I am not famous nor do I have a thriving company of which I am the CEO (yet). I am just your not-so-typical girl next door that has a first-generation story that many in the U.S. can relate. I am a first-generation Haitian-American, whose parents immigrated to the U.S. circa the 1980s. I have eight siblings (okay not many people can relate to that part), and I am the third in line – which basically means I learned responsibility early.
Let’s fast-forward to 2010, a pivotal year in my life. The small island of Haiti experienced the most devastating natural disaster in its history. It took only one day for over 200,000 Haitians to lose their lives. I woke up from what felt like a trance. I was zapped into a confusing space as I tried to process the deafening cries and images of my people being buried alive. I cried for days. I ate nothing. I fell into a depressive state. During that time, I was working on my Master’s thesis that focused on “political sounds bites and their effect on the 2008 Presidential elections”. All of the sudden, I had an epiphany and thought…”WHAT AM I DOING?”
It felt like I was frozen in time as this devastation paralyzed me. All I could think about was: how was I so fortunate? The mere fact that I could have been buried alive still haunts me today. If it had not been for the grace of God and the sacrifice of my parents that afforded me the opportunity to have a life in America I could easily be one of those victims.
It was from that moment that I purposed my life to honor the privilege bestowed on my life “to put my hands to the plow” by launching the “Moving Haiti Forward” movement. I wish I could say, since that day, I have hit the ground running and never looked back. Nope! It would be eight years later, after Hurricane Matthew devastated Haiti again, that I decided to join forces with my now retired mother and get to work.
So that is it! I am putting the metal to the pedal! Not looking back! We do not have all the answers, but we have faith and passion. With God by our side, let us begin building our own bridges by creating pathways of possibilities and opportunities as we continue to fuel the hope to a brighter tomorrow for the Haitian people. Together, let us leave our footprints on this world by making a difference and changing lives.
THE BIRTH OF THE
MOVING HAITI FORWARD (MHF) MOVEMENT
We have walked through the streets of Jeremie where our father grew up, danced kompa on its beaches, eaten mangos near a river in Les Cayes, my mother’s birthplace, and laughed on the stairs of our grandparents’ little haven in mountains. Two years ago, we gathered in the church to bid farewell to our grandparents in the mountains of Les Cayes. Now the church is destroyed, the beaches are flooded, and our grandparents’ home was wiped away by Hurricane Matthew.
The areas hardest hit by hurricane Matthew were the ones closest to our heart; the ones where our current family members and close friends reside. I wish you could have witnessed the natural beauty of these areas and saw the joy and the carefree nature of the people in these communities who have suffered so much yet still thanked God for the gift of life.
The mission and fundraising effort were not inspired by vicarious empathy, but by a deep, firsthand pain from the people and places we love. There are many great organizations on the ground, but we know the community leaders, the teachers, the pastors, and the children most impacted by the hurricane. The resources will be used for food, water, and temporary shelters in Jeremie and Les Cayes. The earthquake and now the hurricane took away homes and lives, but we will again rebuild. “Lakay se lakay”…Home is home.
(Unity makes Strength)