Expense and budget reports are below

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Hi everyone! I’m Alan Manning from Toronto, Canada. I created this GofundMe for my friend, Pedro, who is from Port-Au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. Pedro has a true passion for education and learning. For two years he and I have worked hard to find him an opportunity to attend university outside of Haiti… and we finally succeeded. Pedro has been admitted into university in Brazil!

But we need your help to make his dream a reality as he is not currently in a position to support himself financially on his university journey.

Pedro is incredibly deserving of our generosity - he’s kind, driven, focused, and intelligent. Please donate so that he can have the opportunity to pursue his education in a safe, stable environment and create a brighter future for himself and his family.

The backstory

I met Pedro online in 2020 through iTalki, a language learning app, and we quickly became friends. We keep in regular contact through WhatsApp, discussing our lives in Canada and Haiti and our shared interests like history and languages.

Pedro has a love of learning and a passion for self-improvement. If this reminds you of yourself (it certainly does for me), then imagine wanting to achieve your full potential but lacking the opportunities or the means to do so. It would be incredibly frustrating and disheartening. Unfortunately, many Haitians face this reality due to the difficult times their country has been experiencing.

Despite disadvantages, Pedro has relentlessly pursued education and learning. He is a self-taught polyglot who speaks 6 languages – Haitian Creole, French, Spanish, Italian, English, and most recently Portuguese. He was the first person in his family to start attending university, studying International Relations at a public Haitian university (Université d’Etat d'Haiti) for two years. However, after gangs invaded Pedro’s neighbourhood, he could no longer safely attend classes, and eventually the classes themselves were cancelled.

The opportunity

Pedro has never given up his dream of a university degree. For the past two years, he has been continuously researching opportunities and applying to universities outside of Haiti, all while having to contend with the deteriorating security situation in Port-au-Prince. Events such as gang wars, government office strikes, embassy closures, and the suspension of international mail delivery (due to planes being shot at!) made filling out application paperwork extremely challenging. On top of that, he had to worry about the safety of himself and his family - his mother, sister, and cousin.

Earlier this year, Pedro’s remarkable tenacity paid off. He was accepted into the five-year Biotechnology program at UNILA (Federal University of Latin American Integration, or Universidade Federal da Integração Latino-Americana in Portuguese) in the beautiful city of Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil. This achievement wasn’t a matter of simply sending in an application. Pedro first had to learn Portuguese from scratch, pass a language exam, and compete against students from all over Latin America for one of only 25 spots in the Biotechnology program. His outstanding academic record spoke for itself, and he earned a place.

The final step was for Pedro and I to work together to secure him a student visa and a seat on a charter flight to Brazil. With embassies closed due to gang violence, and commercial flights halted, this seemed almost impossible at times. Remarkably, everything fell into place and suddenly became real - Pedro would finally be able to start his university journey!

How you can help

Pedro’s focus in Brazil will be his studies. His Biotechnology program is very demanding, but with his proven ability to work hard, and his love of education, I know Pedro can succeed with our support.

Every donation, no matter the amount, makes a difference. If you’re unable to donate today, please share this with others, and follow along for updates. I’m so excited to share how Pedro’s journey is going with everyone.

How the money will be used

Approximately $26,000 CAD will be allocated to two main areas:

This funding will support Pedro for approximately two years of his five-year Biotechnology program. The need for further support will be reassessed after this period. Pedro will also explore scholarships and grants offered by the university. He cannot legally work under the terms of his current student visa, but this may be possible to change later.

I have helped Pedro financially for the past two years while he was seeking opportunities. The funds raised through this GoFundMe campaign will not be used to reimburse me for these expenses.

Expense and receipt tracking

All expenses, disbursements, and receipts from the GoFundMe will be tracked publicly on this Google drive. Please message me to request the password for the receipts file.

Expense report 2 - AS of 12 Oct 2024. Access through this link

If there are any concerns or questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Thank you for your generous support and for sharing Pedro’s story with others!