A Home in Haiti
Hello Everyone,
As many of you know, about ten years ago, I spent a year volunteering at the Louverture Cleary school in Haiti. Since then, I have stayed in touch with some of my students, and I regularly hear stories of their successes and their struggles. I help where I can, and for most, it seems that a little boost from myself or other fortunate friends helps to get them through rough patches.
Now, however, the COVID-19 crisis is taking its toll overseas just as it is in the U.S., and the appeals are getting more urgent. One of my former students is a single mother with a dream to grow her nascent business as a street vendor to become a successful businesswoman. Because of the amounts of money involved in this request, she asks that I not share her name; circumstances in Haiti are desperate enough, that those receiving money transfers are often the victims of crime. Despite the danger and precarious nature of her situation, she has clear plans, a savvy and strategic mind, and a boundless reserve of energy with which to build a future for herself and her two young children, Mayrah and Himra. However, she is facing the same challenges faced by many businesspersons here: with the virus ravaging the already extremely fragile Haitian economy, her landlord continues to demand rent, but she has too little income to pay.
In order to create more stability for herself, Himra, and Mayrah, my former student has a plan. She wants to buy the tiny plot of land you can see above, and build a simple home there for her and her daughter. To do this, she believes she will need $3,500 in addition to the savings she has managed to scrape together. With a house of her own, more of her income could go back into her business, and she will have a much better chance of realizing her dreams.
With the crisis showing no signs of abating, and with rent always looming, this young mother is in a situation more difficult than most of us can understand. For these reasons, I ask that you seriously consider making a contribution to help put a kind, smart, and ambitious young woman on the path to stability for herself and her beautiful children.
Warm regards,
Dan McDonald
