Life In Haiti | Clean Water for Haiti

The Terrifying Things

Aug 29, 2017

Every once in a while someone will ask me what I’m most afraid about with living in Haiti. I think my answer sometimes surprises them.

You see, Haiti is a country that has a history of unrest. It’s a country where it’s citizens have had to fight for every last thing that they have. It’s the only country in the world that became an independent nation because of a slave revolt. That ability to rise up and fight is always bubbling below the surface here, and while that can be really alarming, it’s honestly not the thing that gives me the most fear about living here. If there are situations that get “hot” as we like to say, we simply stay home and stay out of it. Once things are calm again, we go about our business. Living in a rural area we’re actually removed from a lot of that when it does happen, and can just keep doing life. I’m thankful for that.

No, the thing that scares me the most isn’t unrest or crazy stuff, it’s getting in an accident. Worse yet, getting in an accident with my kids in the car. That terrifies me because Haiti doesn’t have 911. It doesn’t have quick medical response. There is no ambulance system. The police won’t quickly show up at an accident scene and get to work to make sure that everyone is okay.

Driving here is honestly one of the most dangerous things we do. There are very few rules to the road, and unless you’re stopping at a police check where they make sure your license and registration are all in order, no police officer is going to chase you down and issue a ticket for a driving infraction. This means that people drive as fast as they want (us too, not just Haitians – there are no speed limits) and you hope and pray people will stay on their own side of the road. Yes, we have lines on most roads now (I was SO excited when this happened!) but those are really just a suggestion – it’s not abnormal to see vehicles drive right down the middle of the road, just because.

Just the other day I was going to pick the kids up from school, and I came upon an accident. It had just happened a couple minutes before because people were still dazed and slowly climbing out of their vehicles. Drivers here love to creep out around the vehicle in front of them to see if anything is coming so they can pass, but they don’t just pop out and then pop back into their lane. Noooo, they like to pop out then actually drive there, peeking out from behind the vehicle in front of them, typically some really big truck like a box van. And then the guy behind them does the same thing, and the guy behind him… Getting the picture here? In this case, all that peeking meant that when the box truck hit the dump truck, everyone behind it sandwiched together. Because people we’re creeping and peeking and not driving in a line.

There was a dump truck pulled over on the far right side of the road. Not a problem. But for some reason a box truck ended up side swiping itself to a halt in the side of the dump truck. Then the car that had been creeping out behind the box truck smashed it’s right front corner into the back left corner of the box truck. And the pickup truck that had been behind that car did exactly the same thing into the car. Need a visual? Here ya go…

I thought that was bad. You know, 4 car pile up. Until we were on the way home and I saw it from the other direction…

Yeah, there was one unfortunate car that just drove right into the back of the box van. In case you’ve lost count, that’s 5 vehicles, all crumpled together. Thankfully it looked like no one was hurt, but that’s usually not the case here as big school buses used for public transit go careening down the roads at lightening speeds. Half the time the frame is twisted so the busses are actually driving down the road sideways. People don’t use their signal lights the way we’re taught to back home, so a left flashing signal light might mean the person is going to turn left, but probably not. It will most likely indicate that you should pass them on the left, or that they just felt like turning on their signal light because… I haven’t even mentioned the tap taps – small pick up trucks with benches in the back to carry passengers as local public transit, that typically don’t have working brake lights and that will stop at the drop of a hat to let someone off or pick someone up. And then there are the motor cycles. No, driving in Haiti is not for the faint of heart, and it gives new meaning to “defensive driving”.

I share this to say that driving, is honestly one of the scariest things to do here. And most anger inducing, but that’s another blog post :) My biggest fear is getting into an accident, especially with my kids in the car, and being incapacitated and not able to make sure I get the care I need, or that my kids do. Hospitals are less than top notch here, and the ones that are good, are all at least an hour and a half away from where we live. It terrifies me. Like if I think about it too deeply I’ll start crying terrifies me. And it’s a daily struggle because just driving the 15 minutes to get my kids from school often has me avoiding at least one accident per day. That’s not an exaggeration. That’s being conservative because our parents are reading this.

So let’s talk about today, during the morning drive to school. I was cruising along with the kids, chatting away and listening to music like we do. Normally Chris does the morning commute and I do the afternoon, but he had to make a trip to Port au Prince today, so I was on deck. I was driving along a straight stretch, just before the turn to the kids school, and in what felt like slow motion, I see a full sized goat get the brilliant idea to run into the road.

Oh, I didn’t mention the goats? The dogs? Chickens? Yeah, all of these are present on the highways here too, along with donkeys and cows and horses. And most of the smaller ones are just wandering aimlessly.

Did I hit the goat?

Yes, yes I did. I hit that sucker straight on, dead center, at almost 100 km/hour.

Thankfully, because I was paying attention, I was able to get a good grip on the steering wheel and managed to maintain full control of the car. The goat went right under, bounced off every tire, because it was spinning under us, and flew out the back where it spun to a dead (very dead) stop in the middle of the highway. I did hit the brakes a bit, so there was some slight skidding, but I stayed in my lane and managed to not hit anyone or anything. In a situation like this, there’s no point in stopping because it’s the same as hitting a stray dog, so we kept going to school and I managed to keep a complete breakdown to a little bit of eye misting (thank you sunglasses) and gave a lecture to Little Miss in the backseat about the fact that we don’t start wailing over a goat that was dumb enough to run into traffic and yelling at Mom about it when WE COULD HAVE ALL DIED!!!

This is the first time that I’ve hit anything alive while driving here that I can remember, which I’m very thankful for. I could tell you many stories about other situations that we’ve been in, like following a motorcycle with 3 people on it and watching a dog run right in it’s path, or the time we hit a slippery part on the road during the first rain of the season and barely missed hitting about 10 school kids on the shoulder… My point is, while I worry about all the possibilities of accidents here, I’m also keenly aware of all the ones we actually do avoid, and while I know that not everyone reading this will share my beliefs, I do believe there is a God, and I believe in and have very much felt his hand of protection over us on the roads here. Like everything goes quiet and still and slow motion kind of protection while I watch something not happen than should happen. And those are just the situations that I’m aware of.

So, for today you get a little window into my deepest fears, a glimpse at daily living here, and knowing that if you’re praying for our family, those prayers are much appreciated and needed!

~Leslie

The Mechanical Side Of Things

Jan 27, 2017

If you’ve been following along with Clean Water for Haiti for any length of time, you’ve probably heard or seen us refer to the need for a new truck. Our trucks work hard every day, to the extent that it can be difficult to explain what that looks like.

This post isn’t going to be an appeal for a new truck. I’ve already done that and we’re on our way to the halfway point of having the funds to purchase one. We’re hoping to do that sometime this year, and crossing our fingers that we don’t have any issues before then that would mean a lot of down time and people not getting filters.

No, today I’m not going to talk about that. Instead, I’m going to try and give you a little window into how hard these beasts work, and what goes into maintaining them.

Yesterday Richard, one of our drivers, went out to buy a load of cinder blocks for the walls in the new guest house/training center. Most of the drive was on the highway, with the exception of the few minutes on our road getting out to the highway, and going from the highway up to the block yard – about 5 minutes on a gravel road.

Mid-way through the morning I got a call to say that he had a flat tire and he was going to be late coming back because of having to change over to the spare, etc. Typically, if we get a flat and time allows, we go right to the next tire repair boss, a guy on the side of the road with an air compressor and a small fire in a piston that he uses to heat patches on the tire tubes. It’s really fascinating to watch them do the whole thing by hand.

Because of the nature of what we do and the roads we have to drive on, we always make sure that every vehicle has a full size, good condition spare on it so we can swap it out and keep going, then get the flat fixed as soon as possible. Very rarely do we let a vehicle off site without a good spare that’s ready to go. Sometimes, but rarely, a spare has lost air from sitting so long, but that’s usually easily remedied.

Richard eventually got back and everyone went about their day as usual.

This morning Chris asked me if I knew that Richard had a blow out yesterday. I told him I was just told the tire was “ampan”, which means “broken down” or not working or flat. Creole has a variety of meanings for a single word, so you just sort of pick the best one for the context. The other day the car overheated and while I waited for it to cool down so I could put more coolant in it many people came by asking me if the car was “ampan”.

When Chris said “blow out” i just thought that a part of the tire had, you know, blown out. And then the whole thing had gone flat, the spare had to be put on, etc.

Well, I was wrong…

When Preval, another of our staff, went to put it in the car this morning so Chris could have it taken off the rim, and get another spare mounted on it, this is what he was moving:

Yep, a complete blow out.

Many times we like to talk about businesses, and how there’s a “cost to doing business”. Very rarely do we apply that to the non-profit setting. But, whether we apply it or not, it is there. When we have to do the math to figure out what our cost per filter is, one of the things we have to factor into that is maintenance on our work trucks. They’re a vital part to our program. We can’t deliver or do repair visits on filters without them, and each full load of filters we take out is about 5 tonnes of weight. Many of the roads that take our staff into the communities we serve are nothing more than a dirt track. Sometimes they’re crossing rivers. Sometimes they get stuck up to the axels in mud, and have to unload everything to get unstuck, then reload it again.

When we talk about “the cost of doing” business in relation to our trucks, one of those maintenance items/expenses is tires. I had a car when I lived back in Canada before moving to Haiti and I cringed when I had to replace tires. My dad is a truck driver, and when he owned his own trucks, I remember many an hour passed in the waiting area of the tire shop while things got changed out. When it comes time to change out a set of tires on one of the trucks we’re always aware of the expense, but it doesn’t ever make the sticker shock any less.

You see, each of our work trucks has 6 wheels. And we need to put good quality, beefy treaded tires on them to get where we need to go. All in, when it’s time to replace the tires we have to buy at least 6 new ones, usually at the tune of about $1600 US. If we need to replace a spare, that’s one more tire. Typically we’ll take one of the best condition old tires and use it as a spare, and probably keep a few of the others for that purpose if we can.

I share this just as a way of expanding your view of what’s involved in what we do here. We often say “it’s not just about filters” because there are so many things that need to work together to make the filters possible. When we do fundraising, and you hear us talking about “cost per filter” now you know more of what’s involved in getting to that number, and some of the things we have to stay on top of doing this thing we do.

~Leslie

Welcome 2017!

Jan 20, 2017

I know the blog has been a bit quiet, but it’s not because things haven’t been happening around here. I’ve been meaning to sit down and write a post for the past two weeks, ever since we got back to work on the 3rd.

December ended up being fairly busy here at the mission. We installed over 90 filters, which we’re pretty proud of considering we finished work on the 17th. As always, we hosted our staff Christmas party. There was a bunch of food, games, and gifts, and everyone had a good time. It’s also when we hand out year end bonuses and vacation pay. In Haiti it’s law to provide a 13th month of salary for all regular employees, so it’s something that our staff look forward to every year. We like to do it right before we take our Christmas break, because it means that they’ll have extra money over holidays, especially since it’s Christmas and New Years.

New Year’s day is also Haiti’s Independence Day. Haiti is the only black republic to have won it’s independence from a slave revolt. One of the biggest cultural things that happens on Independence Day, is that people make and eat Soup Joumou – pumpkin soup. It’s full of root vegetables and meat, and was something that slaves weren’t allowed to eat, while their masters did, so when Haiti won it’s independence they marked it by eating Soup Joumou. Every year it’s a reminder that they are free.

We had a great Christmas break. For our family it was a time to relax and visit with friends. We travel during the summer for a bout six weeks every year, and while it’s fun to get away, it’s a lot of traveling and being in other people’s homes, which can get tiring and is a break in routine. It’s nice to be able to be off work and be at home with no big schedule or anywhere we need to go. We don’t get many days like that here, so it’s a special time of the year for us. We do miss family during the holidays, but we’re also creating new traditions with our kids that are special to us.

Just before the Christmas break we had to fire a long term employee. It was hard. We hated that we had to do it, but we didn’t have a choice. I won’t go into details about reasons, because those are private for everyone involved, and really not necessary. As an employer it’s just a part of doing the job, and it never gets easier. The employee had been with us for about 8 years and was our foreman, so we needed to find someone to replace him, and we’ve learned that someone from within versus a new hire is always best if possible. We met with another long term employee to see if he would take on the role, and after some conversation and thought he agreed.

While he started in the job just before Christmas, Evens has taken things to a whole new level for us, starting on the first day back at work. As we gathered around and did morning prayer and the other things we do to start our day it came time for him to assign everyone their work. Before he did that he told us all that he wanted to share something, and proceeded to read a page long speech he’d written encouraging the staff to work with character and integrity, remembering that we’re here to serve the people of Haiti. He reminded them that it’s not just about what we do out on deliveries or follow up or repair visits, but all of the little things that happen every day – even things like picking up garbage, keeping the work yard clean, and respecting each other. Chris and I walked back into the office and almost broke out in a happy dance because we were so excited. None of this had come from us, it was all his idea and his initiative.

Since then we’ve watched the work get more organized, the depots are all cleaned out and organized, and Evens has been so very intentional about making sure the work runs well. Last week he spent time walking around the property with Edoise, the 72 year old man who serves as our care taker. They looked for very specific things that needed attention and Evens came along side Edoise as a leader in a way that we had wanted, but hadn’t witnessed before. What was a difficult situation has become one that has pushed our work to a new level, and just constantly reminds us that what we’re doing isn’t just about filters. It’s about building into people and teaching and training and coming along side them.

As we keep moving into this new year, we’re excited. This week the guys are laying plumbing lines in the new guest house/training center. We’re hoping that building will be done by June so we can get back to hosting our Training Classes and Vision Trips in the fall. We just hired two new employees who are now getting trained in all aspects of what we do. We’ve done two deliveries this month so far. Our Board of Directors is already in the early stages of planning our annual retreat where we meet together face to face and work on making this an even better organization.

I hope this year is one that is full of exciting new things for you, and that you’ll stay up to date with what’s going on here for all of us. There’s never a dull moment!

~Leslie

Hurricane Matthew – Does It Make A Difference?

Oct 15, 2016

It’s been over a week since Hurricane Matthew blasted through Haiti. There are so many feelings and thoughts swirling around in my head and heart, and it’s been hard to sort it all out. I don’t think I have yet, and I don’t know when I will. Little nuggets keep popping to the surface, and I’m thankful that they’re small because that’s what I can digest right now. Like so many here, I’ve been seeing posts from friends and other organizations on the ground that are helping with relief work down south. It’s devastating. Heartbreaking. I wish we could be there and on the ground, but I know that’s not our role in this.

It all feels overwhelming at times.

Yesterday I was thinking about the clash of emotions and thoughts. The conversations in my head where I would remind myself that we do something really well, and we’ve had experience with this kind of thing and know how we can best be supporting relief efforts right now. And yet, I would daydream about what other things we could be doing. Then I would remind myself that I needed to get filter forms prepared for another delivery day and get stuff ready for the guys to take out. That tomorrow we would be building filters again and preparing stuff for the next batch of installations that are most likely happening on Monday. That there’s a Community Promoter taking orders and collecting the co-pay that we require from each household so they invest in their filter and care for it well. All of these pieces working together like a well oiled machine, because it is. We know how to do this well from many years of trial and error, from making mistakes, from working with the local community and our Haitian staff, and we keep tweaking. Always trying to do it better.

I think about the press notes released from the WHO (World Health Organization) this week. The documented cases of Cholera throughout the country are starting to climb. The numbers grow most rapidly in the south, but the Artibonite is in there too. It’s several departments away from the southern regions, but showing the third highest increases in the country. This is our area. This is where we’ve been working for years.

I feel overwhelmed again because Cholera brings with it a sense of immediacy. For those with weakened immune systems, it can kill in 24 hours. The Artibonite is the area that has been most affected by this stealer of life since 2010 when cases were first reported. I want to shift into high gear. To get out there faster. To push harder.

But then I remember that this is not who we are. It’s not what we do.

No. Harder and faster is not the way we work. We work steady. We work calculated. We work in a way that means we can provide the follow up and care in line with our initial output of filters. Our whole goal is to be a constant presence for the long term. We’re not running a sprint, we’re running the marathon. We know how to do this well, and the answer right now, no matter how much we might feel we could be doing, is to stick with what we know works. What others have affirmed works.

I find my thoughts shifting from what I wish we could do, to what we have done.

And then I feel the conversation turn a bit.

We have been working in the Artibonite for years. We have been working in the Artibonite for years.

We have installed thousands of filters there. We have installed THOUSANDS of filters there.

I think of the number of new Cholera cases again. And I remember when the outbreak started back in 2010. The cases climbed by the hundreds every week. It was out of control. It came so fast, and so hard, that people were blindsided. Running to try and catch up. Running to try and save lives. To educated people on how to protect themselves. To provide access to medicine, water treatment, help…

And I think about the numbers slowly going up. No case is a good case, but what if those thousands of bio-sand filters weren’t there this week? Would the numbers be going up by the hundreds again?

And I feel overwhelmed.

The full weight of what we’ve been working so hard for, of everything we do here at Clean Water for Haiti hits me like a wall.

It’s working.

People have filters. Not everyone, but thousands upon thousands do. They’re getting clean water. They know how to protect themselves from this killer. We have communities waiting for filters because they’ve seen their friends and family and neighbours with one and they know it works. People who have filters aren’t getting Cholera. Plain fact.

We’ve done this thing, pushed at it and worked so hard for so many years because we know it works. But in that, we don’t get to see every life affected. We don’t because those people don’t get sick. We can’t count numbers of people that are protected because of the work we do, because it’s not possible. You can only count the ones that aren’t, the ones that don’t make it. We often talk about the fact that we will never truly know how many lives we’ve helped save because of what we do, simply because those people are still walking around today, healthy. Those kids might be going to school and sassing their parents. Moms might get to see their babies grow up, and grandparents live into old age. Dads might be out working in the fields to provide for their families. We will never know how many.

My heart feels so overwhelmed right now, but it’s not from feeling helpless this time, it’s from gratitude.

Gratitude that we get to be part of this. Gratitude that all the hard work, the worry, the sweat, and even the tears over the years has been worth it. So very worth it.

It settles in. This deep knowing.

There are thousands of people at work in the south right now helping in relief. This is their role. They are saving lives after this disaster.

And we are here. This is our role. Continuing to do what we’ve been doing all along – preventing a different kind of disaster.

So does it make a difference? This work we do? The support you give? All the dollars sent and used here in Haiti over the years?

I know it does. Thousands upon thousands in homes all through the Artibonite know it does.

Thank you for supporting the work we’re doing, whether you’re sharing about us with people in your circle or sending your hard earned finances. You are helping us save lives here. That isn’t an exaggeration, that is a fact.

~Leslie

Hurricane Matthew – How To Help

Oct 5, 2016

Reports have started coming in from all around Haiti to the expat/missionary network that we’re a part of. The damage in the south is BAD. There are no other words for it. Last night as it got dark and I had to run out and turn off the generator, I waded through 2 inch deep water running down our driveway. The rain kept coming and I was sure that we were going to wake up to reports of flooding in Gonaives, a city about 45 minutes north of us that has flooded badly, twice, in the past 12 years. Thankfully all the canals held and the city is just fine.

image source

As we’ve waited to hear news of the areas that would need the most help, Chris and I have been able to talk a bit about how Clean Water for Haiti can best be involved in the coming weeks and months.

Here’s the bottom line – we’re a development organization. And as much as we want to jump in and help with relief efforts, we know from experience that that isn’t our strong suit. Where we shine as an organization is in the long term. When everyone else pulls out and is done with the immediate needs, we follow behind and help families move to that next level, to being independent and caring for their own needs.

We know that one of the major needs after a natural disaster of this nature is clean water. But, aside from the fact that roads and bridges are out, we just aren’t the people to provide that in the south of Haiti. Our filters need to be installed in established households and we need to be able to provide multiple follow up visits through the first year. We can’t get to where the greatest need is right now, and it’s not the right time even if we could.

So, how can Clean Water for Haiti be involved right now?

By continuing to do what we do well.

It’s a fact that after a natural disaster of this kind there are spikes in water borne disease. Sanitation facilities, if they exist, are destroyed. Flooding can spread things like Cholera from one water source to many others. People who have been displaced may be carriers, so they carry the disease from one location to another. This is going to be a reality in the coming weeks and months here in Haiti. Many have already started talking about the issue as reality.

This is where we come in.

By continuing to work with our network of Community Promoters in the places where we already have an established presence, we’re going to be able to further strengthen communities. Rather than responding to a Cholera spike, we’re already working to help prevent a further spread. Families who already have filters in times like these become first responders to their friends and neighbours, which is a beautiful thing. It’s Haitians being strong and helping themselves, which is what we’re all about.

Now, this is where YOU come in.

There will be a huge need for relief support for Haiti in the coming weeks, but if you would rather think long term with us and support lasting investment in Haiti we would love it if you would choose to support the work of Clean Water for Haiti. $100 will provide the funding needed to build, deliver, install and follow up on a filter for a Haitian family. We are also desperately in need of a new truck to help meet the demand for filters.

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If you are interested in supporting some kind of specific relief work we would encourage you to be very intentional about which organization(s) you support. Much was learned after the earthquake here, and I’m sure we can all think of articles we’ve read or things we’ve seen or heard on the news about aid done poorly in Haiti. When you consider who to support, please give to smaller, grass roots organizations that have people here on the ground full time. These organizations are already established, they have relationships within the communities they serve, they have an understanding of the culture that will allow them to be more effective, often their overhead is lower, and they will know how to work more effectively with the communities they want to serve.

As you consider giving, I would also ask you to give much needed funding rather than collecting items for Haiti unless you have been given a specific needs list. Funding allows organizations on the ground to buy from local merchants, whether it’s a family selling shoes and clothing in the market, or local grocery stores and warehouses when buying food and materials to rebuild. Buying local does double duty – it meets a specific need, but also puts income back in the hands of the families that so desperately need it right now. When we want to help rebuild, we should want to do that in a way that truly loves people, even if it leaves us feeling a little less involved.

Lastly, while I know there is a huge desire to come and be “hands and feet” let’s remember that Haiti has over 10 million people on this tiny island. Let’s love people well by letting them have the opportunity to be employed by these local organizations as the cleaning and rebuilding happens. Let’s let men and women know the dignity of providing for their families and building into their communities. Let’s honor the skills that so many have and let them lead in the construction realm as this all unfolds. If you want to be “hands and feet” ask the organizations that are here on the ground how you can best do that, then do it, and do it with all your heart.

One of the beautiful things that has already come out of this disaster is that organizations and their staff all over Haiti are sharing one voice as we ask people to be deliberate, intentional, and thoughtful as they help. Let’s work together to come alongside the people of Haiti as we help them rebuild, and do it in a way that empowers them.

Thank you for your continued prayers in the past few days. Please continue to pray for the people of Haiti as they once again rise and show the world how strong they are.

~Leslie