Dear friends,
Every trip to Duchity is a discovery – of the amazing strength and faith of the Haitian people. This trip began with a partnership with engineers from Illinois and Puerto Rico who are partnering with Youthaiti to explore ways to improve the lives of the people in Duchity by providing reliable electricity. Currently we are lucky if we have 4 hours of electricity in the evening, because the generator is old and needs parts replaced. Often if flickers and then goes off. I’m taking advantage of a full charge last night to get this message out to you.
Several members of the community have been volunteering daily to accompany the engineers on exciting hikes down and into the river Glace to see where power could be captured for a micro-hydroelectric project. To see how they have mobilized their meager resources is remarkable.
We also met with the water committee to learn that for 2 weeks there was no water arriving in the village and evryone had to walk long distances to get water from the river. Pipes that are over 25 years old have broken letting the water flow out. Again a completely volunteer team of locals spent one week in the rain, borrowing money for parts, to repair the pipes and assure that people could access water more easily. Still no potable water, but without water there is no life, said Franci Polyte, our Coordinator in Grand’Anse.
Our technicians have plans to relaunch several of our public toilets to provide more community education and awareness, as well as create a small business providing handwashing services. We hope to launch our “sanitation as a business” model at the same time.
Yesterday we visited the sites of our mobile clinics. They will be challenging, to say the least. Tozia is a community almost an hours drive from Duchity down unpaved roads. There is no electricity and no water piped there. There is not even phone reception. But there are trees!! It is a little paradise hidden in the mountains. With hundreds of people who never get health care. We will set up in a church building that has 4 walls and a roof, but no floor, and little light. Good thing we all have flash lights!! We will carry all our materials with us – and back out again. More about that after….
Susan and I have been warmly welcomed ‘home’ and look forward to the arrival of the medical team from Aurora UW Medical Group.
keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we serve the people of Duchity.
love
gigi
