Haiti Volunteer Journals
The Global Volunteer Network currently has opportunities to join a rebuilding and rehabilitation team to Haiti.
On Tuesday, January 12th 2010, an earthquake registering at 7.0 hit the island of Haiti in the Caribbean. The earthquake has destroyed much of the already fragile and overburdened infrastructure in the most densely populated part of the country. A massive international response is needed to provide food, water, shelter, and medical supplies to the people.
Volunteers have the opportunity to be involved in a variety of work, including:
- Working with Children
- Teaching
- Health/Medical
- Building and construction
- Counselling
For more information, please visit the Haiti webpage on the Global Volunteer Network website.
July 27th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
Well I am starting to count down the number of smiles and Bonjos and bonswas I am going to have for the next few days. I have not come close to accomplishing things I have wanted to do. I really have not discussed the Haitian life as I see it much. It is very much a mix of medieval and modern times. Basic hygiene does not exist because it it reported that it has been done this way for generations so why change it? They cannot see the long term effects of dumping urine and feces in the streets with [...]
Posted in Haiti, Uncategorized
July 27th, 2010 by Ines Cabello Gonzalez
Net terug van een zoektocht naar een pleegkindje en wat tijd om jullie wat meer te vertellen over mijn Haitiaanse droom>
Allison, een Canadeese, vroeg me om mee op zoek te gaan naar het pleegkindje van een vriend om hem zo in het echt te kunnen ontmoeten. Het jongentje hebben we helaas niet ontmoet, maar wel zijn nichtje. Was een spannende rit met het oversteken van de rivier op een motortaxi. Life on the wild site Kan zijn dat we een dezer dagen terug gaan om het jongetje op te sporen. Houd jullie op de hoogte.
Vanochtend zijn we met [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 27th, 2010 by Evamaria Nittnaus
[Deutscher Text unten]
Last week I sent in the payment for my two months in Haiti, so now it’s time to start putting together lists, making sure I’ll have everything I need. For someone who’s led such a pampered life, sleeping in a tent on concrete floor for two months, in the heat with mosquitoes and frequent rain, is going to be tough. Today I bought a proper air mattress and a mosquito net, but if anyone of you have more experience and can think of essential things to take, to make living more comfortable, let me know, please?
Naturally this [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 26th, 2010 by Debi Basu
Posted in Haiti
July 25th, 2010 by Michelle Berkley-Tran
This week has just flown by and unfortunately finding the time to write about everything has been difficult. So I’m going to try to give a summary of some of the various projects happening here in Haiti.
One of the great things about the Global Volunteer Network (GVN) program is that there’s a lot going on. There are many projects in place and there’s lots of opportunity to participate in different areas.
Ecole Rouse Orphanage: I have mentioned this orphanage in a previous entry, but I just love this place! Ecole Rouse is an orphanage here in Jacmel that provides care [...]
Tags: Action inspires change.
Posted in Haiti, Uncategorized
July 25th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
The stomach stuff finally caught up with me so I have been out of commision this weekend. Only a few days to go and I still have a few more things to do- write up a volunteer illness log, go to the rehab center again, and make a few more nursing trips to the big camp. We will probably have a party Thursday. Well of to bed to get some rest.
Cheers,
Charlotte
Posted in Haiti, Uncategorized
July 24th, 2010 by Michelle Berkley-Tran
Yesterday was the most beautiful and meaningful day that I have spent here in Haiti. But before I explain about this amazing day, I would like to share a bit of background information….
All week I have been volunteering and helping out at a local orphanage called Ecole Rouse. Upon first entering this orphanage, my first impression was a deep sadness. When you first walk in it’s nothing but a temporary wood structure with a tarp covering the top and mud floor. To the right is a small office and a pit style bathroom behind it (the smell alone is just [...]
Tags: "Years from now, it won't matter what type of car I drove or how much money was in my bank account. The thing that will matter most is that I made a difference in the life of a child."
Posted in Haiti, Uncategorized
July 24th, 2010 by Ines Cabello Gonzalez
Ik voel me nen echte vent!!
Eergisteren zijn we met een aantal mensen begonnen aan de bouw van Claudes klaslokaal. Is gewoon de max om mee te werken aan de bouw van een huis en de fysieke arbeid doet me goed. Moet wel zeggen dat de Haitiaanse mannen het niet altijd even leuk vinden, kwestie van ego peins ik
Maar dus, de eerste dag was het de omheining of alleszins datgene waarin het beton gegoten moest worden. Best cool om te zien hoe de mensen hier te werk gaan. Ze graven eerst een soort van greppel en daarna metsen ze [...]
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July 23rd, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
Hi everyone. Well I finally had my overdue mini meltdown yesterday afternoon. It was I think a combination of exhaustion and having felt so grateful to have the doctors/nurses from Conn. show up that it felt a bit like when someone is struggling at sea when the rescue team shows up. Rod and Gracie listen to me sob and I felt tons better. Rod said today and the assume tongue and cheek that he thought I was “firmer” than that. Those English military men! We had a birthday party for Milka, the cook and all around go getter for us. [...]
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July 22nd, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
So far my Haiti weather forecaster has been right- it poured buckets yesterday afternoon and night. I hd about 2+ inches of water in my little area. Foretunely I had everything in plastic. I have been over doing it a bit and my body is revolting by making me sleep for hours at I time. I think I have been awake 5 in the past 24. I am going to take it easy today because tomorrow we get to take the kids to the beach. I really am attached to many of them as are so many of the volunteers. [...]
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July 21st, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
I had the previlege today to visit a Methodist Volunteer camp in what is in a town in the Mountains NNW of Jacmel. Jacmel seems like a big city compared to a town of 17,000 that are spread apart by acres of land. It took 45 minutes by motorcycle to get there. it was an interesting perspective of how the earthquake effect a rural area. Many of the nurses were asking me about the “urban-like life” of Jacmel. IT really put things into perspective. The are more similarities than differences in terms of treatment. However the mountains felt like [...]
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July 21st, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
There are so many more things I need to do and not enough time to do them. island time as they say. Sunday I got a good rest in at the hotel with the pool and hung out with my new dear old friend Dennis as it was his last Sunday here. We had a much needed rest and then dinner over at the regular restaurant with the rest of the clan. I had an opportunity to talk to Larry who was the one who started the Jacmel Haiti program with another volunteer. We met a woman who lives in [...]
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July 20th, 2010 by Danielle
Emmanuel walked around for three days after the “twelfth,” which is what the January 12 2010 earthquake is frequently referred to as by Haitians. Cell phones weren’t working, Port Au Prince was in chaos, rubble filled the streets, injured people cried for help, bodies were everywhere, and he was trying to find his family members. Six months later, he took us on a tour of some of the most devastated areas of Port Au Prince. He has yet to hear from his mother.
I was surrounded by children: grabbing my arms, trying to hold my hands, tugging at my shirt. Their [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 17th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
Hi. I have not been able to write because there has been more illness. I have all but givien up teaching because nursing has been needed alot lately. We had 2 more volunteers go down for the count. I was woken up at 6 am Thursday to help take care of a volunteer who had been vomiting and diarrhea all night. 2 otheres were sick, but one was better by AM. Another after being in the hospital and overnight in a hotel was worse this am with a temp ofalmost 104. So both were wisked off to a “hospital”. It [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 15th, 2010 by Danielle
I had started this blog then took a break to go to lunch. before coming back, we had a brief detour (more on that) and i guess to much time lapsed and I lost the first part of this blog. oh well.
Anyways, the lunch story. Had a delicious grilled veggie panini at the deck. i love my vegetables! When heather and I returned to the UNICEF area at MINUSTAH, there was a crowd of people holding up their cameras and cell phones trying to take pictures. There was also a lot more security guards than usual. Turns out there was [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 14th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
Last night we had a party for those who are leaving. It is so bittersweet as we move into a new direction with new people. I have grown to love my new friends who are all from around the world. It is just a weird thing being so intimate with a group of people you did not even know 2 weeks ago . There is no privacy here and strangely I have been ok with that. One new friend has an amazing camera and plans on posting 100’s of pics when she gets back to Belgium. The new groups are [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 13th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
I am very tired or lazy. They both seem the same to me right now. I wrote a note to a friend from work and I am just cutting and pasting it for the highlights of today. Thanks Sandy!
Hi. Thank you for the note. It has been incredibly busy and exceptionally fulfilling. Hot is not the description, though I have gotten use to it. It is 90-100 and 80+% humidity. I have been keeping a blog for professional development in hopes that I can get some credit at school. It is volunteerjournals.org. If you scroll down to Haiti and click [...]
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July 12th, 2010 by Lucy Woodbridge
So just as an introduction I’ll be writing these blogs whenever I can once I’m in Haiti. Hope it gives you an overview of what its like and I hope you enjoy!!
So I’m off in just over 10 days and I’m almost ready. I’ve had lots of lovely donations from my old secondary school who kindly gave me lots of art materials and work books as well as english speaking books which should be handy to donate to the school.
A friend of mine who has just had a baby (Hi Archer and Mel) donated all of his baby clothes, they’re [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 12th, 2010 by Alexandra Svoboda
One week ago today, I applied and was approved for the Haiti Volunteer program with the Global Volunteer Organization. Only five days later, I booked my flight and it is official: I will be travelling to Haiti on October 31st until November 30th! I can’t express how happy and excited I am to finally have the dates set!! After I visited Haiti for the first time in February 2009, my heart was set on going back. When the earthquake hit on January 12 (six months ago today), I was completely heart-broken and ready to leave as soon as possible. Finally, [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 12th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
The weekend proved fruitful for some R and R. Yesterday I went to a church service that is run by the woman who runs the day care/orphanage. She provides her little community a place to worship. I arrived in the morning. Her English is limited. She put a few little girls in front of me and handed me some “Ssunday Best” clothes fo r the orphans. Many of the kids during the day wear nothing at all- some because of limited clothes;others because they have fever and it is cooler. The kids sleep on the dirt in front of her [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 10th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
More determined now than ever today was the day of rest. I left the the compound on my own and snuck off to tend to 4 people that needed checking on early in the morning. We are supposed to go in pairs, but I wanted to take the day off, but not wait all day long either for someone to commit to go with me. It truly is island time and not US time. We had another late night with another illness with one of the volunteers. Hopefully this is it with illnesses. So I snuck off, feeling a little [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 9th, 2010 by Evamaria Nittnaus
[Deutscher Text unten]
Doesn’t feel long at all… I’ve been encountering a lot of support – thanks so much, guys! What’s pretty cool is that I’ve made contact with someone who’ll be in my volunteer group. That’s the beauty of Twitter… I’m sure as time gets closer, I’ll meet more of my team mates.
I’m also thinking about what to take to Haiti with me – not for myself, but for the people there. If anyone reading this (especially people who have already been) has any tips and recommendations what might be good things to take, I’d appreciate it!
—
3 [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 9th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
Hi All. It has been another productive day here in Jacmel. I am still fine tuning the “Common Diseases” report for the compound, but hope to submit the draft today to he “the boss”. I went tot he orphanage to have some down time with the kids, but their was a 4 month old baby that was sick. Her lungs were a mess. I did something a little different from protocol and took mom with me. Their has been a problem with compliance with meds for the kids, so I thought showing them what it takes to get it might [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 8th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
Last night I finished up the spread sheet I am making for the clinic at GVN that is for common illnesses, treatment, diagnosis, symptoms etc. I went to the dcotor’s again to consult with him to check over my work. I have a few additions to do, but otherwise, it is a go. I waited for the “the boss” to do some treatments in the Big Camp here in Jacmel, but she had more people ill to take to the doctor/hospital. While waiting I was able to read a little book called “The Day that Everybody Ate” by Margaret Trost. [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 7th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
The last few days many of us have had to go to the doctor’s due to an intestinal bug so volunteering has come to a crawl for many of us. The first 5 rotation have had none, but last week (end of 6th rotation) and this week we have seen a wave of it. Causes are just guesses but it could be anything from being the start of the wet season to a change in the dinner venue to anything else. One volunteer was given IV fluids-literally adn expected to find someone to start it- and sent on her way [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 6th, 2010 by Danielle
Volunteers in Cx-des-Bqts have a number of opportunities for volunteering: Dr. Roberts’ orphanage where kids who lost their parents in the earthquake live; the Good Samaritan Orphanage which is in desperate need of everything; a special needs orphanage; helping an organization construct a building to house medical supplies; working with Provide to clear land to initiate a sustainable agriculture centre; teaching adult english classes; a wednesday women’s day at Ecole Shalom (where all the volunteers stay); a medical clinic that runs a couple times a week; and UNICEF.
By far, the UNICEF placement is the most luxurious as it is located [...]
Posted in Haiti, Uncategorized
July 5th, 2010 by Danielle
It’s been a few days since arriving in Haiti and it feels time to post my first blog. The past few days have been good as I have been settling into the GVN compound in Croix-des-Bouquets (Cx-des-Bqts) and just getting comfortable being in a new country, from the heat, food, language, people, sights, sounds, smells, etc. Already much can be said about my experience so far here but I think it would make this entry far too long! Instead, I will provide a few highlights and pertinent details about the first few days of my month-long adventure.
First highlight: encountering an [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 5th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
I went into the camp yesterday to help out with people in the camp called Pinchanu ( sp). It is the camp where unfortunately have a very high crime rate. It is safe during the day, but at night women re routinely raped when going to the bathroom so they use the bed as a toilet when they cannot hold it. I saw many jaundiced eyed children. I also saw a boy that most likely has mumps- it least that is what it looked like to me. We went in the early afternoon when it was 105 and very humid. [...]
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July 5th, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
Dear All
I am writing on Sunday Am because yesterday we went to a place that had WiFi but by the time I finally got online, my power was out. I am learning a great deal about putting things into perspective here. So Friday around 8:30pm we went to a Voodoo ceremony.It was to last till 7am I was convinced to was for th “Blancs-foreigners”- to generate tourism. I was wrong. We walked for a few miles through winding streets filled with more affluent areas of Jacmel. The streets got became hilly,narrow, and windyan area opened up to a large market-like [...]
Posted in Haiti
July 2nd, 2010 by Charlotte Scott
Hi. It is Friday afternoon and I do not know where to begin. I woke up ready for my first assingment to the orphanage/day care by the worst of the tent camps in Jacmel: crimes like rape, stabbing and prostistuation in the size of a football field with close to 7000 people living in insane condition. There is no means of removing waste. The kids I have seen are some of the lucky few not in this camp. It is hard not give to begging and adding tips, but it drives up the prices for everyone, as well as makes [...]
Posted in Haiti, Uncategorized
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