We are not only helping a life....we are CHANGING a life!

After 5 years, Haiti still needs our help...again, they do NOT need hand-outs. They need help building a "Life's Path" to self sufficiency. Millions of dollars have been donated.... but obviously, GIVING food and money does not change anything to battle the plight of poverty. Giving hand-outs, not only creates more dependency and corruption, it's a never-ending battle and conditions people to become reliant on foreign aid. (similar to welfare in the U.S.)

Now that we have conditioned people in poor countries to rely on us for foreign aid, it's TIME TO CHANGE....it's time to create jobs, teach skills, and help build businesses so that communities can grow, prosper, and help one another.

Life's Path, is doing just that. Since the earthquake in 2010, we have created 20 full-time jobs, over 60 part-time jobs,helped over 15 families start self sustaining businesses, and provided education for 180 children.

This year, 2015...we are starting an agricultural program that will create more jobs enabling families to work for food. Starting a food share program will help change the way Haitians live.

Consider donating to Life's Path, see exactly how your donation changes lives. Every dollar is spent on education, creating jobs, and building businesses in hopes that someday.....Haiti will not need us.

Help us CHANGE lives...forever, not only for a day!

www.lifespathhaiti.org

Frandy.....forever grateful

It’s midmorning as we arrive at the home of Frandy Saint-Louis. We are quickly drenched from the heat of the piercing sun that penetrates through the shadows making it impossible to find a cool breeze or shade for relief.  As we walk along the intertwining dirt path that leads us to the family’s one-room home, I wonder how families in Haiti manage to stay clean, despite the dirt and debris that make up their surroundings.

Frandy is a 10-year-old boy who was adopted into our sponsorship program. He has 6 brothers and 1 sister, making life a struggle on a daily basis for the most basic needs, such as clothing, shoes, education, and medical attention. It is tremendously heartbreaking to see children born and raised into such unpleasant conditions. As we are openly welcomed to the home of the Saint-Louis family, my mind wonders, wondering how there can be so many who live in abundance and yet just as many who have nothing. It’s overwhelmingly painful sometimes to see these children, who have no control over their situation, hold their hands out begging for a small morsel to get them through another day. This heart wrenching vision is forever embedded in my mind. As I watch, knowing I can’t give everything to everybody, I focus on the mission that God has instilled and inspired me to do. 

Through the generosity and support of sponsors, we are able to change lives by giving hope and helping some of the poorest children and families rise above their current situation and make a difference in their world. As we meet each family in our sponsorship program, I can see what a difference we are making!  Together, we are transforming a child’s life by introducing a different way of living. Help us to offer hope and change the world for these children! As you can see, one person can and will make a change….one life at a time.

As we prepare to leave the Saint-Louis home, Macula and Frandy thank us for everything their sponsor and we have done to help them. Frandy shares his enthusiasm for the possibilities created through the sponsorship and educational support now available to him.

Frandy quietly watches as we head down the path as we leave knowing that through his sponsorship he will be healthier and happier with more opportunities to learn and grow into a proud, confident young man.

Count Your Blessings

There is always someone who is worse off than you.....
I have been haunted this week by a nameless, faceless man who spent his final days lying handcuffed to a rusty, metal hospital bed in Haiti as thousands of flies swarmed his emaciated body severely beaten for attempted armed robbery. Upon arrival to the hospital, doctors were ordered by local authorities not to help this man who committed a crime out of desperation and mostly, starvation. Strangers stood outside, taking photos and laughing as this man lie in his bed for 7 days, with only his own urine to drink. No food....no water, our basic human needs. It was impossible to avoid the stench that filled the 20 bed hospital room. This Haitian man will be etched in my mind forever. As tears filled my eyes, I couldn't help but wonder what his life story was, what was his childhood like, and most of all, what was he feeling/thinking at that moment in time when he left this world. I don't know if I will ever grasp and understand the differences in cultures. For some reason, I felt compelled to share this memory, normally I would tuck it away with many others lives path's I have crossed with untold stories...but I couldn't help but hurt for this man and think, this could have been one of our Life's Path children one day...desperate, starving, and no way out. It makes me feel like we are in the right place, definitely doing the right thing.
Yes, this man committed a crime and this man could have hurt innocent people...left to suffer and die inhumanely - in the U.S. we don't even do this to our beloved pets. I cannot even find words to describe how I feel...but one thing is certain, this experience has reiterated that we must remain the voice for the children of Haiti, we must continue to give hope when some days there is none...

"Handing Up" through Microlending

Moreau Bernado is a student in Life’s Path school who is fortunate to have a generous sponsor to help him and his mother. Without help from his sponsor, Moreau, 3 years old, would be unable to attend school.
In our efforts to alleviate poverty and help create a self-sufficient community, Life’s Path is beginning a micro lending program. Moreau’s mother, Ena, will be one of the first recipients to receive a micro loan.
Due to a medical condition, Ena moved from far up in the mountains down to Cyvadier. Ena lives alone with one of her sons, Moreau, while her oldest son, Ronalson, 8 years old, lives with family in Cap Rouge. Living on limited resources, Ena could not afford to bring both children with her. From Cyvadier, Cap Rouge is an 8 hour walk on rocky, muddy terrain up the mountainside.
Ena rents a small, dilapidated home that looks as though one strong gust of wind could blow it down. She receives help to pay the rent from what little her family can give. As a child, she attended school for a short time until her declining eyesight would not allow her to continue her education.
When I asked what she looks forward to each day, she replied, “God has blessed me with two boys who rely on me for strength and hope.”

When the idea of a micro loan was introduced to Ena, she said that she is grateful to God that Life’s Path is able to help her so that she can someday bring Ronalson home with her and Moreau.
She hopes to starts a business selling staple items such as rice, spaghetti, sugar, and oil. Her future dream is to have a safer home for her children. She would love to own a tent that may be possible to place on families land in a nearby town.
Boiled breadfruit is the family’s dinner for this evening. Moreau and Ena eat once a day, sometimes every other day, depending on what they can find. Most of their food source comes from nearby trees of breadfruit, mangos, or coconuts, depending upon what are in season. See video of Moreau at www.youtube.com “lifes path cyvadier”
With your generous help, support, and great blessings Life’s Path is able to help teach and provide families such as Ena and Moreau with opportunities they may never have otherwise.
Please help us make a difference by sponsoring a child or donating to our micro lending program so that we can continue to help families become self sufficient.
If you already sponsor a family and would like to offer a micro loan to them, please email us for more information at
board_of_directors@lifespathhaiti.org
THANK YOU for your prayers and support!

The story of the Starfish.....

There was a wise man went to the ocean everyday to do his writing. Each day before beginning his work, he would walk along the beach.
One day, as he was walking, he saw a young man who was moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself and walked faster to catch up.
As he got closer he saw that the young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean. He called out "Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?"
The young man paused, looked up, and replied "Throwing starfish into the ocean."
"Why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?" asked the startled wise man.
The young man replied, "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they'll die."
The wise man commented, "But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can't possibly make a difference!"
At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, "It made a difference for that one."

Perseverance against odds and criticism of others is the hallmark of value-based idealism, as is refusing to accept failure. We hold in our hands the power to change a life or a circumstance, today, right now. We can all make a difference and together we have the power to inspire others, sometimes significant enough to make a major impact.

To witness the power of children in action is most inspiring. Many times it is our youth who put into action the values in which we have instilled – but have failed to act on ourselves. The world depends on our youth to lead the way.

July, 2011

 

 I left Haiti less than a week ago, which seems both a moment and a lifetime ago. On our laundry room floor are flip-flops covered in dust from Haiti. If I wanted to, I could throw them away…and yet I don’t want to throw them away because I don’t want to forget any of the tiniest details that remind me how fortunate we are to have been born into a country abundantly wealthy in so many ways.  Over the last year, I have seen little progress towards rebuilding in Haiti. As we drove up and down hills, through crowded side streets and crowded main thoroughfares, we could still peer into buildings like full scale doll houses. Five story buildings still standing but instead, standing as eight foot tall piles of rubble. The damage, so random – three buildings destroyed, one standing untouched.  The people of Haiti are remarkably resilient. As much as possible, they have been trying to go on with life. On the sidewalk in places, you can buy fruits and vegetables, a bottle of coke, used clothing, or even a cell phone charger. Small children walk down the street with old anti-freeze bottles filled with water from a nearby river or stream. Women, often have their arms full of goods, as they balance large baskets on top of their heads weighing more than we can ever imagine lifting!

I lost track of the number of tent cities as we drove through the city of Port-au-Prince. Some of them hold hundreds, most hold thousands. They spring up everywhere that the rubble is not piled and there’s room to hang three corners of a bed sheet or tarp. Children wander – some lost, some orphaned.  In Haiti, there is a culture of passing children from family member to family member, often losing track of them or hiring them out as domestic workers and not going back to get them. Many children – even in orphanages – have parents out there somewhere, although they have not truly parented the child. The children are beautiful beyond imagination. They are regal, full of dignity and poised for greatness. Their poverty is a momentary, light affliction, because these children have a destiny. 49% of Haiti is 14 years old or younger. I see the future of Haiti in the children…… hope for a brighter future. When I grow tired and discouraged in the battle to help the children in Haiti, I have my conscience to wrestle with knowing how the people there struggle from day to day just to drink clean water and eat. I remind myself each day that we can do a small part to make a difference….one life at a time.

Give a man a "goat"

In Jacmel, Saturday is the only day that farmers bring their livestock down from the mountains to sell at market. We woke early Saturday morning and drove the flatbed truck to Deye Kamaya, Jacmel to purchase our goats! I had no idea what to expect; however, I did know that I would be "hiding" in the truck while prices were negotiated! If an American "blanc" was seen at the market, prices could double! We arrived in Deye Kamaya around 7 am, where we were greeted by cattle, pigs, horses, and hundreds of goats. I had visions of negotiating a price and buying the goats from one "goat" farmer...I had no idea that the goats would be bought from many different farmers and prices had to be negotiated EACH time! What I thought would be a one to two hour venture ended up taking most of our day! I sat in the truck watching as each farmer came walking down the dirt road with their livestock tied to ropes. I had a crash course in goat science, the men explained what to look for to determine the health of a goat. Although our goats were loaded into the back of our flatbed truck, most animals were strapped to the back of a motorcycle!! 
We arrived back at the house where we unloaded each goat and tied them to a tree while waiting for the families to come. Once everyone arrived, the "goat giving ceremony" was opened with a prayer and applause from the grateful recipients. I was very moved by their gratitude. We explained that the goats were being donated by American families and they were NOT to be eaten!! We asked that each family donate one goat back to us in a year so that we can "pay it forward" and help another family in need!