New stories from Haiti: Espoir des Enfants
Espoir des Enfants - Children's Hope. Jacques Africot founded the smallest of the four organisations that Random Acts supports in 2005, under the funding of a First World non-profit. It began with twelve children - more of a large family than a small orphanage - and gave hope and shelter after Hurricane Jeanne flooded the area and killed three thousand people.
Something fell through; something went wrong. The details are sketchy. But funding was withdrawn, and Jacques was left with twelve children whom he was unwilling simply to abandon. He decided to struggle on (heroically, I think you'll agree) as best he could on his own, and today still cares for the same kids. They are aged 8-19, and all are going to school.
Again, you haven't just been making a Peacock Dress happen - you've been helping this orphanage to stay afloat and keep these kids in their stable new home over the last couple of years.
During our stay last summer we helped Jacques and the kids to move into a new, bigger house in Jacmel that provides everyone with more room. We cleared bags and bags of trash out of the garden, arranged flowerbeds and cleaned the place from top to bottom - I think I told you about the Cockroach Apocalypse (stop me if I didn't). Then we helped put furniture together - I will never forget the day that five of us sweat our guts out in one of the small, hot dorm rooms, taking it in shifts so as not to pass out in the heat, trying to put together three metal bunk beds out of parts that were so old and bent out of shape that they just would not fit together. We attempted to beat them back into shape with a broken hammer, and despaired for a convenient IKEA where we could just buy them new ones.
Some of the older girls crochet hats, which they sell - you might have seen me in a black crochet number at Costume College last year, which was made by Rose-Nancy.
If you'd like to continue to help support this adopted family, and RA's three other projects in Jacmel, click here to donate a few dollars to this year's final Hope 2 Haiti campaign.
Thank you!
PS, yes, donations are cumulative (ie will add to your previous ones), and I'll post the leaderboard and the incentives again soon so that you can work towards getting your name in the Peacock Dress if you wish. Over the winter I began sewing the peacock feathers that I promised to send to the biggest donors, and they're starting to get sent out now. Thank you!