Published Fri, Mar 27, 20.
Written by Rebecca Honorat.
A message from the Board of Directors
Before we delve into our update, we want to take a moment to acknowledge the uncertainty we are all feeling amidst COVID-19 and encourage everyone to continue to do their part to fight the virus. We, as individuals & as a board, are incredibly grateful to those that are working tirelessly to keep our society afloat, and to those that are doing their part to flatten the curve by staying home.
We hope this newsletter will give you a mental break from focusing on the troubles of today, and give you a tangible opportunity to increase hope for families in Haiti that are just beginning their own battle with COVID-19.
As we mentioned in an email a few weeks ago, we received our charitable status and it is retroactive to January 1, 2020. This is a huge milestone for us and we appreciate that so many of you have been celebrating with us. Thank you for all of the responses, likes, comments & shares! This charitable status will allow us to give tax receipts for all donations received in 2020, even those donations that were received before we were notified by the CRA.
We are immediately starting with some aspects of our ministry, and we will be ramping up to start some in September 2020.
Most of you are already very familiar with Renel & Rebecca Honorat (and if you're not, you should read Our Beginning). Rebecca is now our full time Executive Director and will be working closely with the Board of Directors in Canada and will be overseeing all aspects of operations in Haiti. Renel will also have a loud voice in our organization (as he is well known to have when speaking Kreyol), but will do so in an informal way at this point. Rebecca will be responsible for raising funds for her salary and we would be grateful to all who choose to support Alongside in this way.
We have also hired two part time staff in Haiti and we are honoured to introduce them to you below.
The next few months will be full of uncertainty and despair all over the world, including Haiti, but we can be joyful in knowing that Alongside is now in a position to begin operations and can immediately start offering struggling families in Haiti hope for tomorrow.
Luckner & Garry know first hand the ripple effect education can have... both for the student and for the student's family.
They both graduated from High School, received scholarships to go to College, and went on to earn College Diplomas. Shortly after graduation they found part-time jobs in their area of study and immediately began helping their families in a variety of ways. They share our passion to come alongside families, and they are eager to use their skills to help other students reach their potential.
Luckner & Garry are thrilled to be joining the Alongside's team, and we can already see they have become empowered through their involvement in planning our programs.
You will be hearing more about Luckner & Garry's individual stories in the coming months but for now we are pleased to introduce them to you as our part-time Program Administrators in Haiti!
Renel & Rebecca are excited to have these two officially on Team Haiti and look forward to drawing on their unique skillsets and perspectives.
Elementary & Secondary Sponsorships
Our passion is to come alongside families to strengthen them and empower them to build their capacity in sustaining ways. We recognize that change takes time and too often a child's education is cut short when the family has minimum resources.
When Haiti gets through this COVID-19 pandemic, many families will not have the ability to send their children to school, and inevitably, a temporary break will become a permanent break for too many children.
Please help us give families hope by letting them know that we will be standing alongside them when it is time for schools to reopen, and together let's give them comfort in knowing that their children will be among those who will be able to return to school.
There are a few students already posted on our Sponsorship Page and we will be adding more in the coming months.
We anticipate that schools in Haiti will reopen in September 2020 and we would like to start sponsoring students now so that we can advise families and provide them with hope during this difficult time. Any funds received in the sponsorship funds before schools reopen will be used to enrol additional students that haven't been sponsored yet. If schools are not able to reopen in September then we will look at ways that we can provide assistance to the students while at home.
The more students we can get to complete High School, the more students we will be able to assist though our Post Secondary Scholarship Program.
Post Secondary Scholarships
Renel & Rebecca have seen the impact post-secondary education has had on youth in Haiti and they believe that our Scholarship Program is where we can have the biggest ripple effect on a family. Very few families have the resources for, nor see the value in, investing in post-secondary education for their children.
Help us come alongside a family by helping their child to pursue post-secondary education and a career that will empower them to break the cycle of poverty in their family.
Jean Kervens is hoping to start University in September, and we will be posting other scholarship applicants in the coming months.
Small Business Loans
Right now in Canada, we are constantly talking about which businesses are essential and how the government can support them so they can remain afloat and continue to provide essential services. Haiti currently has 9 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and they are already being told to stay at home indefinitely. Businesses are closing and the Haitian government doesn't have any assistance to offer them. This is going to have a devastating ripple effect in communities. Most people can only afford to purchase food a day or two in advance, and don't have transportation, so they rely on local businesses for essential supplies.
Our Small Business Loan Program will offer interest free loans to businesses that are struggling, or to new businesses that can provide an essential service in this uncertain time. A great example is a loan to purchase a motorcycle that can be used as a tap-tap (taxi) service. With transportation being limited and people needing to stay at home, a tap-tap driver will be able to transport essential goods... think of them as the truck drivers in Canada that are continuing to deliver food to grocery stores so our food chain remains secure, or as the couriers that continue to deliver products directly to homes. A motorcycle can be purchased in Haiti for $1000 US and a driver can repay that loan over 12-15 months.
Businesses that would like to borrow money will complete an application and have an interview with a Program Administrator in Haiti. Applications and interview notes will be forwarded to Alongside's Board of Directors for approval.
For confidentiality reasons we will not be posting business loan applicants on our website (as we do with the sponsorship program). Donations made to the Small Business Program will be put into a pool and given out to approved applicants. Donors to the program will receive updates on a variety of loans, not be assigned to one particular business.
This is a great opportunity for us to impact families, and something that is desperately needed right now!
Rebecca's Ramblings
Renel & I started on the journey to create Alongside Families in Haiti just over a year ago, when the opportunity for me to facilitate post-secondary scholarships came to a halt. Seeing students transition into adulthood in a way that allows them to be empowered and contribute to their community is a huge passion for us, and finding a new way to do that was our driving force. That singular reason quickly multiplied and we are incredibly grateful for all the people that have showered us with wise counsel, peppered us with probing questions and gently nudged us to step farther out in faith. The journey we are about to embark upon is so much more than what we originally set out to create, and we are so blessed to be a part of it.
I know there will be logistical challenges ahead, especially in this season of uncertainty, but we are continuing along the path and we are joyfully ready to serve all that cross in front of us... as long as they remain 6 feet away ;)
If you are in a position to help us financially, we would appreciate donations to the general fund to help cover the startup costs we incurred. This will allow us to hit the ground running and focus on our programs.
We are now ready to start giving business loans and sponsoring students so please have a look through the website (since most of you are at home browsing the net more than usual these days!) and see how you can get involved. We will be adding more students soon.
Families in Haiti desperately need a glimmer of hope, now more than ever, and we are making a conscious decision to look past the dismay of today, and anticipate the beauty that will arise from the chaos. We hope you will make this decision with us...
