HOW HAITI FOUND SHONTELLE
So there was this guy (we’ll call him Josh White) and we worked at the same backpacking camps during our college summer breaks. Fast forward several years later to Facebook. This guy posted these incredible pictures from his medical trips to Haiti so I started asking questions and he said “Hey, you should come with.” At that time there was very little information about the trips online so it seemed a little sketchy but I told my wonderful friend (we’ll call her Jana Zimmerman) about this great unknown. I said “Come with!” and we both took a leap of faith.
Fast forward six months and there Jana and I were, along with 17 other “blans”, staying in the home of a wonderful Haitian family in the mountains of L’Asile and ready to work triage in a tiny rural village. I’ll never forget the smiles of the children, the beauty of the mountains, and my first home visit to an elderly woman’s home.
People with seemingly little and who had endured many hardships were kind, generous and gracious with us. CHI no longer runs clinics in L’Asile because on that trip we learned that Haitian nurses were now visiting the village weekly to provide care. I knew the news was somewhat bittersweet for longtime volunteers who had established relationships there, knowing they would likely never return to a community they loved, but it was really a story of success for that small village.
The work was not done in Haiti and CHI quickly connected with other rural communities in need of healthcare. Since my first trip, CHI has become its own non-profit organization and has grown in countless exciting ways. I love to return to Haiti every year. I love Haiti. The home visits, the strength and kindness of the Haitian people, the dear friends I’ve made with CHI volunteers and staff – it truly feeds my soul and offers me different perspectives in my own life, often in unexpected ways. I am infinitely grateful for CHI.
I love to tell others about Haiti and if they seem interested I say “Come with!”
Fast forward six months and there Jana and I were, along with 17 other “blans”, staying in the home of a wonderful Haitian family in the mountains of L’Asile and ready to work triage in a tiny rural village. I’ll never forget the smiles of the children, the beauty of the mountains, and my first home visit to an elderly woman’s home.
People with seemingly little and who had endured many hardships were kind, generous and gracious with us. CHI no longer runs clinics in L’Asile because on that trip we learned that Haitian nurses were now visiting the village weekly to provide care. I knew the news was somewhat bittersweet for longtime volunteers who had established relationships there, knowing they would likely never return to a community they loved, but it was really a story of success for that small village.
The work was not done in Haiti and CHI quickly connected with other rural communities in need of healthcare. Since my first trip, CHI has become its own non-profit organization and has grown in countless exciting ways. I love to return to Haiti every year. I love Haiti. The home visits, the strength and kindness of the Haitian people, the dear friends I’ve made with CHI volunteers and staff – it truly feeds my soul and offers me different perspectives in my own life, often in unexpected ways. I am infinitely grateful for CHI.
I love to tell others about Haiti and if they seem interested I say “Come with!”