January 12^th, 2011 marks the one year anniversary since the catastrophic earthquake hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti.  It claimed the lives of nearly 300,000 people, and left approximately 1.3 million people homeless. The communities in the areas hit the hardest by the earthquake have had a multitude of challenges this year.  Many had to say goodbye to loved ones who were not fortunate enough to survive the earthquake after buildings collapsed on them.  Family members barely had time to grieve as they had to take care of their own survival. Millions lost their homes, and were left in the street constructing shelter from scrap material among the rubble.  During the heavy rain season, without proper shelter, people were sleeping standing up and in the midst of it all; a cholera outbreak began to plague the nation.

With the beginning of a new year, Edeyo looks back on 2010 and hopes that we can continue to make a difference for so many people in the Bel-Air community.  In January 2010, soon after the earthquake, we went there to assess the damage and take account for the children. Our school was completely destroyed and six of our students passed away, Blemur Betsaida, 3; Doxcy Louina, 6; Jean Naika, 3; Pierre Louis Daphane, 4; Alphonse Wilson, 4; and Val Yvenly, 7 and many others were missing.  Later in February, we sent a larger team including a medical team to evaluate the physical and emotional wellbeing of our students and the community, as well as distribute initial donations collected after January 12^th.   Due to the damages to the school, we had to temporarily suspend classes but soon reopened under donated tents by Hofstra University.  We wanted the kids to have something familiar and consistent after their lives had changed so much.  We finished the 2009/2010 school year successfully and in October 4^th, 2010 we began the 2010/2011 school year in a more permanent structure until we can raise enough funds to buy the land to rebuild the school.

As an organization, Edeyo has been able to bring clean water into the community, have tents donated, provide basic medical attention and provide educational information on how to prevent cholera.  It wasn’t until a recent trip in October in which we discovered that Bel-Air, where Edeyo is located is in a red zone district, meaning NGO’s are not allowed to go into these areas to offer assistance. The only help these people have seen has come from Edeyo and its partners.

Last month,  Edeyo organized its 4^th annual toy drive and dear friends at the Dominican Academy continued to show their support by once again being part of this initiative.  Also, a new friend, Kevin Powell planned a holiday party in which we collected many supplies for the school and the community.  With everything these children have gone through and witnessed, we must also keep in mind that at the end of the day they are just like every child in the world whose eyes light up when unraveling a new toy on Christmas Day.

In the next couple of months we are working with Sean Penn’s foundation, JP HRO to start clearing out the debris and rubble left from the earthquake.  In the meantime, we want to thank all of our volunteers, our supporters, and partners.  Edeyo was in Haiti before the earthquake and will be there long-term.

Click here to visit Edeyo’s website.

It has been nearly 10 months since the catastrophic earthquake hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti and shook the country’s core to the ground.  This city of approximately 3.5 million has made meager progress toward recovery.  Approximately 80% of people are unemployed, and a majority of people have no decent shelter, urban sanitation is absolutely minimal and clean water availability is scarce, which on its own is causing a new set of problems for the people of Haiti.

Recently a small team from Edeyo, a foundation formed on the birthday of founder Unik Ernest in 2007 which means “Help Them” in Haitian Creole,  visited the kids and saw firsthand the situation in which the majority of Haiti’s population is dealing with every day.  During their visit, Cholera (an acute intestinal infection caused by ingestion of contaminated water or food) had already claimed the lives of a couple hundred people.  In the midst of the cholera outbreak and the painfully slow recovery from the January 12 earthquake that killed more than 250,000 people, Haiti must now prepare for a possible direct hit by Hurricane Tomas.  Even in the scenario where Tomas just brushes Haiti, it could spread the epidemic and it would facilitate the spread of the disease in Port-au-Prince, where a third of the population continues living in refugee camps.

The Edeyo School, which collapsed because of the earthquake, had relied for a time on two festival tents donated by Hofstra University, set up in the middle of the street.  Yet by the start of the current school year, the government wished to reopen the roads to traffic and using the tents was no longer a possible alternative.  Our school director was able to re-rent the original building used during Edeyo start-up period, and while this is a temporary solution to get the classrooms out of the streets, Edeyo continues to raise funds to purchase land and rebuild a permanent school for the children.

Through the continuous turmoil and new challenges that arise every day,   the Haitian people continue to have a resilient spirit and a welcoming smile that resonates hope.  For more information on Edeyo, please visit its website www.edeyo.org

Edeyo  is an independent, nonprofit organization, dedicated to improving the future for children in Haiti through education, providing them with a safe, nurturing school environment, learning materials, nutritional support, and the linguistic and critical thinking skills that will ensure their future success.  Edeyo aims ultimately to provide new hope and opportunity by rebuilding high-quality schools for children in some of the most underprivileged parts of Port-au-Prince (Haiti).

All photos by Cynthia Bogard.