Dear friends,
My first week of this visit is winding down. Mom and I have settled into Matthew 25 guesthouse in Port au Prince for her last night here. Our visit has been punctuated every day by exciting rides through the mountains, with amazing views across the southern peninsula of Haiti. We had great weather all week – an hour of rain many days, but then clear skies and cool evening
I am very encouraged by the response to the idea of a sanitation business selling arborloos in the duchity area. After initial trepidation, all the people I have spoken to have responded positively to investing in sanitation to protect their health and the health of their families. Our partners in Duchity will now begin to work on completing some models, a pricing structure and a marketing plan. Hopefully by my next visit this model will be operational.
We visited the community of Fon Deron where we launched a dry toilet and some arborloos last summer. It was wonderful to see the care they are taking of it – so clean you could lamost eat inside it! And the garden was flourishing, using urine on the cabbage and yams.
The Arborloos need some adjustments – like covers and adjustments of the pits, but most importantly, the are being used.
Cholera has abated in the Duchity area – thanks in part to our extensive education program which people thanked us for. But we are all aware that the rains can bring an upsurge, and our work is far from over.
Franci got his visa to come to Milwaukee for our dinner in May. We are still hoping that Jonette , an auxilliary nurse and head of the health committee of OJPDD will also be able to join us, as I hope all of you are planning to do. Mark your calenders – Friday May 13, and write us to let us know you’ll join us!!
More next week when 2 engineers from the University of Puerto Rico join me in Duchity!!
a pita – (until later)
gigi
