Days 21 &22 (10/05 – 06)

Wednesday – Today was one of those scheduling nightmare days. John was leaving for 5 days of R & R with his family in Florida. Sarah was returning from her weeks vacation. A VIM team was arriving from the Midwest. A Baptist team was returning from their mission in Binique (yes, they actually do allow Baptists to stay at the Methodist Guest House). And – I had to get to a meeting with another NGO. Now I know how a soccer mom must feel. But – we were able to get enough vehicles and drivers together to get everybody to where they needed to be.

My meeting was with PID (Partners in Development). They are primarily a medical assistance organization, but also do a lot of community development work. They recently have started a multi-faceted housing program that is very interesting. It’s probably not a model that we can use, but some parts of it may work for us. First they provide training for families to help them start and run a small business. Then they provide them with a small house (about 200 sq. ft.). Then they give them an interest free, 25 year micro-mortgage to purchase the home. If  the purchasers make their mortgage payments for 2 years, they can then borrow back the full amount paid to pay for maintenance or improvements on their house and the amount is tacked onto the end of the loan. I love the concept and the intent, but we’ll have to wait and see how well the program is going to work. I was able to see several of their completed houses and duplexes. They are very small and basic, but the new owners are thrilled to have them.

Thursday – The beginning of week #4. Today I made a site visit to Danielle’s (a Driver at the Guest House for 14 years) home site in Carre Four Fe. This is in the hills above Carre Four- the hardest hit area in Haiti. His lot is a small lot, as are most in that area, about 16’ x 20’. The view from the site of Port Au Prince and the bay is spectacular. If it was in the US, it would be surrounded by million dollar homes – definitely not the case in Haiti. He had a 2 story house that completely collapsed in the earthquake. His son and daughter were both upstairs when the earthquake hit and they rode the house down to the ground without being hurt. Had they been downstairs, they would have been crushed. Danielle has cleared the lot, put in the footings and started the stem walls and vertical rebar – then ran out of money. He definitely will be one we help. I love my job.