My Heart for Haiti
Donation protected
Bonjou tout moun! (Hello, everyone!) I’m so excited to tell you about my upcoming trip to Haiti! As you may or may not know, I’m about to turn forty – and as I thought about how I’d like to celebrate that milestone, I realized that it had to be in service to others. Twenty years ago, I was working on a medical ship in the South Pacific. That was the most humbling and deeply spiritual time of my life! I’ve never lost that passion to be where the need is the greatest, or to the desire to offer myself in whatever small way I can be used. What better way to kick off the next twenty years of my life than to get back to what I’m most passionate about!
So, why Haiti? There’s an amazing NGO that I am partnering with called the Heart of Hollywood Foundation, which is spearheaded by some very good friends of mine. Each year they take outreach teams to work with people in need, both domestically and internationally. On January 16, 2016 the team will be traveling back to a remote village in Haiti, called Sobier (So-bee-aye), for eight days where we will continue construction on a medical clinic. This poor, rural community has limited access which allows treatable diseases such as malaria, cholera, typhoid and malnutrition to go unchecked.
As a nurse, it is my passionate desire to provide a psycho/social, needs based approach to community building by working with the people of Sobier to improve living conditions, gain access to healthcare, receive an education, and improve their quality of life. I have no doubt that I will learn more from them than they from me, but even teaching the simple act of hand hygiene could potentially save a child’s life. With a medical clinic in the village, children will be able to receive life-saving vaccines, regular checkups and basic medical care.
We are doing our best to raise as much as we can to supply our trip with the necessary costs to be successful. Here is a brief breakdown of my anticipated expenses:
$1,000 – airfare and local transportation
$400 – site prepared meals and conservative accommodations (sleeping bags and bucket showers)
$450 – site building materials and employment of worksite laborers
$200 – employment of local drivers, security, interpreters and cooks
$250 – community support (such as in-kind donations, clothing, supplies, hot school lunches)
Our entire project is purely volunteer-based, and your support in helping me achieve this life-changing goal, both for myself, and others, is beyond appreciated! If you’d like to learn more about The Heart of Hollywood Foundation or Sobier, please take a look at these links:
The Heart of Hollywood Foundation
Montesano's Needs Assessment Report MSUMC Missions Haiti
So, why Haiti? There’s an amazing NGO that I am partnering with called the Heart of Hollywood Foundation, which is spearheaded by some very good friends of mine. Each year they take outreach teams to work with people in need, both domestically and internationally. On January 16, 2016 the team will be traveling back to a remote village in Haiti, called Sobier (So-bee-aye), for eight days where we will continue construction on a medical clinic. This poor, rural community has limited access which allows treatable diseases such as malaria, cholera, typhoid and malnutrition to go unchecked.
As a nurse, it is my passionate desire to provide a psycho/social, needs based approach to community building by working with the people of Sobier to improve living conditions, gain access to healthcare, receive an education, and improve their quality of life. I have no doubt that I will learn more from them than they from me, but even teaching the simple act of hand hygiene could potentially save a child’s life. With a medical clinic in the village, children will be able to receive life-saving vaccines, regular checkups and basic medical care.
We are doing our best to raise as much as we can to supply our trip with the necessary costs to be successful. Here is a brief breakdown of my anticipated expenses:
$1,000 – airfare and local transportation
$400 – site prepared meals and conservative accommodations (sleeping bags and bucket showers)
$450 – site building materials and employment of worksite laborers
$200 – employment of local drivers, security, interpreters and cooks
$250 – community support (such as in-kind donations, clothing, supplies, hot school lunches)
Our entire project is purely volunteer-based, and your support in helping me achieve this life-changing goal, both for myself, and others, is beyond appreciated! If you’d like to learn more about The Heart of Hollywood Foundation or Sobier, please take a look at these links:
The Heart of Hollywood Foundation
Montesano's Needs Assessment Report MSUMC Missions Haiti
Organizer
Bryen Wesley Willis
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA
