Our Journey to Haiti - Day 7 at MN and Return to Miami

Thursday, August 5th – Our Last Day at MN!
I woke up early to spend few extra minutes enjoying my morning routine – two cups of coffee with milk that’s fast becoming my favorite, and catch up on writing on my MAC.

Morning Coffee and Writing

We arrived at MN around 8 a. m. today. Just like other days, there are lot of mothers and children waiting to be seen. One of our consulting rooms is full of beds on the floor, where moms, who have given birth last night, are resting. Our post-partum beds are full as well. By late afternoon, some mothers were given the OK to leave and the consulting room was used again for its original purposes. Our staff is incredibly flexible and adept at accommodating changing needs and priorities.

Newborn at MN

Because Internet access at our lodgings has been spotty, we took few minutes to check emails to make sure all is well at our KC offices. It was good to find encouraging comments and support from MN friends on our blog – Thank You All. Lack of connectivity coupled with our time spent on tasks we came here to do, means that we can’t always email our supporters back home timely or upload pictures from our travel. However, out of sight is not out of mind – and we are grateful for your love and support and it makes our work here possible!

Patient In-take at MN

We got ready to finish our remaining tasks at MN. I took some time to take few more pictures of colleagues hard at work and of mothers and children. Our first interview of the day was with our Community Health Coordinator, Louis (who is a real charmer!). He happily shared how the community health program works and how he and the promoters plan strategies and tweak their approach to their educational and awareness work per the community needs.

Louis is Popular with Kids During Home Visits

Like his colleagues, Louis is passionate and committed to this community. He is knowledgeable and we had experienced his deep connection to the families MN serves and the mutual affection during our travels within MN’s zone of service yesterday.

Louis with his Trusted Bike

Heather and Anu with Ms. Edeline

Next, we talked with Ms. Edeline, a nurse auxiliaire. She is a quiet woman of profound common sense! She understood and underscored the importance of education, especially when it comes to family planning, as well as about prenatal care. According to Edeline, education is critical in making sure that women understand the importance of skilled birth attendant before delivering a healthy baby.

We went and helped Robin take inventory of medicine and supplies that had arrived a day before, in the depot and inside the big (and VERY VERY HOT) storage container. Another hot and humid day here!

Patient Receiving Treatment at MN

As Heather and Robin wrapped up another meeting over administrative details with Rosemond, MN’s Administrator, I got to watch the patient in-take process, nurses administering treatment to women and children, and made conversations with several MN staff over what a typical weekend looks like for them, away from MN.

I learned that weekends are spent on family and friends, church activities, swimming with kids, going to the market in nearby communities – in other words, very much like our weekends – stateside!

I also got a chance to talk with Rosemond for few minutes. Rosemond and a few other MN staff speak pretty decent English. I learned that Rosemond has a college degree in Public Administration and his love for both God and MN is unparalleled in its intensity! He loves to talk and is quite philosophical in his approach to life and work.

One sentiment that we heard over and over again from all our colleagues (as well as other people we met during our stay) was the responsibility that comes with addressing the lack of access to medical care for their (Haitian) communities. This means that Haitians (MN staff and people in our community) now feel a responsibility to take charge of their own affairs and work alongside each other, to ensure that our model of care is successful and that other communities learn from them.

Heather and I smiled in unison because this gives credence to the fact that our founders’ guiding principle of “indigenous management” is working wonders and it is working beautifully. Thank you Betsy and Stan from the entire MN team for your vision and inspiration! They miss you both and send their love!

L-R: Kenso,Heather, Anu (front), and Rosemond

We would be remiss if we don’t give our sincere thanks to Robin, Rosemond, Odine and Kenso (a bright young man and a recent graduate from BTI with business management degree), for sharing the small office space that they all use for their work everyday. I am sure it was not easy to be constantly interrupted by us – installing software and hardware, hijacking their chairs and workspace with our laptops and bags, and interviewing some of the staff inside the cool confines of this small office. We noticed how politely Kenso (who is a recent hire at MN for database and admin work), excused himself when we got deep into IT and administrative talks! Without complaint, he would simply move to the small space near the pharmacy and continue his work with just as much attention and seriousness. We noticed Kenso! And we thank you for your good nature and great work at MN!

How Adorable Is She?

We walked around and said our goodbyes (very hard to do) to our colleagues. I took in the beautiful nature around MN one more time and said goodbye to Marcelin, our guard and gardener. It was hard not to cry as we bade farewell to the patients waiting inside. We craned our necks to get one last look at our colleagues before the ambulance took us out the MN gate one last time.

On the drive home, Robin tried to lighten the mood with her observations and jokes. We sang songs with the staff (getting a ride back home) including the national anthems of Haiti and the United States. Back at our lodgings, Carmen and Evelyn were hard at work for what is to be our last dinner prepared by them. The kitchen and our room (adjacent to the kitchen) smelled fantastic and we could not wait to eat.

We had invited Robin to dine with us and we all enjoyed some Prestige beer, rice mixed with beans, plantains, spiced potatoes, carrots and onions, salad of tomatoes and cucumbers, and flavorful Haitian meatballs with another one of Carmen’s great tasting sauces. The meal was fit for the royalty and we felt incredibly grateful and humbled by this amazing hospitality. With Robin’s help,
Carmen gave us one of the recipes for a sauce. This is for you Chef Michael!

Delicious Dinner at our Lodgings

We Finally Took a Picture of US at MN!

Quote of the Day: “Education is important! Women who don’t have it give birth at home… and they don’t make it.” Ms. Edeline, MN’s Nurse Auxiliaire.

Friday, August 6th - The return to Miami

We woke up at 4:30 am – strangely, the rooster decided to sleep in today! Another amazing thing… we had no electricity trouble overnight or in the am as we got ready and did last minute packing. We enjoyed our last cup of coffee in the small dining area and I stole few moments to walk in the beautiful morning light and take some pictures of Hope for Haiti facility. The nature around this place keeps it fairly quiet – even though the noisy National Highway is right outside the gate. I looked around for our noisy friend the Rooster so I can capture him on the video, but alas, he decided that goodbyes were just not his scene!

Where We Stayed

 After the short drive to the Les Cayes (locals pronounce it Au Cayes) airport, we boarded a smaller Tortugair plane than on the way in, and took off for Port-au-Prince. It was hard saying goodbye to Robin! The morning flights are beautiful, and the landscape was just as breathtaking as our trip in. Our hearts seemed a little heavier, though, as leaving and saying goodbye is difficult. We took courage in the thought that just like the resilient and beautiful landscape of Haiti, its people are resolute and beautiful.

Mountains and Water - Haiti from the Air

View from the Air is Simply Breathtaking!

         

As we got close to Port-au-Prince, we observed many tent cities…

 Zo called out to us as we walked the tarmac to the domestic airport building – it was reassuring to know we would soon be in his good hands. Just like when we came out of the international airport, we were bombarded by drivers offering their services the minute we came in through the door at the domestic terminal. We simply said “No thank you.” A Tortugair employee offered to help us find our bags. Heather noticed his last name was the same as Zo’s. When she mentioned Zo’s name, Rolex (yes, he explained, just like the watch), he claimed to be his cousin. (Is the world really that small?!) Once in Zo’s car, Zo said he knew that “troublemaker!” who often claimed to be related to Zo. (No relation.)

During the quick drive to international airport, Zo told us demonstrations were happening in downtown PaP to oust President Preval. The lines outside the terminal were frighteningly long, but after a quick hug goodbye, Zo somehow placed us and our luggage in the hands of three guys who escorted us to the front of the line and right up to security. The area was packed and chaotic. We struggled to stay together, and a nice gentleman reassured Heather “he had our backs.” He told Heather we had arrived just in time, he had heard that the expats had closed their offices and operations because of the demonstrations downtown.

Wait was not so bad to get to the ticketing and to check our bags – immigration was painless. Security was fairly simple too – no questions asked, everything through. Of course, we didn’t have any souvenirs! We simply had no time. Once inside, it took us a while to figure out that we were feeling comfortable because – here’s the shocker – there was AIR-CONDITIONING! We had so gotten used to the heat that it took our tired brains a while to figure out that we were no longer sweating. We got comfortable and set up camp for the five hour wait for our flight.

Our New Friend  

Once in the waiting lounge we reconnected (so OK, it IS a small world!) with the Tortugair pilot who flew us into Les Cayes. He was waiting to catch a flight back to Brooklyn. We chatted about American Airlines’ monopoly in the Caribbean, Haitian affairs, politics, and life in general. He has been flying in Haiti for the past year and a half and was stressed. He seemed happy to be going home. While in Cayes and PaP, we got to hear some similar POVs… mostly expressing concern that the progress isn’t moving fast enough. He was curious about our work and asked us many questions. He congratulated us for doing the hard work… the work that builds the community. He wasn’t critical of aid and recovery NGOs but thought there were more NGOs like MN needed.

Later we made friends with two young boys sitting next to us. Sebastian, 9, was crying because he did not want to leave Haiti to go back to Brooklyn. His older brother Alexander was trying to comfort him. After we offered gum, he cheered up and began talking about the earthquake (he was in a house in Leogane with their father, while his brother was in NY with their mother.) Alexander explained that it was an agonizing four days of waiting before they could make contact with their father to confirm everyone was alive. Alexander kept saying “34 seconds. That’s all it took. 34 seconds to kill so many people.”

The overwhelming reality of the earthquake and its consequences are not going to go away anytime soon! We noticed a lot of people (Haitians especially), seemingly lost in thoughts, staring into space, and many seem sad and tired… we wondered about the psychological impact and what, if anything, was done to help them restore strength and faith. For our part, we smiled and talked with as many people as we could, especially women and children at the airport. Again, our goofiness and sense of humor kept us sane and made people around us laugh. We are glad to be of service!!

Back in Miami, Heather and I relaxed with some pizza (yes, our guilty pleasure!) and a glass of wine. Our hygiene habits were hard to break… will be hard to break. We continue to use the alcohol wipes instead of tap water! We had to re-learn about the water pressure in the shower and using hot water!!

While we were dinning, we fell into easy conversation with our bartender Jean Baptiste. Ironically, he is a native of Haiti, and has been living and working in Miami the last 17 years. His love for his country was evident though and he was proud of his fellow Haitians and their resilience in the face of so many natural disasters and calamities. He grew up in Port-au-Prince and regaled us with stories of his youth – how beautiful the city was! I believe he mentioned it used to be called the “Paris of the Caribbean!” He described the incredible music scene in downtown PaP, the food, the inexpensive and free lifestyle, and there was a gleam in his eyes that told us untold tales! He was sad to see the destruction post earthquake but he also knew that Haiti WILL rebuild.

We are tired, exhausted, and feel strange… that feeling is hard to shake, but this trip has given us so much hope, determination, and assurance - that we will be back to see our friends and families back in Haiti. It gives us strength to continue to do our part here, at our home, in the USA.

Quote of the Day: “People of Haiti will not have it any other way… it will be rebuilt.” Jean Baptiste in Miami. Heather and I agree wholeheartedly.

Here are few more pictures from our time at MN:

Heather Pointing Out MN Zone of Service

Heather with a Mom at MN

With MN Community Health Promoter Mr. Enel

Robin doing Inventory at MN Depot

Mom and Babies - This is Why We Do What We Do!