By REBECCA HUVAL (Miami Herald) – Last year, Ashley-Jo Villard, 19, originally from Port-au-Prince, and her Miami Dade Honors College classmate, Natalia Valbuena, 20, had promised the townspeople of Trou Caiman — population 22,000 — that they would build a new school for 100 students.
But after the earthquake hit, their U.S. donors redirected money toward first-aid relief efforts, and Trou Caiman residents feared the college students would abandon their earthquake-ravaged town some 45 minutes northeast of the capital, Villard said.
“I’m not going to promise something and not deliver on that,” she said.
Using their own money, Villard, a biology major who lives in Kendall, and Valbuena, a psychology major from Key Biscayne, are flying to Trou Caiman on Monday to draft school construction plans and deliver supplies to 100 children.
Within a week, they hope to visit with Haitian donors, recruit Trou Caiman locals to build the estimated $200,000 project and host a picnic to spread the word.
They hope to finish the school by August 2011, and will monitor the 130,680-square-foot building’s construction with the help of Villard’s father Max Villard, 47, an electrical engineer who lives in Port-au-Prince and lost the sewing factory he owned in the earthquake.
The school, Secours D’en Haut, exists, but the earthquake and several hurricanes before it eviscerated the building and classes are being held in the outdoor heat.
In 2008, they learned of the school’s problems when Villard and his daughter met the school director, Pastor Apolleon Jean Volcy, on a hunting trip. Volcy begged them for help. “What I saw was heartbreaking,” Max Villard said. “We’re talking about blackboards hanging under the trees and two kids sitting on a seat, taking turns standing.”
Ashley-Jo Villard wanted to help. She shared her project with Valbuena, and together, they drafted a grant proposal this winter and in April attended the Clinton Global Initiative University, a community-service conference hosted by former President Bill Clinton at the University of Miami.
The earthquake only spurred them on more, they said. “I have a lot of friends who lost their businesses and everything,” Villard said. Her father lost his job, and she feels fortunate to be continuing her U.S. education. “It’s important I take it back home and use it for the benefit of the people.”
Valbuena wants to use the project to convince her classmates to care about international issues, she said. But first, they both have to convince the people of Trou Caiman that two college students can deliver on a promise.
“Once they see our faces, they’ll know we’re serious,” Valbuena said.
Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/09/1767292/miami-dade-college-students-pledge.html
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To whom it may concern,
A group of teachers at our church are looking to maybe get involved in a project of this kind. We have been meeting for 6 months discussing how we may be of any help in the education part of Haiti.Could you send a reply on how this would be possible or if any way we could be of help.
Sincerly
Donna Laporte