Latest news from geoffb
Click on the photos to the right for news and updates from People in Need Partnership staff
Return to main PINP updates page

To a partner, friend and sponsor of a person in need in Haiti:

People in Need was created to answer this question: Is it possible for one human being to truly care for another, even though they have nothing in common except for their shared humanity? This letter contains news about several new programs we have developed as we continually strive to answer that question by saying Yes!

Our new system depends on Coordinators, whom we have chosen from our Haitian partners. Each Coordinator assists a group of 5 – 8 members in their neighborhood. Mothers receive a telephone and a camera; Coordinators who are children are given a telephone but no camera. All this is part of our effort to decentralize, and to give more power and responsibility directly to our partners. It also makes possible more frequent updates, personal messages, and photos, and you can now expect to receive at least two per month. You will also now receive email notifications when messages are sent.

Video messages are a new way your partner can communicate with you. During the month of October, 2008 you will receive a short clip (one or two minutes) of your partner speaking to you about their life. (Another option coming soon is video conferencing, where you will have the chance to talk face-to-face with your partner!)

Another new program is Birthday celebrations. We visit your partner’s home on their birthday with gifts, cake and beverages. Though obviously not necessary in a practical sense, we are delivering a crucial heart-to-heart message, especially poignant since none of our partners has ever had a birthday party before. Your partner knows that this is a gift directly from you, not from People in Need. You can expect to receive a video clip of the celebration shortly after your partner’s birthday (the date is noted on your Financial plan). (Click here for a sample.)

Occasionally your partner visits our center in Port-au-Prince for workshops and classes. We recently held a drawing workshop. If you are the partner of a child, you will receive a drawing that your partner drew specifically for you within a week or two. Some of the children had never before had the opportunity to draw on paper.

On my recent trip to Haiti – I just returned yesterday – I was struck by the principles and commitment of our staff. All are working, at barely subsistence wages, because they believe in our project. You can read about them, and see their regular news updates, by going to News from People in Need (a link you can find on the home page of the website), and clicking on the picture of each (more will be added soon).



Haiti is a country that is among the most suffering on the earth. Four major storms (Fay, Gustav, Hanna and Ika) have struck the country during the last two months. Six hundred people have died and crucial infrastructure, agriculture, and housing has been destroyed. None of our partners (who are located in Port-au-Prince and Jacmel, in the center and south of the country) were injured; but some of their homes were flooded, or were destroyed, and many are now in even greater need than before. A section on emergency help needed will be added to our website.

Getting around in Haiti is done on tap-taps (communal taxis in converted pickup trucks), or on the back of hired motorbikes. Just a couple of days ago I was thrown off of one of these underpowered vehicles as it flew backwards into the air, and I landed hard on my back on the pavement. Luckily I escaped injury. Our work in the slums (especially Cite Soleil) is also considered dangerous: most foreigners (and Haitians) wouldn’t enter without an armed guard (the United Nations has a large peacekeeping force in the area). But we are working with local community leaders who have the respect of their community, and who protect us. We have never encountered any real trouble.

Most trouble is a creation of the mind. This goes for trouble of all kinds – especially poverty, hunger, sickness, and exploitation (obviously once they are created they exist outside of the mind as well). Our minds create our culture; and culture creates our political life and everyday reality. With clarity and courage there is nothing we can’t do to create the world we envision. It all begins with the simplest human relationship: the one true way we have of dealing with a stranger. If we can do this with care and understanding, the nature of our position in the world changes. We are truly building ‘One relationship for the world.’

News about other programs is coming in future newsletters. As a preview, you may want to take a look at Other ways you can help (a link on the home page of our website).

In Partnership,

Geoff

Comment
View comments (0)