Loss

This afternoon I stood over the corpse of a sixteen year-old boy at his gravesite, reciting the last prayers his mother will hear before he is sealed up in a rented crypt. He is the younger brother of one of our boys; he died from internal bleeding last Saturday because his father decided to “teach him a lesson in respect.” The police are now looking for the man, and I wish them good luck.

There have been four deaths since I returned: apart from the above, a one month-old infant, the child of a former resident, who died suddenly and with no diagnosis; the mother of our Secondary School Assistant Director; and the brother of another one of the older boys, who will be buried later this week. The mother had been sick for some time but the infant and brother's passings were wholly unexpected and completely devastating.

There will be no inquiries, no autopsies. Those require resources that Haiti does not have.

I went to the sixteen year-old's home and saw his mother. I told her I was saddened by her loss and she hugged me. She offered me a soft drink that she cannot afford.

I will be praying for her and the others. Join me, please.

Celebrating 6th Grade Success!

The exam results are in and our Espwa 6th graders have performed among the best of all of the students in Southern Haiti. Their weeks of studying and hard work have certainly paid off and we are so proud of each of them.

With a 95% success rate, almost all of our students will move on to their next year of schooling this fall. Congrats to all!

Off to the USA!

Today we said bon voyage to two of our Espwa veterans, Rose and Patrick, who will traveling to Massachusetts for four weeks as part of a private school's summer program for international students. For the first week, Rose and Patrick will be participating in a home stay with friends of Espwa, Marillyn and Jill. And for the following three weeks, they will be totally immersed in college life by living in a dorm on campus. 

Alongside students from all over the world, Rose and Patrick will get a taste of what the college experience is like in the United States. They will perfect their English, learn more about the college application process, participate in extra curricular clubs on campus, go on field trips, and get a sense of what higher education classes are like. We hope this experience will get them excited and prepared for a full-time university one day. We are so very proud of Rose and Patrick, who boarded the airplane this morning sporting Espwa t-shirts and hats. We know they will learn a lot, and represent Espwa well! 

Bon Fete, Adelene!

This week we celebrated Adelene's birthday! Adelene is the assistant cook and house keeper at the Espwa Guest House who always seems to have a smile on her face. We love to hear her laughing and enjoying her time cooking with Sonya in the kitchen each day. We so appreciate everything she does and her birthday was a wonderful time to be reminded of how grateful we are for her.

This year, Jane, Patsy and the kids worked hard to help Adelene with dishes and even made her a lemon cake with chocolate frosting for her birthday. We had such fun singing to her and eating cake together.

Bon Fete, Adelene!

Computer Classes

Amos, our archivist, and Wilbert, the director of the boy's village, have started teaching a small group of older kids some basic computer skills- yet another fun activity for summer days at Espwa! The students are learning how to use Microsoft Word, Google, as well as basic functions like creating desktop folders. These skills are invaluable to any student who dreams of going to college one day. The students are excited and anxious to learn more in the coming weeks!

M & M

This weekend Dr. Margie and her husband, Mike, came to visit us at Espwa for a short preliminary visit. Even during the few days they were here Margie was able to see some patients from the community and from Espwa. The clinic was so grateful to have her here on a day when our resident doctor does not usually come in. In the coming months, Margie will help us to better organize our clinic and organize even more medical groups to come to Espwa.

Mike, an environmental engineer was able to get a sense of our use of water at Espwa and we're looking forward to working with him in the future to make more efficient use of our resources.

Thanks again Margie and Mike for your visit! We are looking forward to working with you in the future!

Homecoming

On Thursday, Father Marc returned to Espwa after two months visiting and fundraising around the United States. He was greeted by big hugs from all. Espwa was not the same while he was away- we are happy to see him rocking in his rocking chair again!