Haiti Reflections - November 9, 2011

November 9^th, 2011

We have called the Christianville camp our home for the week. Row upon row of tents, a social area complete with stage and sound system (and a bar serving Haitian beer), an air-conditioned dining tent, cyber-café, and a system of plywood-enclosed showers and flushing toilets, provided us a level of luxury that none of the volunteers had expected. We slept on cots under mosquito nets, and we slept well! We enjoyed evening programs of Haitian performers, informal chats with Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, an impromptu concert by Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood (who worked as hard as anyone else on site), and “open mike” performances by various singers, bagpipers and musicians in our midst. The camp was constructed and operated by Haven, the same group who had built 50 houses the week before we arrived. Could they ever cook! Our extensive morning and evening meals were tasty and nutritious, with a definite Irish flavor!

Both on the work site and in the camp, we were acutely aware that our accommodations, meals, conveniences and comforts contrasted sharply with the conditions under which our new Haitian friends lived on a daily basis. We were reminded by Jimmy Carter that, despite their dire circumstances, the men and women of Haiti are NO DIFFERENT from ourselves. They desire a better life for themselves and their children, they want to live in a safe home and have access to education, health care, healthy food, and JOBS! --Sharon and Barry Mason

Reflection from November 8th, 2011

Reflection from November 9th, 2011

Reflection from November 10th, 2011

Reflection from November 11, 2011 (Final Reflection)

Read about the Habitat Haiti Families