on the school bus. She functions at about a 2 year olds level, I believe, but is tough and isn’t fazed by the constant noise of the school. We have many more boys than girls and I think Shamana is the youngest.
A French woman who just returned to spend another few years in Haiti working for an agricultural organization came to visit the Father Wasson Center yesterday, and Robin, Johnny and I went to have a drink with her next door. The hotel is finally coming together, although they say it won’t be finished until 2011. Behind all the construction, they’ve already opened a beautiful restaurant and bar which is fancier than anything I ever went to in Portland. It has funky furniture, chandeliers and a nice view down to Port-au-Prince. The view from my balcony will be a lot nicer when everything is completed, but I’ll be gone by that point!
Besides that, I’m just getting ready to go to the DR tomorrow. Bus leaves at 10 and I’ll arrive hopefully by 5.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
I have been working in Petionville all week, showing Elifet how
to work with the special needs pre school kids and I’m very proud of him and
his efforts. He takes one child downstairs into our new “office” (which I
rearranged and am decorating) for about an hour at a time, and does all the
things that I wish I had time to do with the kids everyday. I sit with them and
embroider and tell him about each child that comes in and what they need to
work on specifically, be in muscle control in the hands/arms, colors, shapes
and numbers or just simple stimulation. The kids listen to him (even Jefferson
who likes to throw things) and I’m confident he will do well with this. I plan
to spend every Friday from now on in Petionville, helping him and the
embroidering ladies in the afternoon when all the kids go home.
Last week was more time at the orphanage, and with Donatella and Renzo leaving, there was a small party held in Kay St. Nicholas, one of the boys homes. The boys were all around 12, and were very happy to receive hot dogs, coca cola and pringles. They showed us around their new house (they had just moved up a level) and as always, took a million pictures with my camera.
Friday night, Maive, Robin, Renand and I went to a party held by some of the St. Germaine ladies at their house near Tabarre. Jeana works in Petionville in Kay St. Elian and her sister Carmelle works in Kay Christine at the orphanage. They live in the house with their other sister, Jose. The house was modern and very middle class, far off the main road and up allyways. It was, of course, behind a gate and wall like all Haitian houses out of the slums. We drank prestige and coca cola and ate good food until midnight when we finally had to get going for the long drive back up to the ophanage. It was an awesome night.
I’ve mentioned one of our older boys who was in prison for killing another boy who grew up in the orphanage, but now comes an interesting twist. The boy who was killed, Onell, was the godson of my Uncle Lee, a priest who works at St. John Bosco in Lakewood. He was notified and asked how the other boy, Mario, was holding up in prison. The organization, noting his concern, asked if he would be willing to be Mario’s new sponsor while we attempt to get him out of prison. The situation is hazy, but what is clear is that Onell was a few years older than Mario and there was some sort of fight over food which Onell started. There was a knife and Mario was defending himself.
I went and visited Mario in the juvenile center on Sunday with Robin and one of the boys who grew up with him, Ti James. The outside looked like a construction site, and there were 150 boys from 11 to 17 in concrete rooms where they slept on the floor. We waited for an hour and a half to meet with Mario, and when he was brought out I was shocked almost to tears. He’s not even 5 feet tall, and looks about 14 years old. He has some sort of bodyguard another NPFS boy set up for him, so he’s safer than the other boys. However, we still had to slip him some money so he could pay off the other boys to let him sleep on a mattress for a couple hours. We told him I was Father Lee’s niece and that I would visit every Sunday, and he seemed happy at this. I know the boys are beaten, but we can’t really get a clear answer out of Mario about how he’s being treated when there is a guard standing by. NPFS is confident they can get him out of prison before he turns 18 and moves to the adult penitentiary, where he would be much worse off.
Vern, Mary Sue and Thomas are a family that have ties to NPFS and Father Rick and visit every now and again. They recently moved to the DR where Mary Sue works at the embassy, and visited us earlier this week. When Vern heard I was heading to the DR later this month, he offered to let me stay with them for a weekend, which I’m very excited and grateful for. Apparently, Santo Domingo is a very safe and interesting city AND HAS A MCDONALDS. I’m excited to head there next weekend to see the NPH home and see the city. I hope they have a Starbucks and Diet Dr Pepper, too.
The end. Miss you all.
Last week was more time at the orphanage, and with Donatella and Renzo leaving, there was a small party held in Kay St. Nicholas, one of the boys homes. The boys were all around 12, and were very happy to receive hot dogs, coca cola and pringles. They showed us around their new house (they had just moved up a level) and as always, took a million pictures with my camera.
Friday night, Maive, Robin, Renand and I went to a party held by some of the St. Germaine ladies at their house near Tabarre. Jeana works in Petionville in Kay St. Elian and her sister Carmelle works in Kay Christine at the orphanage. They live in the house with their other sister, Jose. The house was modern and very middle class, far off the main road and up allyways. It was, of course, behind a gate and wall like all Haitian houses out of the slums. We drank prestige and coca cola and ate good food until midnight when we finally had to get going for the long drive back up to the ophanage. It was an awesome night.
I’ve mentioned one of our older boys who was in prison for killing another boy who grew up in the orphanage, but now comes an interesting twist. The boy who was killed, Onell, was the godson of my Uncle Lee, a priest who works at St. John Bosco in Lakewood. He was notified and asked how the other boy, Mario, was holding up in prison. The organization, noting his concern, asked if he would be willing to be Mario’s new sponsor while we attempt to get him out of prison. The situation is hazy, but what is clear is that Onell was a few years older than Mario and there was some sort of fight over food which Onell started. There was a knife and Mario was defending himself.
I went and visited Mario in the juvenile center on Sunday with Robin and one of the boys who grew up with him, Ti James. The outside looked like a construction site, and there were 150 boys from 11 to 17 in concrete rooms where they slept on the floor. We waited for an hour and a half to meet with Mario, and when he was brought out I was shocked almost to tears. He’s not even 5 feet tall, and looks about 14 years old. He has some sort of bodyguard another NPFS boy set up for him, so he’s safer than the other boys. However, we still had to slip him some money so he could pay off the other boys to let him sleep on a mattress for a couple hours. We told him I was Father Lee’s niece and that I would visit every Sunday, and he seemed happy at this. I know the boys are beaten, but we can’t really get a clear answer out of Mario about how he’s being treated when there is a guard standing by. NPFS is confident they can get him out of prison before he turns 18 and moves to the adult penitentiary, where he would be much worse off.
Vern, Mary Sue and Thomas are a family that have ties to NPFS and Father Rick and visit every now and again. They recently moved to the DR where Mary Sue works at the embassy, and visited us earlier this week. When Vern heard I was heading to the DR later this month, he offered to let me stay with them for a weekend, which I’m very excited and grateful for. Apparently, Santo Domingo is a very safe and interesting city AND HAS A MCDONALDS. I’m excited to head there next weekend to see the NPH home and see the city. I hope they have a Starbucks and Diet Dr Pepper, too.
The end. Miss you all.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Me and Eveline from the baby house
Norma and Donatella with Ives and his art
Richarson, Richard's twin brother
Norma and Donatella with Ives and his art
Richarson, Richard's twin brother
Things are good. I've spent the last few weeks at the orphanage,
with short breaks down to Petionville to do laundry and visit my babies in the
hospital. I like it up here alot, because its nice and cool (even cold
sometimes) and theres always something to do. I've especially enjoyed joining
the madames and Maive making embroidered cards in Kay Christine. The children
help as much as they can, and each card is sold for 3 US dollars to raise money
for the Saint Germaine programs. It was easy enough to learn how to do, since
my grandma taught me to do it years ago! In Petionville, the mothers of the
kids who come to Kay Elian make the cards, which allows them to give back to
the organization as well as receive the income that they are missing out on by
bringing their children to therapy and waiting with them all day. The cards are
really beautiful, and I'm going to buy several for Christmas this year.
I took some of the girls aside last week to do a project for
Robin and sponsorship. The girls were asked to draw a picture of what they
wanted to be when they grew up, which they took very seriously. We ended up
with 2 nurses, a doctor, a police woman, an air hostess and a nun. My Rosemene,
whose missing the leg, drew the picture of the nun and was very happy that I
found her to take her with me.
Last weekend, we had some of the volunteers from the Dominican
Republic home over to visit us. There were 5 girls and a boy, and that was only
some of their international volunteers! Its crazy because in Haiti, we really
only have Maive, me and Norma and even Norma is really on her own wave length
due to her more skilled position as physical therapist and her longterm
relationship with NPFS. They were all under 30 and super nice, and it was very
nice to meet them before I head over to the DR later this month.
We have several temporary volunteers right now, here for a few
weeks and then heading home. Eddie from the States just left after his few
weeks here painting the school, Renzo is here from Italy to visit his godson
and Donatella is also from Italy, here as a physical therapist. I've already
seen several people come and go, and am getting very used to new people being
around all the time. At least there's never a dull moment.
After Liz, our Irish art teacher, left a few weeks ago, we've
been very lacking in the art project department with the kids. Its a great form
of physical therpy and is very stimulating for everyone. In an attempt to get
an art therapy program up and started, I'll be in Petionville all of next week
showing one of the older boys how to work with the children productively with
paints, crayons, whatever we have so we can make artwork an everyday thing for
the kids. I often work with the kids on various art projects, last week making
purses out of newspaper and old books. I'll continue to do this in Kay
Christine, but the younger kids in Petionville where we only have preschool and
physical therpy need simpler, repetitive and muscle toning activities. We'll
see how we do on supplies, but even if this boy can sit and help the kids
extend their arms to draw with crayons individually it would be worthwhile.
The downside to Kenscoff is the showers- we never have hot
showers in Haiti, but at least in Petionville, its so hot that you really don't
care. A good shower here is considered a bucket of hot water you warmed up in
the tea kettle.
Friday, August 21, 2009
-A few Fridays ago, I went to the beach with Kay Germaine staff
members to celebrate the end of the summer session. We went past the nice beach
I went to with the kids to a private resort complete with a monkey named
Domingo in a little habitat greeting us at the entrance. I slept in the shade
and swam in the ocean a little- but not too much because the ground was jagged
and sharp with rocks and sea urchins from a destroyed reef that had once been
there. The whole resort used to be a sugar cane plantation, and it was amazing
how different the scene was 200 years later! Amazingly, I have come to discover
that the grand majority of Haitians cannot swim- not even close. I had several
adults clinging onto me for dear life in the water, and I have spent many hours
in the pool at Tabarre teaching staff members to swim. Orlando, the guy who
helps me out most days in the pool, can’t even float on his back- if he tries,
he goes under, freaks out and spends the next several minutes coughing up all
the water he inhaled.
-The end of the summer session came with 2 big programs, one in Tabarre and one in Kenscoff. The first in Tabarre was very fun at the beginning, with the kids showing us the dances and songs they learned. I was having a great time until someone shouted, “Everyone in the water!” and I suddenly had 30+ people in, out and around the tiny pool. I knew that parents would come in to see the kids swim, but I didn’t know that I would have all the children, their siblings and some of their parents in the water with me at the same time! It was utter chaos, and I was extremely mad at some of the parents for allowing their children to do absolutely anything they wanted. It was getting pretty out of control when Tony, the one child I have that can actually swim, decided to make a running jump in to the water and hit his head on a steel support for the cover. His father was cheering him on! While he was on his way to the hospital for stitches, Norma helped me kick everyone out (politely) and the day was done.
The Kenscoff program was a lot calmer, and I was very proud of my substitute English class and their rendition of Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World”. I videotaped it and put it on Youtube if you’re interested!
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yddT6Hr3vq8&feature=related)
The kids played musical instruments, danced, recited poetry in Spanish and had a fashion show of all the cloths they made in the last few weeks. I sat with some adorable girls, including my little Dahlilah (pronounced like the Dalai Lama with out the “ma”!) who was dressed in what looked like a flower girl dress following church that morning.
-Tonight, Robin, Rena and I went to an actual supermarket and bought supplies to make a big pasta dinner. It was very nice not to be eating rice, which is really getting old! I made the garlic bread using my Nicolas Pizza and Pasta skill, and the whole affair was pretty awesome. And I got a package from my Aunt Kiko filled with pictures of my cousin and coloring book pages!
Besides all that, it’s basically been a lot of swimming and playing with kids! For now, the kids are on vacation so I will be heading up to Kenscoff to help in Kay Christine for about a week. A bientôt!
-The end of the summer session came with 2 big programs, one in Tabarre and one in Kenscoff. The first in Tabarre was very fun at the beginning, with the kids showing us the dances and songs they learned. I was having a great time until someone shouted, “Everyone in the water!” and I suddenly had 30+ people in, out and around the tiny pool. I knew that parents would come in to see the kids swim, but I didn’t know that I would have all the children, their siblings and some of their parents in the water with me at the same time! It was utter chaos, and I was extremely mad at some of the parents for allowing their children to do absolutely anything they wanted. It was getting pretty out of control when Tony, the one child I have that can actually swim, decided to make a running jump in to the water and hit his head on a steel support for the cover. His father was cheering him on! While he was on his way to the hospital for stitches, Norma helped me kick everyone out (politely) and the day was done.
The Kenscoff program was a lot calmer, and I was very proud of my substitute English class and their rendition of Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World”. I videotaped it and put it on Youtube if you’re interested!
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yddT6Hr3vq8&feature=related)
The kids played musical instruments, danced, recited poetry in Spanish and had a fashion show of all the cloths they made in the last few weeks. I sat with some adorable girls, including my little Dahlilah (pronounced like the Dalai Lama with out the “ma”!) who was dressed in what looked like a flower girl dress following church that morning.
-Tonight, Robin, Rena and I went to an actual supermarket and bought supplies to make a big pasta dinner. It was very nice not to be eating rice, which is really getting old! I made the garlic bread using my Nicolas Pizza and Pasta skill, and the whole affair was pretty awesome. And I got a package from my Aunt Kiko filled with pictures of my cousin and coloring book pages!
Besides all that, it’s basically been a lot of swimming and playing with kids! For now, the kids are on vacation so I will be heading up to Kenscoff to help in Kay Christine for about a week. A bientôt!
Monday, August 10, 2009
Our trip to Jacmel was awesome and relaxing and I mostly avoided
sunburn. We stayed at an amazing hotel right on the Caribbean with a private
cove, complete with a little artisan market where I bought quite a few things.
There ended up being 8 of us total- Me, Norma, Jean, Maive, Anna, Liz and our
driver Maxime.
We left early Friday morning for the long drive South in the NPFS jeep which bumped along and threw us all around the back. The hotel was inclusive and cheap- $40 a night including breakfast and dinner at the restaurant overlooking the ocean. I think my total bill, including splitting the cost of Maxime’s room was $89! We went into downtown Jacmel to see the artisan shops on Saturday which was very cool. Jacmel is different than the rest of Haiti in regards to poverty. It's of course a very poor city, especially without the tourism that used to center there, but its a lot cleaner and more put together than anywhere else I’ve seen in Haiti. The buildings are all colonial and the artisans have set up little shops near the water front. We went and saw a beautiful hotel called the Hotel Floride that we all plan to go back to someday. It’s just 2 blocks from the ocean and filled with voodoo art and French architecture. The manager there, Michele, took us all over the city to the artisan markets, where we saw the huge 10 ft tall Carnival masks and how they’re made.
While we were all floating in the middle of the cove on the water toys I borrowed from the swimming pool at work, an American man swam up to us and introduced himself. He works for a non-profit and lives in Haiti, and told us where we needed to go in Jacmel. He was also in a (not very good) band that performed at the hotel on Saturday night. So on his advice on Sunday, we traveled through a river and up a mountain to see Basin Bleu, a waterfall with a voodoo history of swallowing people alive. It was a beautiful long walk where we had to jump from rock to rock to cross various creeks, climb rock stairs that were carved into the side of the mountain and scale down a rope to get to the base of the fall. The whole way, several Haitian men in their 20’s walked with us trying to be our guides in order to get tipped at the end. We were told not to tip them (we had already paid for 2 guides) but they came with us all the same. They helped us balance as we crossed the rivers, held our things as we scaled down the rocks, and took our cameras to take pictures of us in the waterfall. The boy that was helping me was super nice and at the end, I broke the rules and tried to tip him in Haitian gouds- he was so mad that I wasn’t giving him American money! He kept saying “dollar, dollar” and I just said “Je n’en ai pas” (I don’t have any) and refused the gouds! I felt a little bad, but not really because any person that is bold enough to tell me I’m not tipping them enough when they aren’t even suppose to be tipped can wait for the next American to come along.
Sunday we returned to Petionville where I switched out clothes and went up to the orphanage for the week to teach an English class. The class was all boys from 9 to 20 who came into class everyday, shook my hand and told me I looked pretty that day, and sat down in their assigned seats. We mostly just played bingo and prepared for their class performance of Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World” that they would be singing at the end of the summer session. On my last day, one of the boys wrote me a thank you note that I thought was very sweet so I’ll copy it here:
Molly,
I don’t know how to say you thanks for accept to take Jean’s place for this week
I know some times is’t not so easy because work with some children who you don’t it’s very hard But you were adapted to us and you took part in the atmosphere. And tried to understand each one of us that prove your love for us. I can’t find words for express my gratitude toward you. I think only God can say you thanks. May God continue to bless you. And may you continue to help those who want help. With my affection and my respect . I think my words can touch the bottom of your heart despite they are too littlest.
Edelin DOSSOUS
For the summer session, each house of kids gets to go to the beach once, and I accompanied a house of 50 boys on Friday. We drove for several hours north of Port-au-Prince to a clean, private beach where we spent the day swimming with a view of Isle de Gonaives in the distance. The boys can’t really swim, but they had fun splashing around and catching crabs and starfish. There was a huge group of white men next to us who stared and stared at us until they finally came over and started talking to us and taking pictures of the kids. They turned out to be UN Brazilians who only spoke Spanish, but tried their best to speak English with me. They gave us a lot of the extra food they had and several containers of bottled water, which was very nice. Then, they each took an individual picture with me, gave me a coca cola, a bracelet and their emails. I will not be contacting them, but I enjoyed the coca cola.
I headed back down the mountain to Petionville on Saturday and am going to start back up with the kids in the pool tomorrow. It was nice and cool in Kenscoff, and now its back to 100 degrees with scattered thunder storms.
We left early Friday morning for the long drive South in the NPFS jeep which bumped along and threw us all around the back. The hotel was inclusive and cheap- $40 a night including breakfast and dinner at the restaurant overlooking the ocean. I think my total bill, including splitting the cost of Maxime’s room was $89! We went into downtown Jacmel to see the artisan shops on Saturday which was very cool. Jacmel is different than the rest of Haiti in regards to poverty. It's of course a very poor city, especially without the tourism that used to center there, but its a lot cleaner and more put together than anywhere else I’ve seen in Haiti. The buildings are all colonial and the artisans have set up little shops near the water front. We went and saw a beautiful hotel called the Hotel Floride that we all plan to go back to someday. It’s just 2 blocks from the ocean and filled with voodoo art and French architecture. The manager there, Michele, took us all over the city to the artisan markets, where we saw the huge 10 ft tall Carnival masks and how they’re made.
While we were all floating in the middle of the cove on the water toys I borrowed from the swimming pool at work, an American man swam up to us and introduced himself. He works for a non-profit and lives in Haiti, and told us where we needed to go in Jacmel. He was also in a (not very good) band that performed at the hotel on Saturday night. So on his advice on Sunday, we traveled through a river and up a mountain to see Basin Bleu, a waterfall with a voodoo history of swallowing people alive. It was a beautiful long walk where we had to jump from rock to rock to cross various creeks, climb rock stairs that were carved into the side of the mountain and scale down a rope to get to the base of the fall. The whole way, several Haitian men in their 20’s walked with us trying to be our guides in order to get tipped at the end. We were told not to tip them (we had already paid for 2 guides) but they came with us all the same. They helped us balance as we crossed the rivers, held our things as we scaled down the rocks, and took our cameras to take pictures of us in the waterfall. The boy that was helping me was super nice and at the end, I broke the rules and tried to tip him in Haitian gouds- he was so mad that I wasn’t giving him American money! He kept saying “dollar, dollar” and I just said “Je n’en ai pas” (I don’t have any) and refused the gouds! I felt a little bad, but not really because any person that is bold enough to tell me I’m not tipping them enough when they aren’t even suppose to be tipped can wait for the next American to come along.
Sunday we returned to Petionville where I switched out clothes and went up to the orphanage for the week to teach an English class. The class was all boys from 9 to 20 who came into class everyday, shook my hand and told me I looked pretty that day, and sat down in their assigned seats. We mostly just played bingo and prepared for their class performance of Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World” that they would be singing at the end of the summer session. On my last day, one of the boys wrote me a thank you note that I thought was very sweet so I’ll copy it here:
Molly,
I don’t know how to say you thanks for accept to take Jean’s place for this week
I know some times is’t not so easy because work with some children who you don’t it’s very hard But you were adapted to us and you took part in the atmosphere. And tried to understand each one of us that prove your love for us. I can’t find words for express my gratitude toward you. I think only God can say you thanks. May God continue to bless you. And may you continue to help those who want help. With my affection and my respect . I think my words can touch the bottom of your heart despite they are too littlest.
Edelin DOSSOUS
For the summer session, each house of kids gets to go to the beach once, and I accompanied a house of 50 boys on Friday. We drove for several hours north of Port-au-Prince to a clean, private beach where we spent the day swimming with a view of Isle de Gonaives in the distance. The boys can’t really swim, but they had fun splashing around and catching crabs and starfish. There was a huge group of white men next to us who stared and stared at us until they finally came over and started talking to us and taking pictures of the kids. They turned out to be UN Brazilians who only spoke Spanish, but tried their best to speak English with me. They gave us a lot of the extra food they had and several containers of bottled water, which was very nice. Then, they each took an individual picture with me, gave me a coca cola, a bracelet and their emails. I will not be contacting them, but I enjoyed the coca cola.
I headed back down the mountain to Petionville on Saturday and am going to start back up with the kids in the pool tomorrow. It was nice and cool in Kenscoff, and now its back to 100 degrees with scattered thunder storms.
Thanks for tuning in!
From June 2009 to
2010, I'll be living and working in Haiti with NPFS, an aid organization for
orphaned and abandoned children. I'll mainly be working with the special needs
kids at an outpatient facility in Tabarre.
Contact Information
Molly Hightower
NPFS Haiti
7175 SW 47th St. Suite 207
Miami, FL 33155
(Most of the mail will be going directly through security at the airport in carry on luggage, so it cannot include food, drink or dangerous weapons)
NPFS Haiti
7175 SW 47th St. Suite 207
Miami, FL 33155
(Most of the mail will be going directly through security at the airport in carry on luggage, so it cannot include food, drink or dangerous weapons)
Things I like to look at
- www.nph.org
- www.compassionweavers.com
- www.textsfromlastnight.com
- www.saintdamienhospital.wordpress.com
- www.postsecret.blogspot.com
Followers
I'm a 22 year old from Port Orchard, WA, who
just graduated from the University of Portland and is avoiding getting a job. I
majored in Psychology, Sociology and French, and plan to get my masters in
special ed, counseling or education.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Today, one of the kids swam across the pool unassisted. Tony,
who is usually content swimming up and down the steps without letting go of the
wall, was splashing around with me and all the sudden, all the arm movements I
had been showing him for the last few weeks actually happened. I’m not going to
say it was pretty- it looked like a little storm of feet and arms- but I let
him go and he swam a good 10 feet unassisted. PROGRESS. Some of the other kids
are getting close, but often realize that they’re bobbing there without me
holding them after a few moments, freak out and reach for me to grab them as
they flail themselves underwater. Water wings are still necessary and some
physically choke me as they’re clutching with fear in the deep end (ahem- 5 ft
deep). At least 4 of the 10 that come regularly can float, which is pretty good
numbers if you ask me since several cannot walk unassisted, see very well or
control their muscle movement.
One of the teachers from school, Yolaine, was married on Saturday and I went to the wedding with Gena, Norma, Maive and some of the Kay Christine kids. It was suppose to start at 5, so true of all Haitian events, it started an hour late at 6. It was the most bizarre wedding I have ever been to because 1.) There were 2 brides with 2 separate groups of bridesmaids 2.) Noone smiled for the entire 1 and a half hour ceremony 3.) All the women were wearing prom dresses.
The ceremony started with 4 bridesmaids and 4 groomsmen doing a synchronized walk/dance down the aisle to Enya. After that, a woman in a wedding dress also did a little walk/dance down the aisle toward no one and then sat down with the rest of the guests. Apparently, she introduces the ceremony and is kind of a “throw away bride”. After this, it got more traditional, with Shadya (a girl from l’Ecole de Saint Germaine) as the flower girl and an adorable boy and girl ring bearer duo, followed by a few more bridesmaids. Yolaine came in next with her father, but sat across the aisle from the groom for the entire ceremony. The wedding was in a protestant church and was LONG, with 2 pastors presiding. After, we went to the reception, where the bride and groom did all the traditional things usually done publically in the US (like cutting the cake) behind a closed glass door. I sat with Maive and Polento, a sweet boy from Kay Germaine who announced that he will marry me someday. He’s 12 years old, and was abandoned and left HIV positive by his prostitute mother some years ago, although she died fairly recently. He’s responding very well to the medication, and left the next day with Gena to go participate in the Special Olympics in Germany. Psychologists have said that he functions at about a 6 year olds level, and like all the other kids, loved taking pictures with my camera. The reception was extremely short, with people eating, congratulating and leaving in just a little more than an hour. I suppose it’s very expensive to rent the space and power it with a generator for any long amount of time. I felt fancy enough in my favorite skirt and even put make up on for the event. Haitians dress very well for events, however, and considering their limited means, I am continually surprised. These dresses looked like they were bought for a high school dance, with embellishments and glitter which undoubtedly came from the US. I felt a little underdressed, but I’m sure I was much more comfortable than some of those women!
Fabien, a sweet 20 something year old who used to come to school at St. Germaine, was at the wedding as well. She lived with the aunt, who could not watch her well enough, so she recently moved to the orphanage and into Kay Christine. She’s unbelievably friendly and smiles constantly, always biting down on a small towel to keep herself from drooling. Although she can’t really speak, she kind of grunts what she wants and makes herself understood. Apparently, she made a habit out of sneaking out of her aunt’s house and taking a tap tap into Port-au-Prince and returning late at night without explanation. How a mentally handicapped girl can manage to get there and back and more importantly what she did while she was in city was a cause for concern, and so it was decided she would be much safer within the walls of the orphanage. She’ll be happy there with lots of other kids to play with and supervision will not be an issue. Yolaine was sitting on a couch in the front of the tables at the reception with her husband, and Fabien literally jumped into her lap to hug her. She then squeezed herself between the bride and groom and happily greeted the rest of the guests who came to offer their congratulations.
Monday was a little sad for me, because I went to the hospital to get Eveline for swimming only to find that she had been moved to a “more permanent setting” away from the hospital. I then asked if I could take one of the other girls from that room, Shnaika, only to be told that she had gone to the same place! I’m not even sure where they are, probably some other orphanage or medical center for abandoned babies and I’m not sure if I’ll see them again. I took my other two girls, Jolene and Liliana instead, but now I’m getting nervous that my babies will keep disappearing without me being able to say goodbye! I wish they could come to our orphanage, but the special needs house there is completely filled and a space will only open up if one of our children dies- once a child is there, they remain there forever because there are no resources for adults with special needs in Haiti.
This weekend is a trip to Jacmel. I’m quite excited to the see the Caribbean!
One of the teachers from school, Yolaine, was married on Saturday and I went to the wedding with Gena, Norma, Maive and some of the Kay Christine kids. It was suppose to start at 5, so true of all Haitian events, it started an hour late at 6. It was the most bizarre wedding I have ever been to because 1.) There were 2 brides with 2 separate groups of bridesmaids 2.) Noone smiled for the entire 1 and a half hour ceremony 3.) All the women were wearing prom dresses.
The ceremony started with 4 bridesmaids and 4 groomsmen doing a synchronized walk/dance down the aisle to Enya. After that, a woman in a wedding dress also did a little walk/dance down the aisle toward no one and then sat down with the rest of the guests. Apparently, she introduces the ceremony and is kind of a “throw away bride”. After this, it got more traditional, with Shadya (a girl from l’Ecole de Saint Germaine) as the flower girl and an adorable boy and girl ring bearer duo, followed by a few more bridesmaids. Yolaine came in next with her father, but sat across the aisle from the groom for the entire ceremony. The wedding was in a protestant church and was LONG, with 2 pastors presiding. After, we went to the reception, where the bride and groom did all the traditional things usually done publically in the US (like cutting the cake) behind a closed glass door. I sat with Maive and Polento, a sweet boy from Kay Germaine who announced that he will marry me someday. He’s 12 years old, and was abandoned and left HIV positive by his prostitute mother some years ago, although she died fairly recently. He’s responding very well to the medication, and left the next day with Gena to go participate in the Special Olympics in Germany. Psychologists have said that he functions at about a 6 year olds level, and like all the other kids, loved taking pictures with my camera. The reception was extremely short, with people eating, congratulating and leaving in just a little more than an hour. I suppose it’s very expensive to rent the space and power it with a generator for any long amount of time. I felt fancy enough in my favorite skirt and even put make up on for the event. Haitians dress very well for events, however, and considering their limited means, I am continually surprised. These dresses looked like they were bought for a high school dance, with embellishments and glitter which undoubtedly came from the US. I felt a little underdressed, but I’m sure I was much more comfortable than some of those women!
Fabien, a sweet 20 something year old who used to come to school at St. Germaine, was at the wedding as well. She lived with the aunt, who could not watch her well enough, so she recently moved to the orphanage and into Kay Christine. She’s unbelievably friendly and smiles constantly, always biting down on a small towel to keep herself from drooling. Although she can’t really speak, she kind of grunts what she wants and makes herself understood. Apparently, she made a habit out of sneaking out of her aunt’s house and taking a tap tap into Port-au-Prince and returning late at night without explanation. How a mentally handicapped girl can manage to get there and back and more importantly what she did while she was in city was a cause for concern, and so it was decided she would be much safer within the walls of the orphanage. She’ll be happy there with lots of other kids to play with and supervision will not be an issue. Yolaine was sitting on a couch in the front of the tables at the reception with her husband, and Fabien literally jumped into her lap to hug her. She then squeezed herself between the bride and groom and happily greeted the rest of the guests who came to offer their congratulations.
Monday was a little sad for me, because I went to the hospital to get Eveline for swimming only to find that she had been moved to a “more permanent setting” away from the hospital. I then asked if I could take one of the other girls from that room, Shnaika, only to be told that she had gone to the same place! I’m not even sure where they are, probably some other orphanage or medical center for abandoned babies and I’m not sure if I’ll see them again. I took my other two girls, Jolene and Liliana instead, but now I’m getting nervous that my babies will keep disappearing without me being able to say goodbye! I wish they could come to our orphanage, but the special needs house there is completely filled and a space will only open up if one of our children dies- once a child is there, they remain there forever because there are no resources for adults with special needs in Haiti.
This weekend is a trip to Jacmel. I’m quite excited to the see the Caribbean!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
It’s been exactly one month since I arrived here. It feels like
the time has gone by quickly, but I feel very comfortable here and think the
next 11 months shouldn’t be a problem.
I’ve gotten used to the humidity and the constant heat- I even have a nice little tan going. Though I still sleep safely in my net, I think the mosquitoes are letting up a bit, and my legs are recovering from the immediate onslaught nicely. I eat what it made for me at work without hesitation, although I supplement with PBJ every night. I have successfully memorized every child’s name who swims with me although I often just call the adults “Madame” or “Monsieur” while I’m working on that side of things. I have picked up some off the job activities, like tutoring girls in English, teaching a seminar, lounging poolside and rearranging the living room of the Father Wasson Center. I have absolutely no problem going to bed at 10 pm and waking up at 6 am every morning, although I’m sure I’ll return to my regular 2 am to 1 pm pattern when I return to the states. I wear the first thing I grab in the morning, and put my hair into a braid or something without a thought for makeup or hairspray. I’m picking up Creole phrases more and more, but I still find it easier to speak French with those who don’t speak English. I deal well with all the extra time I have to myself in my evenings. I read a few books a week, and have been researching grad schools and taking practice GRE tests online. I have derived a nice little schedule for my everyday and it goes like this:
I wake up at 6:20 and eat peanut butter toast if we have electricity or a PBJ if we don’t for breakfast. The van leaves at 7 am and we arrive at Tabarre at around 8am. The kids go to summer classes while I set up the pool (which takes all of 5 minutes) and then I join them in class to listen to them sing, or read a book by the pool while I wait for them. At 9, I’m thrown my first group of kids, usually 4 or 5 boys. They splash around with various floatation devices, while I take one or two at a time and hold them while they “swim” aka splash and kick water right out of the pool or in my face. At 9:30 there’s another group, a few girls and maybe an older boy. They’re out by 10 and then there are a few stragglers that take me to 10:30 or 11. I chill by the pool, dry off and clean up a little until lunch at 12. It’s usually some sort of mush- corn or beans or rice and brown gravy. I then head to the hospital to pick up one of the four little abandoned baby girls who I take back for pool time. They can’t stay in the water for long, but it takes a while to walk next door, talk to about 4 nurses to get them permission to leave and then walk them back and set them up. I walk them back to the hospital and visit with my abandoned baby Carmelle for a few minutes (and the others, of course) and then head back around 2. The van leaves for Petionville at 3, and after a few stops, we’re back at about 4. The girls I tutor come at 4 a few days a week and I’m with them for 30 minutes to an hour. I eat whatever is left over from the lunch that was made here for dinner, which is usually rice and hot sauce and maybe something with potatoes in it or just PBJ again. I then have the evening to read, be online (if there’s internet), socialize (if anyone else is around) or go to the hotel to lay by the pool (at the end of the week, mostly). It’s simple and the days go quickly.
One of the days this week was too cold for the kids to swim, which sounds ridiculous coming from the Caribbean. That day, I went to the horseback riding place with the kids again. Basically, a storm was rolling in and it wasn’t very humid and there was a little breeze. The pool has a cover on it which is on of the reasons I’m not dying of sunburn, and I wasn’t sure if they would do alright in the cooler water. We’re very careful about the water temperature, because some of their muscles are too tense or too loose and are very affected by temperature changes. I’m even more careful with the babies because they are extremely small for their ages (malnutrition). I could bring 2 over a day, one in the late morning and one in the afternoon, but I let the sun heat the water a little so they don’t catch cold. Every child I work with has some sort of disability and I already know that some will not be able to learn to actually swim. Still, it’s good for them to be in the water and they have fun splashing around.
Besides all that, it’s been quiet around here. Robin and Alfonso are out of the country right now, so it’s often just me and Cecilia (a medical student from France staying here until the end of August) around at night. Johnny and Rena are two guys, both about 25 years old, who grew up at the orphanage and now live on the same floor as me and run the building. They’re in and out in the evenings, but are nice company and are helping me with my Creole. We had a couple Italian guys staying here last week, and they made great pasta dinners for us. Then another group of about 12 Haitians and Americans were here, and they also made dinner. Whenever people stay here, we eat well.
That’s all from Haiti. À bientôt!
I’ve gotten used to the humidity and the constant heat- I even have a nice little tan going. Though I still sleep safely in my net, I think the mosquitoes are letting up a bit, and my legs are recovering from the immediate onslaught nicely. I eat what it made for me at work without hesitation, although I supplement with PBJ every night. I have successfully memorized every child’s name who swims with me although I often just call the adults “Madame” or “Monsieur” while I’m working on that side of things. I have picked up some off the job activities, like tutoring girls in English, teaching a seminar, lounging poolside and rearranging the living room of the Father Wasson Center. I have absolutely no problem going to bed at 10 pm and waking up at 6 am every morning, although I’m sure I’ll return to my regular 2 am to 1 pm pattern when I return to the states. I wear the first thing I grab in the morning, and put my hair into a braid or something without a thought for makeup or hairspray. I’m picking up Creole phrases more and more, but I still find it easier to speak French with those who don’t speak English. I deal well with all the extra time I have to myself in my evenings. I read a few books a week, and have been researching grad schools and taking practice GRE tests online. I have derived a nice little schedule for my everyday and it goes like this:
I wake up at 6:20 and eat peanut butter toast if we have electricity or a PBJ if we don’t for breakfast. The van leaves at 7 am and we arrive at Tabarre at around 8am. The kids go to summer classes while I set up the pool (which takes all of 5 minutes) and then I join them in class to listen to them sing, or read a book by the pool while I wait for them. At 9, I’m thrown my first group of kids, usually 4 or 5 boys. They splash around with various floatation devices, while I take one or two at a time and hold them while they “swim” aka splash and kick water right out of the pool or in my face. At 9:30 there’s another group, a few girls and maybe an older boy. They’re out by 10 and then there are a few stragglers that take me to 10:30 or 11. I chill by the pool, dry off and clean up a little until lunch at 12. It’s usually some sort of mush- corn or beans or rice and brown gravy. I then head to the hospital to pick up one of the four little abandoned baby girls who I take back for pool time. They can’t stay in the water for long, but it takes a while to walk next door, talk to about 4 nurses to get them permission to leave and then walk them back and set them up. I walk them back to the hospital and visit with my abandoned baby Carmelle for a few minutes (and the others, of course) and then head back around 2. The van leaves for Petionville at 3, and after a few stops, we’re back at about 4. The girls I tutor come at 4 a few days a week and I’m with them for 30 minutes to an hour. I eat whatever is left over from the lunch that was made here for dinner, which is usually rice and hot sauce and maybe something with potatoes in it or just PBJ again. I then have the evening to read, be online (if there’s internet), socialize (if anyone else is around) or go to the hotel to lay by the pool (at the end of the week, mostly). It’s simple and the days go quickly.
One of the days this week was too cold for the kids to swim, which sounds ridiculous coming from the Caribbean. That day, I went to the horseback riding place with the kids again. Basically, a storm was rolling in and it wasn’t very humid and there was a little breeze. The pool has a cover on it which is on of the reasons I’m not dying of sunburn, and I wasn’t sure if they would do alright in the cooler water. We’re very careful about the water temperature, because some of their muscles are too tense or too loose and are very affected by temperature changes. I’m even more careful with the babies because they are extremely small for their ages (malnutrition). I could bring 2 over a day, one in the late morning and one in the afternoon, but I let the sun heat the water a little so they don’t catch cold. Every child I work with has some sort of disability and I already know that some will not be able to learn to actually swim. Still, it’s good for them to be in the water and they have fun splashing around.
Besides all that, it’s been quiet around here. Robin and Alfonso are out of the country right now, so it’s often just me and Cecilia (a medical student from France staying here until the end of August) around at night. Johnny and Rena are two guys, both about 25 years old, who grew up at the orphanage and now live on the same floor as me and run the building. They’re in and out in the evenings, but are nice company and are helping me with my Creole. We had a couple Italian guys staying here last week, and they made great pasta dinners for us. Then another group of about 12 Haitians and Americans were here, and they also made dinner. Whenever people stay here, we eat well.
That’s all from Haiti. À bientôt!
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Many of the clothes people wear here came from the United
States, and it’s always amusing to see the slogans people where that in no way
apply to anything Haitian. One of the kids at St. Germaine named David always
wears this shirt that says “Miller family reunion July 2000!” on it. He’s 7
years old and blind, and always swings his head back and forth like Stevie
Wonder, and will of course have no idea what his shirt says but I find it
funny. I also seem to see the same guy who wears a tie dye peace sign shirt
that says Berkeley on it, often in the same market as the guy whose shirt says
“My immune system is better than your immune system”. The best is when you see shirts
that were bought in touristy shops in random states that say “Missouri love!”
These people will never go to the US, and I’m sure they have no idea what
Missouri is, but if the shirt fits you might as well buy it. On that note, I
handwashed my laundry last week and suck at it. I’ll have to do it every 2
weeks because I packed light, so I better master it soon.
We took a few kids in the water on Saturday, and they all did extremely well. The blind baby was smiling and interacting, which is a lot more than she usually does, so we’re going to try to make it a weekly thing for her. I started my regular swim lessons with the kids on Monday and at first it was very hectic. I had 10 handicapped children in the pool with just water wings, which is really not enough to keep those with little muscle control floating. I had 8 sitting on the steps while I took one or two out at a time, but I couldn’t keep my eye on all of them, and the staff was drifting in and out. The next day, I said only 5 kids at a time and someone in the water with me, but the 5 quickly turned into 10 again. All the kids are so excited to swim and the summer session revolves around fun activities like pool times so everyone comes at once! Today however, things started to iron themselves out, and I had groups of 4 or 5 kids cycling in and out every hour which worked well for everyone. The summer session ends at 1:30 everyday, but with the van not leaving for Petionville until 3, I’ll have some time to walk next door to the hospital, pick up the babies and swim with them for half an hour.
Lucienne is one of my favorite little girls at St. Germaine who has both physical and mental issues. She can walk, but not very steadily as her knees point toward each other. She usually hangs onto me as I walk around, and likes to sit with me and play with my hair. She’s slow, but learns well with help and communicates very well as compared to the other children. She is quickly learning to swim after only 2 days in the water which makes me so happy. She’s already floating on her back without any help and can hold onto my shoulders and kick her feet out behind her which is the next step in my plans for them. Most of the kids (especially the ones with little control out of the water) hold on to me for dear life, but Lucienne has realized that her legs work just fine in the water and is quickly becoming a little swimmer.
This Sunday, Jean (a summer volunteer from Colorado) and I taught a class on conflict resolution to some of the former Kenscoff kids living in the city. Once they age out of the orphanage, the kids often live in groups in the cities, which can result in a lot of serious issues. They all are very young (16-22 years old) and of course struggle with being out of the sheltered orphanage and in the city and its poverty. A few months ago, two former Kenscoff kids got into a fight over food and one was killed, leaving the other in jail for the rest of his life. Most of the kids were about 20 years old, and we basically just talked to them about the effects of violence and the need for communication. Jean has her masters in counseling (which I’m considering) and teaches this kind of thing often. She can speak a little French, but I did a lot of the talking since none of the kids speak English really. They seemed to understand what I was saying, which was cool and will be back this weekend for another session. Adding “co facilitator of a French language seminar on conflict resolution and anger management” to my resume will be cool, too.
There are a few fancy hotels down the street from the Father Wasson Center with amazing pools that I think I will sneak into on a regular basis. We went for a coca cola on Friday, and then Jean and I went to celebrate our successful seminar with a frozen vodka tonic on Sunday. It’s a lot of business people and their families, I think, because no one there is Haitian and people don’t come to Petionville for vacation. No one will question me if I buy something to drink and swim and lay in the shade for an afternoon a week, so suck on that rich people, I’m using your amenities.
I also found crappy fast food several blocks away, and had a mediocre cheeseburger last week. It was awesome.
We took a few kids in the water on Saturday, and they all did extremely well. The blind baby was smiling and interacting, which is a lot more than she usually does, so we’re going to try to make it a weekly thing for her. I started my regular swim lessons with the kids on Monday and at first it was very hectic. I had 10 handicapped children in the pool with just water wings, which is really not enough to keep those with little muscle control floating. I had 8 sitting on the steps while I took one or two out at a time, but I couldn’t keep my eye on all of them, and the staff was drifting in and out. The next day, I said only 5 kids at a time and someone in the water with me, but the 5 quickly turned into 10 again. All the kids are so excited to swim and the summer session revolves around fun activities like pool times so everyone comes at once! Today however, things started to iron themselves out, and I had groups of 4 or 5 kids cycling in and out every hour which worked well for everyone. The summer session ends at 1:30 everyday, but with the van not leaving for Petionville until 3, I’ll have some time to walk next door to the hospital, pick up the babies and swim with them for half an hour.
Lucienne is one of my favorite little girls at St. Germaine who has both physical and mental issues. She can walk, but not very steadily as her knees point toward each other. She usually hangs onto me as I walk around, and likes to sit with me and play with my hair. She’s slow, but learns well with help and communicates very well as compared to the other children. She is quickly learning to swim after only 2 days in the water which makes me so happy. She’s already floating on her back without any help and can hold onto my shoulders and kick her feet out behind her which is the next step in my plans for them. Most of the kids (especially the ones with little control out of the water) hold on to me for dear life, but Lucienne has realized that her legs work just fine in the water and is quickly becoming a little swimmer.
This Sunday, Jean (a summer volunteer from Colorado) and I taught a class on conflict resolution to some of the former Kenscoff kids living in the city. Once they age out of the orphanage, the kids often live in groups in the cities, which can result in a lot of serious issues. They all are very young (16-22 years old) and of course struggle with being out of the sheltered orphanage and in the city and its poverty. A few months ago, two former Kenscoff kids got into a fight over food and one was killed, leaving the other in jail for the rest of his life. Most of the kids were about 20 years old, and we basically just talked to them about the effects of violence and the need for communication. Jean has her masters in counseling (which I’m considering) and teaches this kind of thing often. She can speak a little French, but I did a lot of the talking since none of the kids speak English really. They seemed to understand what I was saying, which was cool and will be back this weekend for another session. Adding “co facilitator of a French language seminar on conflict resolution and anger management” to my resume will be cool, too.
There are a few fancy hotels down the street from the Father Wasson Center with amazing pools that I think I will sneak into on a regular basis. We went for a coca cola on Friday, and then Jean and I went to celebrate our successful seminar with a frozen vodka tonic on Sunday. It’s a lot of business people and their families, I think, because no one there is Haitian and people don’t come to Petionville for vacation. No one will question me if I buy something to drink and swim and lay in the shade for an afternoon a week, so suck on that rich people, I’m using your amenities.
I also found crappy fast food several blocks away, and had a mediocre cheeseburger last week. It was awesome.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Last Sunday was many of the children’s first communions in
Kenscoff, so I spent the night in the orphanage and walked down the mountain
with them to the church in the morning. It was about a 40 minute walk to the
actual town of Kenscoff for mass at 9, and a steep, dusty, hot hour walk back
up afterward. They had a little party for the children, and they were all very
excited to have been given their own soda and piece of cake. They were adorable
in their white dresses and dress shirts, and loved being apart from the rest of
the children for their party. After the communion, the kids in Kay Christine
had prepared a little dance performance to the soundtrack of Mama Mia. Even the
kids in the wheelchairs were spinning around and having fun. Some of them had
memorized an entire little routine, where others were just bouncing around and
enjoying themselves.
Robin (the volunteer coordinator) turned 33 on Sunday, so we had
a little cake and cookie party for her at the retreat house in Kenscoff. On the
way back down to Petionville, we stopped at a bar for a beer to celebrate her
birthday. I use the term very loosely, because it was basically just a cement
house with a barred window they handed the beers out of. We sat in and around
the truck, and drank the beers while chickens ran around out feet and the bar
owner’s children sat with us.
I had been to the hospital for Emilie’s funeral, but have never
really gotten the chance to see all the rooms and visit the babies, so I took
the morning on Wednesday and looked around. St. Damien is the only free
pediatric hospital in Haiti, and the new site in Tabarre was opened in 2006 so
it’s very new and impressive. The day started with mass at 7 with Father Rick,
who was in town for the first time since I’ve been here. He has to travel an
insane amount to raise money for the hospital, and left again the next day for
another trip. The mothers were being led in from the gates carrying their sick
children to sit outside for the morning prayer and then were led inside to the
waiting room. Only a certain number of children are seen a day on a first come
first serve basis, so many had been waiting at the gate all morning.
I first visited the malnourished house, with sick children
staying there to regroup for anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. There
were a few very adorable babies in their cribs who seemed to be doing well with
the help. I spent a lot of time in the abandoned baby room (the tap tap room)
playing with the kids. The oldest girl was Annabelle, who is 2 years old and
was only recently abandoned by her family. She was in a fire, and lost all the
fingers on one hand and about half of her scalp and was left in the hospital
for her injuries. Besides her scars, she is perfectly normal and healthy, and
is actually very spoiled by all the visitors and nurses who love to pick her up
and play with her. She got very frustrated with me when I put her down to go
hold some of the other children. Evelin was another little girl, who has quite
a few neurological and sensorial problems. She’s blind (born without eyes) and
is very difficult to communicate with, usually just content with sitting,
kicking and making noise by herself. We’re going to take her into the pool this
Saturday to see if some water therapy helps her at all. My favorite little girl
was Camielle, who is very tiny for her age, but otherwise perfect and very
sweet. She’s probably about 15 months, but looks a lot younger and loves to
pull on my hair. I visited the other recovery rooms and played with the children-
some were recovering from surgery, others were there for long term illnesses,
some were in wheelchairs or completely bedridden and several were abandoned.
They were very happy to see visitors, and kept having me take pictures and show
them what they looked like.
I’ve been working a lot with certain children in their physical
therapy sessions, taking them into separate rooms and working on their
extension and muscle control in their hands. Jerry is my favorite little guy,
who was born with a brain tumor and had some brain damage from it. He is 4
years old, and can walk if he is holding on to something, so I walked with him
in his walker and played catch with him and some other children. They are all
so happy, but many of them are extremely stubborn and would rather play then
concentrate on their therapy! The kids from the school are still on their
summer vacation, but the summer program starts on Monday and that’s when I’ll
start with them in the pool. On Saturday, some of the kids from Kenscoff are coming
down to swim and we’re bringing a few of the babies over from hospital to see
how they do in the water.
Besides that, I’ve just been continuing meeting all the kids,
observing physical therapy and helping out where I can. I found out that I can
go to the Dominican Republic in September to renew my visa which expires every
90 days. The bus is only about 80 bucks round trip, and I’ll get to see a lot
of the country this way! I’ll stay, I hope, with the NPH house there where a
friend of mine from college will be volunteering. Then there will be home in
December for Audrey’s wedding for that renewal, and I suppose I’ll have to
figure something out for March.
Love and miss you all!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Continuing my observing and meeting all the kids and staff this
week- things were a bit hectic at the end of last week with the funeral and
all, so I’ll probably be starting the kids in the water next week.
I’ve been speaking to Norma and the other physical therapists a
lot about what exercises to do with the kids in the water to best use their
muscles to make it therapy while they’re learning to swim. I’ve met so many
children this week who have had meningitis which went untreated for too long
and left lasting brain damage. It’s difficult to determine which children are
just physically handicapped, because so many will make eye contact with you,
acknowledge your words and smile when you touch them but cannot speak and have
never properly been taught to communicate in other ways. Truly, each one of
these children needs a physical and occupational therapist as well as a speech
pathologist, but with little access and no money, most only have the physical
therapy NPFS provides at no cost. Some of these high functioning children have
mild retardation, while others do not but will always lapse behind their age
group, missing developmental stages and not experiencing regular life events
due to their physical disabilities. This is where my psychology background
comes in, as I’ve studied the developmental milestones quite a bit, and am
familiar with the parts of the brain that affect the different functions. I
help out with the therapy, holding a child in place while a therapist helps
them stretch, or helping extend limbs to strengthen muscles while Norma tells
me about each child’s issues.
Yesterday, I went with some of the Kay Christine children from
Kenscoff to ride horses, a very useful form of physical therapy. We drove with
6 kids toward Tabarre, through the usual impoverished areas when you can barely
stand to breathe in the smells of the raw sewage, the burning garbage and the
pollution. We turned off the main paved road (very poorly paved, I might add)
onto a dirt road which was calmer but still very far below any poverty line. We
went through a gate and suddenly, it was like we weren’t even in a third world
country anymore. It was an actual ranch, with a pasture, a gorgeous house, a
stable with 15 horses and a field to ride them in. We sat on a covered stone
porch while the children rode and just enjoyed the place. It was beautiful,
with tall stone walls covered in purple flowers, a pool and views of the
mountains in the distance. I could not fathom that less than a quarter mile
away was that place where I literally was afraid to breathe deeply. There is
beauty to Haiti off the main roads, locked far behind fences and gate keepers
and unreachable to the poor.
Today, I stayed in Petionville, going downstairs to Kay Elian to
sit in on therapy sessions there. Norma travels to all locations to teach the
Haitian therapists techniques and strategies, and today, she was at Kay Elian.
We have multiple therapy rooms at each center, but typically we have both
therapists in one room, each working with a child. This allows Norma to help
them at the same time. One of the therapists told me he attended just one year
of technical school, and learns the rest from Norma and other volunteers who
come. Everyone I encounter believes me to be a physical therapist and when I
say, no, I’m here to work with the special needs kids and just finished
college, they believe me to be a licensed psychologist because I majored in
psychology. I’ve had several ask if I went to school for swimming to be
qualified to teach in the pool and is there money in this field of employment?
I took swimming lessons when I was 4 and passed a test to get into the big girl
section of the lake at girl scout camp, but that about tops my professional
training and accomplishments.
I met several adorable children, including Jefferson who I took
into a room and worked with individually for awhile. His meningitis left him
with motor skill issues and unable to speak, though he can walk if he has a
wall to hold onto (falling often, and popping right back up). He’s about 3
years old, and loved when I picked him up and spun him around. I started
counting un…deux…TROIS and spinning or bouncing on three, and when he figured
out the pattern, he started to make a sound at each number. He knew exactly
what was happening, and when I stopped counting (he’s a big boy and my arms
were tired!) he kept right on grunting ugh…ugh… UGH until I would bounce him on
the third. He’s one of the children that will always fall behind his age group,
but is making so much progress and will be able to walk and hopefully,
communicate more someday. I worked with him on muscle extension, holding out
things for him to grab and guiding them into a cup or something. He was a
goofball though, and just wanted to play after awhile.
The most stressful thing I’ve done yet is buy a cell phone with
Jackie, one of the drivers who grew up at Kenscoff. He took me to the store to
get one, and I had no idea what they were saying in their mixed creole-french
but it all worked out and I now have a phone (though I haven’t bought the
minutes yet). So congratulations, Molly, you now have 3 cell phones in this
country, one which has your numbers in it but can’t call anyone, a global phone
for calling the parents while travelling here, and this new one which has no
use as of yet without minutes. I also couldn’t get the language setting off
Spanish and had to ask one of the boys to help me. I have no idea how I have 3
phones, only 4 pairs of shoes, and literally 10 mosquito bites on my left leg.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Yesterday, I went up the mountain to Kenscoff on a bus with some
kids from Tabarre. It was an unbelievable twisty bumpy ride through one of the
only green areas of Haiti, as most of the country is extremely deforested. Last
years terrible storm season combined with a lack of anything for the soil to
hang on to had caused mudslides, and we saw one house that was dangerously
close to sliding right out of its place and down into the road.
We arrived around 9:30, and first went to meet the children in
the special needs house of Kay Christine. There about 30 people living there-
not kids necessarily. Innocent, one of the oldest residents, is about 28 years
old. He immediately grabbed my hand and took me to meet everyone, and would not
let me go willingly for the rest of the day. Innocent has cerebral palsy which
has at least partially paralyzed one side of his body. He tries to speak, but
is impossible to understand. At fist I thought he was just speaking creole
quickly and stuttering, but then was told that no one can understand him. He
kept kissing my cheek, and if he couldn’t reach, would kiss my hand over and
over until I said “mesi, mesi!” (thank you, thank you) and took it away.
Innocent took me to the play ground area where I met several
more of the special needs children. One of my favorite little buddies was
Olsen, who is confined to a wheel chair and blind, but starts to laugh
uncontrollably when you sing to him. I sat down and about 5 little girls from
other dormitories came over and started to talk to me in French. They
discovered my camera and took literally 200 pictures of each other before it
died and I had to put it away. Roselene is a 12 year old girl who stayed by my
side the entire day, and asked me a million questions. When others asked the
same ones, she would answer for me, and remembered everything right down to my
parent’s names. It wasn’t until a good hour into sitting next to her that I noticed
she was missing a leg under her long skirt. Norma told me that when she was
younger, she broke her leg and was not taken to the hospital for however long,
and by the time she went her leg was too infected to be saved. The hospital she
went to amputated, but at a place that made a prosthetic impossible, and it
wasn’t until she came to NPFS that her leg was again operated on and fit with a
prosthetic. She gets around with just a slight limp, and literally fought off
Innocent at one point when he kept trying to pull me away. He wanted to me to
go away from all the other children with him but they kept following, and he
was getting very worked up. After you kissed him on the cheek though, he was
all smiles again.
I had lunch with Maive in the volunteer house where I will be staying when I spend some weekends up there. They have a dog named Nina and are separated from the other houses down a really beautiful path with wildflowers and an amazing view down the mountain. It’s a lot cooler than Petionville and especially Tabarre. People actually wear long sleeves without dying of the heat, which would be a welcome relief from the mosquitoes and potential sunburn.
Gena came up on the bus with me and the kids from Tabarre, but
lives at the orphanage so I was the only English speaker on the bus ride down.
Thursdays are market days, so everyone was gathering their produce and other
sellable things and carrying them down to the closest town, usually in
overflowing baskets on their heads. At one point, I saw a woman carrying 7
chickens tied by their feet and hanging down out of the basket on her head. I
was extremely confused when we pulled over and people from the bus started
talking to her. It got pretty heated and we started to drive off, before
someone leaned out the window, yelled one more things, and we reversed so a
woman could buy 2 chickens that she apparently had been bartering for. The bus
driver then saw that I was confused and tried to explain it to me in creole and
broken French, before just laughing and handing me a peach to eat.
Today was a very difficult day at Tabarre. I was sitting in with
Norma at a physical therapy session and she was explaining to me how the water
will affect the children with cerebral palsy so I can be prepared when I start
taking them into the water next week. Someone came in and said something very
quickly in creole, and Norma handed me the boy she had been working with and
said something was wrong with one of the children and she had to go see. I
stayed in the room and talked to the other physical therapists in French a
little and held the little boy (who had cerebral palsy). People were in and out
and I tried to understand what was being said. I’m getting better at
understanding the creole, but if someone is not addressing me in particular,
it’s very difficult to follow. I understood that a girl had been injured
somehow and was taken to the hospital across the street. Awhile later, they
told me she had died. Norma came back very upset and told me that the girl was
being fed by her mother in an improper position and some of the bread she was
eating had gotten caught and she had asphyxiated. They had taken her to the
hospital and Norma had tried every procedure, but it was too late.
Emilie was 5 years old
and had been coming with her mother for therapy for 4 years. She had contracted
meningitis when she was a baby and was left severely retarded, with little to
no muscle control. Norma had been working with her whenever she was in Haiti
for the last several years, and said that Emilie was making huge improvements,
which were largely unexpected. Her mother was obviously devastated- she had 3
children, the oldest of whom she had given up and was adopted in Italy, an 8
year old boy and Emilie. She had no husband and was extremely poor even for
Haiti standards. Every morning she carried Emilie onto a tap tap (bus) for a
very long travel to Tabarre. Often, the meal provided to the parents and kids
was the only meal they ate that day. Norma took her home in an NPFS van, and
said she lived in a shack of scrap metal, and was surprised Emilie, as a
special needs child, was able to survive there. The funeral is tomorrow.
FYI because people have been asking: NPH stands for Nuestros
Pequenos Hermanos (our little brothers and sisters) and was started in the 50s
by Father Wasson in Mexico. There are homes in 9 countries: Mexico, Haiti, the
Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Peru, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala and El
Salvador. Haiti is the only non Spanish speaking country, and we are called Nos
Petit Frères et Soeurs (NPFS). I know it’s a little confusing with all the
names and cities. Summary:
Kenscoff: The program started with the orphanage called St. Helene which is high in the mountains in Kenscoff. There are about 450 children living there at the moment, and they receive education up to 9th grade before being able to earn scholarships for secondary school in the city. It is the site of Kay Christine, the special needs home Gena runs.
Kenscoff: The program started with the orphanage called St. Helene which is high in the mountains in Kenscoff. There are about 450 children living there at the moment, and they receive education up to 9th grade before being able to earn scholarships for secondary school in the city. It is the site of Kay Christine, the special needs home Gena runs.
Petionville: This is where I live, in the old hospital which has been turned
into administration and volunteer housing and is called the Father Wasson
Center. It is also the site of Kay Elian, a rehab and physiotherapy center for
special needs children. Petionville is about an hour down the mountains from
the orphanage.
Tabarre: After several years,
the new hospital called St. Damien was opened in Tabarre, an hour away in the
opposite direction. It is the only free pediatric hospital in Haiti and has
outpatient services, cancer and AIDS/HIV treatments, and focuses largely on
malnutrition and tuberculosis. This year, the rehab and physiotherapy center
called St. Germaine was opened across the street from the hospital, and also
has a small school for children with a range of mental and physical handicaps.
This is where I will be working with the small pool they have, as well as with
the feeding of the children. Tabarre is about an hour from Petionville, so 2
hours from Kenscoff. The site is right next to the huge American Embassy.
So basically, I’m right in the middle, which is good because there is are centers for the special needs children at all 3 locations. It can be difficult to keep track of, because there are multiple programs in each city and within centers, and people refer to where they’re going or working by either city, specific program name or the larger program.
As far as the other people, here’s that:
Robin: The volunteer coordinator, American from Chicago, early 30’s lives the floor about me and does her work from Petionville. She’s been here for about a year and is staying indefinitely.
Alfonso: The family services person, a Mexican in his late 40’s who travels often to other NPH homes. He lives in Petionville, too. He’s been here for 20 years, and has no plans to leave as far as I know.
Norma: A physical therapist in her 40’s from Argentina who lives on the same floor as me in Petionville and works at all 3 locations with the special needs children. She’s been here for about 4 months, and isn’t sure when she’ll leave.
Gena: The special needs children coordinator who came to Haiti from Ireland 16 years ago when she was in her early 20’s and never left. She works everywhere, but usually stays at Kenscoff.
Maive: Also from Ireland, Maive works with the children in Kenscoff. She is in her early 60’s and retired, and is a year and a half into her 2 years.
Liz: Also from Ireland and is here to teach art for the summer. She’s in her late 20’s/early 30’s and stays at Kenscoff.
Father Rick Frechette: The American priest who started this entire operation in 1988, who is also a medical doctor. He is everywhere all the time, and has recently been travelling all over outside of Haiti to raise money for the rising costs of NPFS. He lives at the hospital in Tabarre.
So basically, I’m right in the middle, which is good because there is are centers for the special needs children at all 3 locations. It can be difficult to keep track of, because there are multiple programs in each city and within centers, and people refer to where they’re going or working by either city, specific program name or the larger program.
As far as the other people, here’s that:
Robin: The volunteer coordinator, American from Chicago, early 30’s lives the floor about me and does her work from Petionville. She’s been here for about a year and is staying indefinitely.
Alfonso: The family services person, a Mexican in his late 40’s who travels often to other NPH homes. He lives in Petionville, too. He’s been here for 20 years, and has no plans to leave as far as I know.
Norma: A physical therapist in her 40’s from Argentina who lives on the same floor as me in Petionville and works at all 3 locations with the special needs children. She’s been here for about 4 months, and isn’t sure when she’ll leave.
Gena: The special needs children coordinator who came to Haiti from Ireland 16 years ago when she was in her early 20’s and never left. She works everywhere, but usually stays at Kenscoff.
Maive: Also from Ireland, Maive works with the children in Kenscoff. She is in her early 60’s and retired, and is a year and a half into her 2 years.
Liz: Also from Ireland and is here to teach art for the summer. She’s in her late 20’s/early 30’s and stays at Kenscoff.
Father Rick Frechette: The American priest who started this entire operation in 1988, who is also a medical doctor. He is everywhere all the time, and has recently been travelling all over outside of Haiti to raise money for the rising costs of NPFS. He lives at the hospital in Tabarre.
Thanks for tuning in!
From June 2009 to
2010, I'll be living and working in Haiti with NPFS, an aid organization for
orphaned and abandoned children. I'll mainly be working with the special needs
kids at an outpatient facility in Tabarre.
Contact Information
Molly Hightower
NPFS Haiti
7175 SW 47th St. Suite 207
Miami, FL 33155
(Most of the mail will be going directly through security at the airport in carry on luggage, so it cannot include food, drink or dangerous weapons)
NPFS Haiti
7175 SW 47th St. Suite 207
Miami, FL 33155
(Most of the mail will be going directly through security at the airport in carry on luggage, so it cannot include food, drink or dangerous weapons)
Things I like to look at
- www.nph.org
- www.compassionweavers.com
- www.textsfromlastnight.com
- www.saintdamienhospital.wordpress.com
- www.postsecret.blogspot.com
Followers
I'm a 22 year old from Port Orchard, WA, who
just graduated from the University of Portland and is avoiding getting a job. I
majored in Psychology, Sociology and French, and plan to get my masters in
special ed, counseling or education.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Today, one of the kids swam across the pool unassisted. Tony,
who is usually content swimming up and down the steps without letting go of the
wall, was splashing around with me and all the sudden, all the arm movements I
had been showing him for the last few weeks actually happened. I’m not going to
say it was pretty- it looked like a little storm of feet and arms- but I let
him go and he swam a good 10 feet unassisted. PROGRESS. Some of the other kids
are getting close, but often realize that they’re bobbing there without me
holding them after a few moments, freak out and reach for me to grab them as
they flail themselves underwater. Water wings are still necessary and some
physically choke me as they’re clutching with fear in the deep end (ahem- 5 ft
deep). At least 4 of the 10 that come regularly can float, which is pretty good
numbers if you ask me since several cannot walk unassisted, see very well or
control their muscle movement.
One of the teachers from school, Yolaine, was married on Saturday and I went to the wedding with Gena, Norma, Maive and some of the Kay Christine kids. It was suppose to start at 5, so true of all Haitian events, it started an hour late at 6. It was the most bizarre wedding I have ever been to because 1.) There were 2 brides with 2 separate groups of bridesmaids 2.) Noone smiled for the entire 1 and a half hour ceremony 3.) All the women were wearing prom dresses.
The ceremony started with 4 bridesmaids and 4 groomsmen doing a synchronized walk/dance down the aisle to Enya. After that, a woman in a wedding dress also did a little walk/dance down the aisle toward no one and then sat down with the rest of the guests. Apparently, she introduces the ceremony and is kind of a “throw away bride”. After this, it got more traditional, with Shadya (a girl from l’Ecole de Saint Germaine) as the flower girl and an adorable boy and girl ring bearer duo, followed by a few more bridesmaids. Yolaine came in next with her father, but sat across the aisle from the groom for the entire ceremony. The wedding was in a protestant church and was LONG, with 2 pastors presiding. After, we went to the reception, where the bride and groom did all the traditional things usually done publically in the US (like cutting the cake) behind a closed glass door. I sat with Maive and Polento, a sweet boy from Kay Germaine who announced that he will marry me someday. He’s 12 years old, and was abandoned and left HIV positive by his prostitute mother some years ago, although she died fairly recently. He’s responding very well to the medication, and left the next day with Gena to go participate in the Special Olympics in Germany. Psychologists have said that he functions at about a 6 year olds level, and like all the other kids, loved taking pictures with my camera. The reception was extremely short, with people eating, congratulating and leaving in just a little more than an hour. I suppose it’s very expensive to rent the space and power it with a generator for any long amount of time. I felt fancy enough in my favorite skirt and even put make up on for the event. Haitians dress very well for events, however, and considering their limited means, I am continually surprised. These dresses looked like they were bought for a high school dance, with embellishments and glitter which undoubtedly came from the US. I felt a little underdressed, but I’m sure I was much more comfortable than some of those women!
Fabien, a sweet 20 something year old who used to come to school at St. Germaine, was at the wedding as well. She lived with the aunt, who could not watch her well enough, so she recently moved to the orphanage and into Kay Christine. She’s unbelievably friendly and smiles constantly, always biting down on a small towel to keep herself from drooling. Although she can’t really speak, she kind of grunts what she wants and makes herself understood. Apparently, she made a habit out of sneaking out of her aunt’s house and taking a tap tap into Port-au-Prince and returning late at night without explanation. How a mentally handicapped girl can manage to get there and back and more importantly what she did while she was in city was a cause for concern, and so it was decided she would be much safer within the walls of the orphanage. She’ll be happy there with lots of other kids to play with and supervision will not be an issue. Yolaine was sitting on a couch in the front of the tables at the reception with her husband, and Fabien literally jumped into her lap to hug her. She then squeezed herself between the bride and groom and happily greeted the rest of the guests who came to offer their congratulations.
Monday was a little sad for me, because I went to the hospital to get Eveline for swimming only to find that she had been moved to a “more permanent setting” away from the hospital. I then asked if I could take one of the other girls from that room, Shnaika, only to be told that she had gone to the same place! I’m not even sure where they are, probably some other orphanage or medical center for abandoned babies and I’m not sure if I’ll see them again. I took my other two girls, Jolene and Liliana instead, but now I’m getting nervous that my babies will keep disappearing without me being able to say goodbye! I wish they could come to our orphanage, but the special needs house there is completely filled and a space will only open up if one of our children dies- once a child is there, they remain there forever because there are no resources for adults with special needs in Haiti.
This weekend is a trip to Jacmel. I’m quite excited to the see the Caribbean!
One of the teachers from school, Yolaine, was married on Saturday and I went to the wedding with Gena, Norma, Maive and some of the Kay Christine kids. It was suppose to start at 5, so true of all Haitian events, it started an hour late at 6. It was the most bizarre wedding I have ever been to because 1.) There were 2 brides with 2 separate groups of bridesmaids 2.) Noone smiled for the entire 1 and a half hour ceremony 3.) All the women were wearing prom dresses.
The ceremony started with 4 bridesmaids and 4 groomsmen doing a synchronized walk/dance down the aisle to Enya. After that, a woman in a wedding dress also did a little walk/dance down the aisle toward no one and then sat down with the rest of the guests. Apparently, she introduces the ceremony and is kind of a “throw away bride”. After this, it got more traditional, with Shadya (a girl from l’Ecole de Saint Germaine) as the flower girl and an adorable boy and girl ring bearer duo, followed by a few more bridesmaids. Yolaine came in next with her father, but sat across the aisle from the groom for the entire ceremony. The wedding was in a protestant church and was LONG, with 2 pastors presiding. After, we went to the reception, where the bride and groom did all the traditional things usually done publically in the US (like cutting the cake) behind a closed glass door. I sat with Maive and Polento, a sweet boy from Kay Germaine who announced that he will marry me someday. He’s 12 years old, and was abandoned and left HIV positive by his prostitute mother some years ago, although she died fairly recently. He’s responding very well to the medication, and left the next day with Gena to go participate in the Special Olympics in Germany. Psychologists have said that he functions at about a 6 year olds level, and like all the other kids, loved taking pictures with my camera. The reception was extremely short, with people eating, congratulating and leaving in just a little more than an hour. I suppose it’s very expensive to rent the space and power it with a generator for any long amount of time. I felt fancy enough in my favorite skirt and even put make up on for the event. Haitians dress very well for events, however, and considering their limited means, I am continually surprised. These dresses looked like they were bought for a high school dance, with embellishments and glitter which undoubtedly came from the US. I felt a little underdressed, but I’m sure I was much more comfortable than some of those women!
Fabien, a sweet 20 something year old who used to come to school at St. Germaine, was at the wedding as well. She lived with the aunt, who could not watch her well enough, so she recently moved to the orphanage and into Kay Christine. She’s unbelievably friendly and smiles constantly, always biting down on a small towel to keep herself from drooling. Although she can’t really speak, she kind of grunts what she wants and makes herself understood. Apparently, she made a habit out of sneaking out of her aunt’s house and taking a tap tap into Port-au-Prince and returning late at night without explanation. How a mentally handicapped girl can manage to get there and back and more importantly what she did while she was in city was a cause for concern, and so it was decided she would be much safer within the walls of the orphanage. She’ll be happy there with lots of other kids to play with and supervision will not be an issue. Yolaine was sitting on a couch in the front of the tables at the reception with her husband, and Fabien literally jumped into her lap to hug her. She then squeezed herself between the bride and groom and happily greeted the rest of the guests who came to offer their congratulations.
Monday was a little sad for me, because I went to the hospital to get Eveline for swimming only to find that she had been moved to a “more permanent setting” away from the hospital. I then asked if I could take one of the other girls from that room, Shnaika, only to be told that she had gone to the same place! I’m not even sure where they are, probably some other orphanage or medical center for abandoned babies and I’m not sure if I’ll see them again. I took my other two girls, Jolene and Liliana instead, but now I’m getting nervous that my babies will keep disappearing without me being able to say goodbye! I wish they could come to our orphanage, but the special needs house there is completely filled and a space will only open up if one of our children dies- once a child is there, they remain there forever because there are no resources for adults with special needs in Haiti.
This weekend is a trip to Jacmel. I’m quite excited to the see the Caribbean!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
It’s been exactly one month since I arrived here. It feels like
the time has gone by quickly, but I feel very comfortable here and think the
next 11 months shouldn’t be a problem.
I’ve gotten used to the humidity and the constant heat- I even have a nice little tan going. Though I still sleep safely in my net, I think the mosquitoes are letting up a bit, and my legs are recovering from the immediate onslaught nicely. I eat what it made for me at work without hesitation, although I supplement with PBJ every night. I have successfully memorized every child’s name who swims with me although I often just call the adults “Madame” or “Monsieur” while I’m working on that side of things. I have picked up some off the job activities, like tutoring girls in English, teaching a seminar, lounging poolside and rearranging the living room of the Father Wasson Center. I have absolutely no problem going to bed at 10 pm and waking up at 6 am every morning, although I’m sure I’ll return to my regular 2 am to 1 pm pattern when I return to the states. I wear the first thing I grab in the morning, and put my hair into a braid or something without a thought for makeup or hairspray. I’m picking up Creole phrases more and more, but I still find it easier to speak French with those who don’t speak English. I deal well with all the extra time I have to myself in my evenings. I read a few books a week, and have been researching grad schools and taking practice GRE tests online. I have derived a nice little schedule for my everyday and it goes like this:
I wake up at 6:20 and eat peanut butter toast if we have electricity or a PBJ if we don’t for breakfast. The van leaves at 7 am and we arrive at Tabarre at around 8am. The kids go to summer classes while I set up the pool (which takes all of 5 minutes) and then I join them in class to listen to them sing, or read a book by the pool while I wait for them. At 9, I’m thrown my first group of kids, usually 4 or 5 boys. They splash around with various floatation devices, while I take one or two at a time and hold them while they “swim” aka splash and kick water right out of the pool or in my face. At 9:30 there’s another group, a few girls and maybe an older boy. They’re out by 10 and then there are a few stragglers that take me to 10:30 or 11. I chill by the pool, dry off and clean up a little until lunch at 12. It’s usually some sort of mush- corn or beans or rice and brown gravy. I then head to the hospital to pick up one of the four little abandoned baby girls who I take back for pool time. They can’t stay in the water for long, but it takes a while to walk next door, talk to about 4 nurses to get them permission to leave and then walk them back and set them up. I walk them back to the hospital and visit with my abandoned baby Carmelle for a few minutes (and the others, of course) and then head back around 2. The van leaves for Petionville at 3, and after a few stops, we’re back at about 4. The girls I tutor come at 4 a few days a week and I’m with them for 30 minutes to an hour. I eat whatever is left over from the lunch that was made here for dinner, which is usually rice and hot sauce and maybe something with potatoes in it or just PBJ again. I then have the evening to read, be online (if there’s internet), socialize (if anyone else is around) or go to the hotel to lay by the pool (at the end of the week, mostly). It’s simple and the days go quickly.
One of the days this week was too cold for the kids to swim, which sounds ridiculous coming from the Caribbean. That day, I went to the horseback riding place with the kids again. Basically, a storm was rolling in and it wasn’t very humid and there was a little breeze. The pool has a cover on it which is on of the reasons I’m not dying of sunburn, and I wasn’t sure if they would do alright in the cooler water. We’re very careful about the water temperature, because some of their muscles are too tense or too loose and are very affected by temperature changes. I’m even more careful with the babies because they are extremely small for their ages (malnutrition). I could bring 2 over a day, one in the late morning and one in the afternoon, but I let the sun heat the water a little so they don’t catch cold. Every child I work with has some sort of disability and I already know that some will not be able to learn to actually swim. Still, it’s good for them to be in the water and they have fun splashing around.
Besides all that, it’s been quiet around here. Robin and Alfonso are out of the country right now, so it’s often just me and Cecilia (a medical student from France staying here until the end of August) around at night. Johnny and Rena are two guys, both about 25 years old, who grew up at the orphanage and now live on the same floor as me and run the building. They’re in and out in the evenings, but are nice company and are helping me with my Creole. We had a couple Italian guys staying here last week, and they made great pasta dinners for us. Then another group of about 12 Haitians and Americans were here, and they also made dinner. Whenever people stay here, we eat well.
That’s all from Haiti. À bientôt!
I’ve gotten used to the humidity and the constant heat- I even have a nice little tan going. Though I still sleep safely in my net, I think the mosquitoes are letting up a bit, and my legs are recovering from the immediate onslaught nicely. I eat what it made for me at work without hesitation, although I supplement with PBJ every night. I have successfully memorized every child’s name who swims with me although I often just call the adults “Madame” or “Monsieur” while I’m working on that side of things. I have picked up some off the job activities, like tutoring girls in English, teaching a seminar, lounging poolside and rearranging the living room of the Father Wasson Center. I have absolutely no problem going to bed at 10 pm and waking up at 6 am every morning, although I’m sure I’ll return to my regular 2 am to 1 pm pattern when I return to the states. I wear the first thing I grab in the morning, and put my hair into a braid or something without a thought for makeup or hairspray. I’m picking up Creole phrases more and more, but I still find it easier to speak French with those who don’t speak English. I deal well with all the extra time I have to myself in my evenings. I read a few books a week, and have been researching grad schools and taking practice GRE tests online. I have derived a nice little schedule for my everyday and it goes like this:
I wake up at 6:20 and eat peanut butter toast if we have electricity or a PBJ if we don’t for breakfast. The van leaves at 7 am and we arrive at Tabarre at around 8am. The kids go to summer classes while I set up the pool (which takes all of 5 minutes) and then I join them in class to listen to them sing, or read a book by the pool while I wait for them. At 9, I’m thrown my first group of kids, usually 4 or 5 boys. They splash around with various floatation devices, while I take one or two at a time and hold them while they “swim” aka splash and kick water right out of the pool or in my face. At 9:30 there’s another group, a few girls and maybe an older boy. They’re out by 10 and then there are a few stragglers that take me to 10:30 or 11. I chill by the pool, dry off and clean up a little until lunch at 12. It’s usually some sort of mush- corn or beans or rice and brown gravy. I then head to the hospital to pick up one of the four little abandoned baby girls who I take back for pool time. They can’t stay in the water for long, but it takes a while to walk next door, talk to about 4 nurses to get them permission to leave and then walk them back and set them up. I walk them back to the hospital and visit with my abandoned baby Carmelle for a few minutes (and the others, of course) and then head back around 2. The van leaves for Petionville at 3, and after a few stops, we’re back at about 4. The girls I tutor come at 4 a few days a week and I’m with them for 30 minutes to an hour. I eat whatever is left over from the lunch that was made here for dinner, which is usually rice and hot sauce and maybe something with potatoes in it or just PBJ again. I then have the evening to read, be online (if there’s internet), socialize (if anyone else is around) or go to the hotel to lay by the pool (at the end of the week, mostly). It’s simple and the days go quickly.
One of the days this week was too cold for the kids to swim, which sounds ridiculous coming from the Caribbean. That day, I went to the horseback riding place with the kids again. Basically, a storm was rolling in and it wasn’t very humid and there was a little breeze. The pool has a cover on it which is on of the reasons I’m not dying of sunburn, and I wasn’t sure if they would do alright in the cooler water. We’re very careful about the water temperature, because some of their muscles are too tense or too loose and are very affected by temperature changes. I’m even more careful with the babies because they are extremely small for their ages (malnutrition). I could bring 2 over a day, one in the late morning and one in the afternoon, but I let the sun heat the water a little so they don’t catch cold. Every child I work with has some sort of disability and I already know that some will not be able to learn to actually swim. Still, it’s good for them to be in the water and they have fun splashing around.
Besides all that, it’s been quiet around here. Robin and Alfonso are out of the country right now, so it’s often just me and Cecilia (a medical student from France staying here until the end of August) around at night. Johnny and Rena are two guys, both about 25 years old, who grew up at the orphanage and now live on the same floor as me and run the building. They’re in and out in the evenings, but are nice company and are helping me with my Creole. We had a couple Italian guys staying here last week, and they made great pasta dinners for us. Then another group of about 12 Haitians and Americans were here, and they also made dinner. Whenever people stay here, we eat well.
That’s all from Haiti. À bientôt!
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Many of the clothes people wear here came from the United
States, and it’s always amusing to see the slogans people where that in no way
apply to anything Haitian. One of the kids at St. Germaine named David always
wears this shirt that says “Miller family reunion July 2000!” on it. He’s 7
years old and blind, and always swings his head back and forth like Stevie Wonder,
and will of course have no idea what his shirt says but I find it funny. I also
seem to see the same guy who wears a tie dye peace sign shirt that says
Berkeley on it, often in the same market as the guy whose shirt says “My immune
system is better than your immune system”. The best is when you see shirts that
were bought in touristy shops in random states that say “Missouri love!” These
people will never go to the US, and I’m sure they have no idea what Missouri
is, but if the shirt fits you might as well buy it. On that note, I handwashed
my laundry last week and suck at it. I’ll have to do it every 2 weeks because I
packed light, so I better master it soon.
We took a few kids in the water on Saturday, and they all did extremely well. The blind baby was smiling and interacting, which is a lot more than she usually does, so we’re going to try to make it a weekly thing for her. I started my regular swim lessons with the kids on Monday and at first it was very hectic. I had 10 handicapped children in the pool with just water wings, which is really not enough to keep those with little muscle control floating. I had 8 sitting on the steps while I took one or two out at a time, but I couldn’t keep my eye on all of them, and the staff was drifting in and out. The next day, I said only 5 kids at a time and someone in the water with me, but the 5 quickly turned into 10 again. All the kids are so excited to swim and the summer session revolves around fun activities like pool times so everyone comes at once! Today however, things started to iron themselves out, and I had groups of 4 or 5 kids cycling in and out every hour which worked well for everyone. The summer session ends at 1:30 everyday, but with the van not leaving for Petionville until 3, I’ll have some time to walk next door to the hospital, pick up the babies and swim with them for half an hour.
Lucienne is one of my favorite little girls at St. Germaine who has both physical and mental issues. She can walk, but not very steadily as her knees point toward each other. She usually hangs onto me as I walk around, and likes to sit with me and play with my hair. She’s slow, but learns well with help and communicates very well as compared to the other children. She is quickly learning to swim after only 2 days in the water which makes me so happy. She’s already floating on her back without any help and can hold onto my shoulders and kick her feet out behind her which is the next step in my plans for them. Most of the kids (especially the ones with little control out of the water) hold on to me for dear life, but Lucienne has realized that her legs work just fine in the water and is quickly becoming a little swimmer.
This Sunday, Jean (a summer volunteer from Colorado) and I taught a class on conflict resolution to some of the former Kenscoff kids living in the city. Once they age out of the orphanage, the kids often live in groups in the cities, which can result in a lot of serious issues. They all are very young (16-22 years old) and of course struggle with being out of the sheltered orphanage and in the city and its poverty. A few months ago, two former Kenscoff kids got into a fight over food and one was killed, leaving the other in jail for the rest of his life. Most of the kids were about 20 years old, and we basically just talked to them about the effects of violence and the need for communication. Jean has her masters in counseling (which I’m considering) and teaches this kind of thing often. She can speak a little French, but I did a lot of the talking since none of the kids speak English really. They seemed to understand what I was saying, which was cool and will be back this weekend for another session. Adding “co facilitator of a French language seminar on conflict resolution and anger management” to my resume will be cool, too.
There are a few fancy hotels down the street from the Father Wasson Center with amazing pools that I think I will sneak into on a regular basis. We went for a coca cola on Friday, and then Jean and I went to celebrate our successful seminar with a frozen vodka tonic on Sunday. It’s a lot of business people and their families, I think, because no one there is Haitian and people don’t come to Petionville for vacation. No one will question me if I buy something to drink and swim and lay in the shade for an afternoon a week, so suck on that rich people, I’m using your amenities.
I also found crappy fast food several blocks away, and had a mediocre cheeseburger last week. It was awesome.
We took a few kids in the water on Saturday, and they all did extremely well. The blind baby was smiling and interacting, which is a lot more than she usually does, so we’re going to try to make it a weekly thing for her. I started my regular swim lessons with the kids on Monday and at first it was very hectic. I had 10 handicapped children in the pool with just water wings, which is really not enough to keep those with little muscle control floating. I had 8 sitting on the steps while I took one or two out at a time, but I couldn’t keep my eye on all of them, and the staff was drifting in and out. The next day, I said only 5 kids at a time and someone in the water with me, but the 5 quickly turned into 10 again. All the kids are so excited to swim and the summer session revolves around fun activities like pool times so everyone comes at once! Today however, things started to iron themselves out, and I had groups of 4 or 5 kids cycling in and out every hour which worked well for everyone. The summer session ends at 1:30 everyday, but with the van not leaving for Petionville until 3, I’ll have some time to walk next door to the hospital, pick up the babies and swim with them for half an hour.
Lucienne is one of my favorite little girls at St. Germaine who has both physical and mental issues. She can walk, but not very steadily as her knees point toward each other. She usually hangs onto me as I walk around, and likes to sit with me and play with my hair. She’s slow, but learns well with help and communicates very well as compared to the other children. She is quickly learning to swim after only 2 days in the water which makes me so happy. She’s already floating on her back without any help and can hold onto my shoulders and kick her feet out behind her which is the next step in my plans for them. Most of the kids (especially the ones with little control out of the water) hold on to me for dear life, but Lucienne has realized that her legs work just fine in the water and is quickly becoming a little swimmer.
This Sunday, Jean (a summer volunteer from Colorado) and I taught a class on conflict resolution to some of the former Kenscoff kids living in the city. Once they age out of the orphanage, the kids often live in groups in the cities, which can result in a lot of serious issues. They all are very young (16-22 years old) and of course struggle with being out of the sheltered orphanage and in the city and its poverty. A few months ago, two former Kenscoff kids got into a fight over food and one was killed, leaving the other in jail for the rest of his life. Most of the kids were about 20 years old, and we basically just talked to them about the effects of violence and the need for communication. Jean has her masters in counseling (which I’m considering) and teaches this kind of thing often. She can speak a little French, but I did a lot of the talking since none of the kids speak English really. They seemed to understand what I was saying, which was cool and will be back this weekend for another session. Adding “co facilitator of a French language seminar on conflict resolution and anger management” to my resume will be cool, too.
There are a few fancy hotels down the street from the Father Wasson Center with amazing pools that I think I will sneak into on a regular basis. We went for a coca cola on Friday, and then Jean and I went to celebrate our successful seminar with a frozen vodka tonic on Sunday. It’s a lot of business people and their families, I think, because no one there is Haitian and people don’t come to Petionville for vacation. No one will question me if I buy something to drink and swim and lay in the shade for an afternoon a week, so suck on that rich people, I’m using your amenities.
I also found crappy fast food several blocks away, and had a mediocre cheeseburger last week. It was awesome.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Last Sunday was many of the children’s first communions in
Kenscoff, so I spent the night in the orphanage and walked down the mountain
with them to the church in the morning. It was about a 40 minute walk to the
actual town of Kenscoff for mass at 9, and a steep, dusty, hot hour walk back
up afterward. They had a little party for the children, and they were all very
excited to have been given their own soda and piece of cake. They were adorable
in their white dresses and dress shirts, and loved being apart from the rest of
the children for their party. After the communion, the kids in Kay Christine
had prepared a little dance performance to the soundtrack of Mama Mia. Even the
kids in the wheelchairs were spinning around and having fun. Some of them had
memorized an entire little routine, where others were just bouncing around and
enjoying themselves.
Robin (the volunteer coordinator) turned 33 on Sunday, so we had
a little cake and cookie party for her at the retreat house in Kenscoff. On the
way back down to Petionville, we stopped at a bar for a beer to celebrate her birthday.
I use the term very loosely, because it was basically just a cement house with
a barred window they handed the beers out of. We sat in and around the truck,
and drank the beers while chickens ran around out feet and the bar owner’s
children sat with us.
I had been to the hospital for Emilie’s funeral, but have never
really gotten the chance to see all the rooms and visit the babies, so I took
the morning on Wednesday and looked around. St. Damien is the only free
pediatric hospital in Haiti, and the new site in Tabarre was opened in 2006 so
it’s very new and impressive. The day started with mass at 7 with Father Rick,
who was in town for the first time since I’ve been here. He has to travel an
insane amount to raise money for the hospital, and left again the next day for
another trip. The mothers were being led in from the gates carrying their sick
children to sit outside for the morning prayer and then were led inside to the
waiting room. Only a certain number of children are seen a day on a first come
first serve basis, so many had been waiting at the gate all morning.
I first visited the malnourished house, with sick children
staying there to regroup for anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. There
were a few very adorable babies in their cribs who seemed to be doing well with
the help. I spent a lot of time in the abandoned baby room (the tap tap room)
playing with the kids. The oldest girl was Annabelle, who is 2 years old and
was only recently abandoned by her family. She was in a fire, and lost all the
fingers on one hand and about half of her scalp and was left in the hospital
for her injuries. Besides her scars, she is perfectly normal and healthy, and
is actually very spoiled by all the visitors and nurses who love to pick her up
and play with her. She got very frustrated with me when I put her down to go
hold some of the other children. Evelin was another little girl, who has quite
a few neurological and sensorial problems. She’s blind (born without eyes) and
is very difficult to communicate with, usually just content with sitting,
kicking and making noise by herself. We’re going to take her into the pool this
Saturday to see if some water therapy helps her at all. My favorite little girl
was Camielle, who is very tiny for her age, but otherwise perfect and very
sweet. She’s probably about 15 months, but looks a lot younger and loves to
pull on my hair. I visited the other recovery rooms and played with the
children- some were recovering from surgery, others were there for long term illnesses,
some were in wheelchairs or completely bedridden and several were abandoned.
They were very happy to see visitors, and kept having me take pictures and show
them what they looked like.
I’ve been working a lot with certain children in their physical
therapy sessions, taking them into separate rooms and working on their
extension and muscle control in their hands. Jerry is my favorite little guy,
who was born with a brain tumor and had some brain damage from it. He is 4
years old, and can walk if he is holding on to something, so I walked with him
in his walker and played catch with him and some other children. They are all
so happy, but many of them are extremely stubborn and would rather play then
concentrate on their therapy! The kids from the school are still on their
summer vacation, but the summer program starts on Monday and that’s when I’ll
start with them in the pool. On Saturday, some of the kids from Kenscoff are
coming down to swim and we’re bringing a few of the babies over from hospital to
see how they do in the water.
Besides that, I’ve just been continuing meeting all the kids,
observing physical therapy and helping out where I can. I found out that I can
go to the Dominican Republic in September to renew my visa which expires every
90 days. The bus is only about 80 bucks round trip, and I’ll get to see a lot
of the country this way! I’ll stay, I hope, with the NPH house there where a
friend of mine from college will be volunteering. Then there will be home in
December for Audrey’s wedding for that renewal, and I suppose I’ll have to
figure something out for March.
Love and miss you all!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Continuing my observing and meeting all the kids and staff this
week- things were a bit hectic at the end of last week with the funeral and
all, so I’ll probably be starting the kids in the water next week.
I’ve been speaking to Norma and the other physical therapists a
lot about what exercises to do with the kids in the water to best use their
muscles to make it therapy while they’re learning to swim. I’ve met so many
children this week who have had meningitis which went untreated for too long
and left lasting brain damage. It’s difficult to determine which children are
just physically handicapped, because so many will make eye contact with you,
acknowledge your words and smile when you touch them but cannot speak and have
never properly been taught to communicate in other ways. Truly, each one of
these children needs a physical and occupational therapist as well as a speech
pathologist, but with little access and no money, most only have the physical
therapy NPFS provides at no cost. Some of these high functioning children have
mild retardation, while others do not but will always lapse behind their age
group, missing developmental stages and not experiencing regular life events
due to their physical disabilities. This is where my psychology background
comes in, as I’ve studied the developmental milestones quite a bit, and am
familiar with the parts of the brain that affect the different functions. I
help out with the therapy, holding a child in place while a therapist helps
them stretch, or helping extend limbs to strengthen muscles while Norma tells
me about each child’s issues.
Yesterday, I went with some of the Kay Christine children from
Kenscoff to ride horses, a very useful form of physical therapy. We drove with
6 kids toward Tabarre, through the usual impoverished areas when you can barely
stand to breathe in the smells of the raw sewage, the burning garbage and the
pollution. We turned off the main paved road (very poorly paved, I might add)
onto a dirt road which was calmer but still very far below any poverty line. We
went through a gate and suddenly, it was like we weren’t even in a third world
country anymore. It was an actual ranch, with a pasture, a gorgeous house, a
stable with 15 horses and a field to ride them in. We sat on a covered stone
porch while the children rode and just enjoyed the place. It was beautiful,
with tall stone walls covered in purple flowers, a pool and views of the
mountains in the distance. I could not fathom that less than a quarter mile
away was that place where I literally was afraid to breathe deeply. There is
beauty to Haiti off the main roads, locked far behind fences and gate keepers and
unreachable to the poor.
Today, I stayed in Petionville, going downstairs to Kay Elian to
sit in on therapy sessions there. Norma travels to all locations to teach the
Haitian therapists techniques and strategies, and today, she was at Kay Elian.
We have multiple therapy rooms at each center, but typically we have both
therapists in one room, each working with a child. This allows Norma to help
them at the same time. One of the therapists told me he attended just one year
of technical school, and learns the rest from Norma and other volunteers who
come. Everyone I encounter believes me to be a physical therapist and when I
say, no, I’m here to work with the special needs kids and just finished
college, they believe me to be a licensed psychologist because I majored in
psychology. I’ve had several ask if I went to school for swimming to be
qualified to teach in the pool and is there money in this field of employment?
I took swimming lessons when I was 4 and passed a test to get into the big girl
section of the lake at girl scout camp, but that about tops my professional
training and accomplishments.
I met several adorable children, including Jefferson who I took
into a room and worked with individually for awhile. His meningitis left him
with motor skill issues and unable to speak, though he can walk if he has a
wall to hold onto (falling often, and popping right back up). He’s about 3
years old, and loved when I picked him up and spun him around. I started
counting un…deux…TROIS and spinning or bouncing on three, and when he figured
out the pattern, he started to make a sound at each number. He knew exactly
what was happening, and when I stopped counting (he’s a big boy and my arms
were tired!) he kept right on grunting ugh…ugh… UGH until I would bounce him on
the third. He’s one of the children that will always fall behind his age group,
but is making so much progress and will be able to walk and hopefully,
communicate more someday. I worked with him on muscle extension, holding out
things for him to grab and guiding them into a cup or something. He was a
goofball though, and just wanted to play after awhile.
The most stressful thing I’ve done yet is buy a cell phone with
Jackie, one of the drivers who grew up at Kenscoff. He took me to the store to
get one, and I had no idea what they were saying in their mixed creole-french
but it all worked out and I now have a phone (though I haven’t bought the
minutes yet). So congratulations, Molly, you now have 3 cell phones in this
country, one which has your numbers in it but can’t call anyone, a global phone
for calling the parents while travelling here, and this new one which has no
use as of yet without minutes. I also couldn’t get the language setting off
Spanish and had to ask one of the boys to help me. I have no idea how I have 3
phones, only 4 pairs of shoes, and literally 10 mosquito bites on my left leg.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Yesterday, I went up the mountain to Kenscoff on a bus with some
kids from Tabarre. It was an unbelievable twisty bumpy ride through one of the
only green areas of Haiti, as most of the country is extremely deforested. Last
years terrible storm season combined with a lack of anything for the soil to
hang on to had caused mudslides, and we saw one house that was dangerously
close to sliding right out of its place and down into the road.
We arrived around 9:30, and first went to meet the children in
the special needs house of Kay Christine. There about 30 people living there-
not kids necessarily. Innocent, one of the oldest residents, is about 28 years
old. He immediately grabbed my hand and took me to meet everyone, and would not
let me go willingly for the rest of the day. Innocent has cerebral palsy which
has at least partially paralyzed one side of his body. He tries to speak, but
is impossible to understand. At fist I thought he was just speaking creole
quickly and stuttering, but then was told that no one can understand him. He
kept kissing my cheek, and if he couldn’t reach, would kiss my hand over and
over until I said “mesi, mesi!” (thank you, thank you) and took it away.
Innocent took me to the play ground area where I met several
more of the special needs children. One of my favorite little buddies was
Olsen, who is confined to a wheel chair and blind, but starts to laugh
uncontrollably when you sing to him. I sat down and about 5 little girls from
other dormitories came over and started to talk to me in French. They
discovered my camera and took literally 200 pictures of each other before it
died and I had to put it away. Roselene is a 12 year old girl who stayed by my
side the entire day, and asked me a million questions. When others asked the same
ones, she would answer for me, and remembered everything right down to my
parent’s names. It wasn’t until a good hour into sitting next to her that I
noticed she was missing a leg under her long skirt. Norma told me that when she
was younger, she broke her leg and was not taken to the hospital for however
long, and by the time she went her leg was too infected to be saved. The
hospital she went to amputated, but at a place that made a prosthetic
impossible, and it wasn’t until she came to NPFS that her leg was again
operated on and fit with a prosthetic. She gets around with just a slight limp,
and literally fought off Innocent at one point when he kept trying to pull me
away. He wanted to me to go away from all the other children with him but they
kept following, and he was getting very worked up. After you kissed him on the
cheek though, he was all smiles again.
I had lunch with Maive in the volunteer house where I will be staying when I spend some weekends up there. They have a dog named Nina and are separated from the other houses down a really beautiful path with wildflowers and an amazing view down the mountain. It’s a lot cooler than Petionville and especially Tabarre. People actually wear long sleeves without dying of the heat, which would be a welcome relief from the mosquitoes and potential sunburn.
Gena came up on the bus with me and the kids from Tabarre, but
lives at the orphanage so I was the only English speaker on the bus ride down.
Thursdays are market days, so everyone was gathering their produce and other
sellable things and carrying them down to the closest town, usually in
overflowing baskets on their heads. At one point, I saw a woman carrying 7
chickens tied by their feet and hanging down out of the basket on her head. I
was extremely confused when we pulled over and people from the bus started
talking to her. It got pretty heated and we started to drive off, before
someone leaned out the window, yelled one more things, and we reversed so a
woman could buy 2 chickens that she apparently had been bartering for. The bus
driver then saw that I was confused and tried to explain it to me in creole and
broken French, before just laughing and handing me a peach to eat.
Today was a very difficult day at Tabarre. I was sitting in with
Norma at a physical therapy session and she was explaining to me how the water
will affect the children with cerebral palsy so I can be prepared when I start
taking them into the water next week. Someone came in and said something very
quickly in creole, and Norma handed me the boy she had been working with and
said something was wrong with one of the children and she had to go see. I
stayed in the room and talked to the other physical therapists in French a
little and held the little boy (who had cerebral palsy). People were in and out
and I tried to understand what was being said. I’m getting better at
understanding the creole, but if someone is not addressing me in particular,
it’s very difficult to follow. I understood that a girl had been injured
somehow and was taken to the hospital across the street. Awhile later, they
told me she had died. Norma came back very upset and told me that the girl was
being fed by her mother in an improper position and some of the bread she was
eating had gotten caught and she had asphyxiated. They had taken her to the
hospital and Norma had tried every procedure, but it was too late.
Emilie was 5 years old
and had been coming with her mother for therapy for 4 years. She had contracted
meningitis when she was a baby and was left severely retarded, with little to
no muscle control. Norma had been working with her whenever she was in Haiti
for the last several years, and said that Emilie was making huge improvements,
which were largely unexpected. Her mother was obviously devastated- she had 3
children, the oldest of whom she had given up and was adopted in Italy, an 8
year old boy and Emilie. She had no husband and was extremely poor even for
Haiti standards. Every morning she carried Emilie onto a tap tap (bus) for a
very long travel to Tabarre. Often, the meal provided to the parents and kids
was the only meal they ate that day. Norma took her home in an NPFS van, and
said she lived in a shack of scrap metal, and was surprised Emilie, as a
special needs child, was able to survive there. The funeral is tomorrow.
FYI because people have been asking: NPH stands for Nuestros
Pequenos Hermanos (our little brothers and sisters) and was started in the 50s
by Father Wasson in Mexico. There are homes in 9 countries: Mexico, Haiti, the
Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Peru, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala and El
Salvador. Haiti is the only non Spanish speaking country, and we are called Nos
Petit Frères et Soeurs (NPFS). I know it’s a little confusing with all the
names and cities. Summary:
Kenscoff: The program started with the orphanage called St. Helene which is high in the mountains in Kenscoff. There are about 450 children living there at the moment, and they receive education up to 9th grade before being able to earn scholarships for secondary school in the city. It is the site of Kay Christine, the special needs home Gena runs.
Kenscoff: The program started with the orphanage called St. Helene which is high in the mountains in Kenscoff. There are about 450 children living there at the moment, and they receive education up to 9th grade before being able to earn scholarships for secondary school in the city. It is the site of Kay Christine, the special needs home Gena runs.
Petionville: This is where I live, in the old hospital which has been turned
into administration and volunteer housing and is called the Father Wasson
Center. It is also the site of Kay Elian, a rehab and physiotherapy center for
special needs children. Petionville is about an hour down the mountains from
the orphanage.
Tabarre: After several years,
the new hospital called St. Damien was opened in Tabarre, an hour away in the
opposite direction. It is the only free pediatric hospital in Haiti and has
outpatient services, cancer and AIDS/HIV treatments, and focuses largely on
malnutrition and tuberculosis. This year, the rehab and physiotherapy center
called St. Germaine was opened across the street from the hospital, and also
has a small school for children with a range of mental and physical handicaps.
This is where I will be working with the small pool they have, as well as with
the feeding of the children. Tabarre is about an hour from Petionville, so 2
hours from Kenscoff. The site is right next to the huge American Embassy.
So basically, I’m right in the middle, which is good because there is are centers for the special needs children at all 3 locations. It can be difficult to keep track of, because there are multiple programs in each city and within centers, and people refer to where they’re going or working by either city, specific program name or the larger program.
As far as the other people, here’s that:
Robin: The volunteer coordinator, American from Chicago, early 30’s lives the floor about me and does her work from Petionville. She’s been here for about a year and is staying indefinitely.
Alfonso: The family services person, a Mexican in his late 40’s who travels often to other NPH homes. He lives in Petionville, too. He’s been here for 20 years, and has no plans to leave as far as I know.
Norma: A physical therapist in her 40’s from Argentina who lives on the same floor as me in Petionville and works at all 3 locations with the special needs children. She’s been here for about 4 months, and isn’t sure when she’ll leave.
Gena: The special needs children coordinator who came to Haiti from Ireland 16 years ago when she was in her early 20’s and never left. She works everywhere, but usually stays at Kenscoff.
Maive: Also from Ireland, Maive works with the children in Kenscoff. She is in her early 60’s and retired, and is a year and a half into her 2 years.
Liz: Also from Ireland and is here to teach art for the summer. She’s in her late 20’s/early 30’s and stays at Kenscoff.
Father Rick Frechette: The American priest who started this entire operation in 1988, who is also a medical doctor. He is everywhere all the time, and has recently been travelling all over outside of Haiti to raise money for the rising costs of NPFS. He lives at the hospital in Tabarre.
So basically, I’m right in the middle, which is good because there is are centers for the special needs children at all 3 locations. It can be difficult to keep track of, because there are multiple programs in each city and within centers, and people refer to where they’re going or working by either city, specific program name or the larger program.
As far as the other people, here’s that:
Robin: The volunteer coordinator, American from Chicago, early 30’s lives the floor about me and does her work from Petionville. She’s been here for about a year and is staying indefinitely.
Alfonso: The family services person, a Mexican in his late 40’s who travels often to other NPH homes. He lives in Petionville, too. He’s been here for 20 years, and has no plans to leave as far as I know.
Norma: A physical therapist in her 40’s from Argentina who lives on the same floor as me in Petionville and works at all 3 locations with the special needs children. She’s been here for about 4 months, and isn’t sure when she’ll leave.
Gena: The special needs children coordinator who came to Haiti from Ireland 16 years ago when she was in her early 20’s and never left. She works everywhere, but usually stays at Kenscoff.
Maive: Also from Ireland, Maive works with the children in Kenscoff. She is in her early 60’s and retired, and is a year and a half into her 2 years.
Liz: Also from Ireland and is here to teach art for the summer. She’s in her late 20’s/early 30’s and stays at Kenscoff.
Father Rick Frechette: The American priest who started this entire operation in 1988, who is also a medical doctor. He is everywhere all the time, and has recently been travelling all over outside of Haiti to raise money for the rising costs of NPFS. He lives at the hospital in Tabarre.
Thanks for tuning in!
From June 2009 to
2010, I'll be living and working in Haiti with NPFS, an aid organization for
orphaned and abandoned children. I'll mainly be working with the special needs
kids at an outpatient facility in Tabarre.
Contact Information
Molly Hightower
NPFS Haiti
7175 SW 47th St. Suite 207
Miami, FL 33155
(Most of the mail will be going directly through security at the airport in carry on luggage, so it cannot include food, drink or dangerous weapons)
NPFS Haiti
7175 SW 47th St. Suite 207
Miami, FL 33155
(Most of the mail will be going directly through security at the airport in carry on luggage, so it cannot include food, drink or dangerous weapons)
Things I like to look at
- www.nph.org
- www.compassionweavers.com
- www.textsfromlastnight.com
- www.saintdamienhospital.wordpress.com
- www.postsecret.blogspot.com
Followers
I'm a 22 year old from Port Orchard, WA, who
just graduated from the University of Portland and is avoiding getting a job. I
majored in Psychology, Sociology and French, and plan to get my masters in
special ed, counseling or education.
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