Let me tell you, right from the start, I have been frustrated this year. I was happy when the meals we packed last year arrived safely in Cap Haitien, but frustrated ever since because no safe route could be found to deliver our meals to the school in Bois Negresse! I am frustrated that I cannot visit there, to meet the children, their parents and teachers, and their pastor. There's nothing like an after-school tour, guided by the children to show me their roads and trails, their homes, outbuildings, crops and animals. You get an idea how far they go for water. What are their aspirations? Who are their role models? I want to talk with students and community leaders and hear their ideas about how we can work together. And I want to take pictures to remember it all and to show you! But no!
Imagine with me the frustration of parents who work but can average only $1/day. Many days, they cannot provide even one meal for their families. School uniforms, which make the children so proud, are passed down among siblings, sometimes with missing buttons or broken flies. Textbooks, too, get shared again and again. Travel to family in other parts of the country is dangerous. Walking across to the Dominican Republic is dicey too. There's no access to medical help. It is not merely frustrating, it is demoralizing and makes a knot in the stomach that does not go away.
BUT When school lunches are reliable, everyone breathes more easily. Children are stronger, with more energy and focus. They master their lessons and pursue new dreams for themselves. They become free to think of others. They crack jokes and might kick a ball around after school. They demonstrate to their parents how education is a great investment in children and their futures, in their community, and even in their grandchildren!
And they motivate me! Will you help me raise AT LEAST $3000 to keep reliably providing lunch for 190 children lunch every weekday through 2026? Let's not lose sight of these hardworking students. Please Donate Now, whatever you can. We have it in our power to make a life-changing difference!
If you prefer to donate with a check, please write it to Future Forward for Haiti, and mail it to 3805 Toole Street, Bozeman MT 59718. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with no paid employees so over 95% of your gift goes to provide these meals.
