Guests of the Irish in Haiti

I wasn't sure what to expect my first night in Haiti even though Habitat for Humanity provided volunteers with information about the camp. We were told we would be in multi-person tents (separated by gender), would not have long periods of electricity ("bring a flashlight"), would be using basic toilets (I envisioned pit or compost toilets) and would clean ourselves with "bucket showers."  What I saw when I arrived was much better than anticipated. I am very grateful to the Irish for this!

A group called Haven served as our host in Haiti. Haven is an Irish organization founded in 2008 "working to build sustainable communities, through the provision of housing and emergency relief by implementing community development programs in Haiti." I am expecting to support this organization because I saw first hand how completely well-organized, fiscally responsible and caring they are.  They managed to put together a camp for over 400 people that ran like clockwork.

When I walked into the camp I saw generators that were cooling cargo containers presumably filled with food. I saw tents packed tightly together as far as I could see. I also saw an enormous dining tent complete with doors. "And what's that?" I thought. "That's condensation on the doors of the dining tent! Oh my gosh! IT'S AIR CONDITIONED!!!" I certainly was not expecting that.

Prior to getting off the buses from the airport, we were given tent numbers. After I regrouped from the thrill of seeing the air conditioned dining hall, I began my search for tent #38.

At one point in the evening we were later told - in a very succinct and matter-of-fact way - that a few weeks prior to our arrival there were "very serious security concerns."  That certainly explained the chain link fence topped with razor wire and the Haitian guards armed with rifles.  But it also explained the lights and electricity.  Because of these security concerns, what you and I would call street lights were installed throughout the camp (and remained on all night). The bonus for the volunteers was that, since there was 24-hour electricity from generators,we all had fans in our tents.  This was tremendously helpful on stifling nights that didn't cool down until around 10 or 11 p.m.  (Thank you Haven!)

The light was also helpful when doing the approximately minute walk to the restrooms. The restrooms were far from the pit or compost toilets I envisioned.  The Haven staff arranged for about a dozen huge tanks of water (that were apparently filled throughout the week) and we had real toilets! This water and PVC pipes also meant we had real showers. Granted, the water pressure was a little more than a trickle and the water was cold.  However - between the tents with screened windows, the restroom facilities, and the showers - it wasn't lost on me that we were living better than the vast majority of Haitians. 

In spite of my pleasant surprise with the camp conditions, I had a restless night's sleep. Like the previous night's sleep in Atlanta, I attribute this to anticipation of what the first build day would be like. I had no idea it would turn out the way it did. Even the Haven staff couldn't do anything about those conditions. But I will save that for a future blog post.