U.S. military aboard the USS IWO JIMA and partnering nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) provided aid to the people of Haiti. There were two towns that were the focal points of these services, Port-De Paix and Saint Louis De Nord. US partners constructed medical, veterinary, and engineering sites throughout the two cities. The scene was very diverse and dynamic.
First Day Out-Community Relation Project
Port De Paix, Haiti
As the Landing Craft Unit arrived ashore, we saw many Haitians standing in rows to watch the sight of hundreds of American military, NGOs, and partners offload onto their seashore. The people of Haiti seemed intrigued when they first saw us. We were so happy to be in Haiti even though we had to wade up to our waist in contaminated water to get there. The sight was overwhelming with beautiful mountains of luscious greenery in the backdrop, and various piles of trash below your feet as you walked closer toward the UN compound.
We had finally arrived in Haiti- it was quite an experience! After spending nights aboard the ship we fluttered with excitement to see these wonderful people and to have the opportunity to restore their hospital the L'Hopital Immaculee Conception De Port De Paix. We caught a brightly colored bus and bounced along to the hospital site. We were given a unique opportunity to work side by side with Naval shipmates to paint and clean a popular town hospital. Upon arrival at the hospital we noticed how busy the worksite was, with military building, cleaning, and preparing materials. The Haitian people watched from all around. Little children played in the streets and in the hillside.
The time had come, after our briefing we suited up in a loaned doctor’s coat to prepare for our painting experience. We grabbed our paint and brushes and set ahead to climb the rooftop of the hospital. Of course, we would climb onto the roof, why would we not? As a team we launched a full paint attack, a couple of us on the ledge to get the walls and others on the side of the roof for efficiency. Looking down from the ledge’s side, a navy man says “well if you fall aim for the table”, we share a laugh. It was funny to think man, you better not slip on one of these tree nuts or you are history girl. Soon after we realized that the paint would not take in some places on the side, we decided it would be wise to get back to the main rooftop.
We moved from the roof to paint inside each of the rooms of the hospital. Under the lab coats we were cooking, but the marines made sure that we drank plenty of water. We took turns painting the rooms, everyone pitched in to complete the effort. We finished up the painting and started to clean up the area. Our hands, glasses, pants, and cameras were covered in green and white paint, which came off nicely when we utilized our deet lotion as paint removal.
Children started to come closer to the hospital and play with the soldiers. Even during our lunch break a soccer game erupted. The children were wonderfully entertaining with their soccer skills and smiles. Many of the children bested the marines, which was quite entertaining as well.
As the day came to a close, we sat with several Navy members on the steps of a church next to the hospital site. Looking around at the city, we could not believe that we had finally made it to Haiti and how wonderful it was to be there. The people are in such need, but they smile. Their resources are scarce, yet they are resourceful. We knew that we had a great deal to learn from these people and that we would be back someday in the future.
Second Day Out-First Give a Kid a Backpack Project
Saint Louis De Nord, Haiti
The day had finally arrived for the backpack ladies on the ship to exercise their mission. We were so excited to be fulfilling a project. We arrived ashore the same way as the day before, but this time with a specific purpose in mind. We jumped onto another brightly colored bus and bumped along the streets for a couple of hours till we reached a missionary called the Northwest Haiti Christian Mission. We had a blast passing out a total of 128 pairs of brand new shoes, 105 different styles of backpacks, as well as a few baseball caps and toy cars. The donation from a partner Brazilian company had a great impact on these friendly and warm people. One lady came with no shoes and left with a pair of sandals. Seeing her walk around afterward was wonderful.
All the children were ecstatic to see all the items we brought for them. After they received their gift they all began to sing to us in Creole. Their amazing voices filled us with joy and reminded us of the meaning of simple happiness. The Northwest Haiti Christian Mission is an amazing place for Haitians to receive help. Some of the services which are being provided are meals, maternity care, eye check-ups, surgery, and pharmacy. They also have an orphanage for children under the age of 5 and some senior living quarters for their elderly. Haiti is one of the poorest countries we have ever seen; however the people are slowly beginning to rebuild their community. Our time is Haiti was brief, but thankfully Give a Kid a Backpack was there and we left with new friendships and wonderful memories.
Please read how a new friend was touched by his experience with Give a Kid a Backpack in Haiti:
“On august 1, 2010 I was afforded the opportunity to go out with two members, Kari Williams and Janinatt Viteri, of the “Give a Kid a Backpack” organization to distribute shoes and backpacks to children and young adults at the Northwest Haitian Christian Mission in St. Louis De Nord, Haiti. After getting to the mission and setting up to distribute the bags and shoes we were swarmed with children and young adults of all ages that happily and graciously received the items we had to hand out. This was especially touching to me because it reminded me of the humanitarian drops that I did as an Army Civil Affairs team leader in Afghanistan. After all the backpacks, shoes, and a few hats and toys were handed out one of the young Haitian men gave us a tour of the mission where we met elderly people that greeted us with open arms and smiles, as well as numerous babies and infants that we had the chance to hold and play with. Overall the day was a great success, and I feel that we touched the lives of all of the people we came in contact with. I was so happy to be a part of all of it and hope that I will have the chance to work with the “Give a Kid a Backpack” organization in the future.” Casey McCausland, former Army Captain new GKB volunteer and friend.
