By now, many of you have heard accounts of the damage done in the town of Jeremie, Haiti by Hurricane Matthew. Thankfully, all of our team members survived the storm without injury. We are slowly starting to put together a complete picture of all of the destruction. It is dire. Nearly all of Tek4Kids’ 18 Haitian staff members lost their homes. Several of our schools lost their roofs. Much of our electronic equipment was destroyed by water damage, including laptops and inverters. Fortunately, one of our team members was able to store our iPads in a safe place, so we will not have to replace them. We estimate it will cost upwards of $100,000 to replace the damaged equipment, rebuild the homes of our staff and repair the schools, while we do our best to continue to provide shelter and clean water for those we can.
Category: News
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Assessing Damage and Moving Forward in Jeremie
Tek4Kids founders Gary and Cathy Boice recently traveled to Jeremie, Haiti to assess the damage caused by Hurricane Matthew and continue making plans for our response to this disaster. Priorities included providing housing assistance for our teachers and staff, distributing purified water to the community, determining if laptops, inverters and other equipment can be salvaged and assisting our partner schools in reopening.
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Devastation in Jeremie, Haiti
On Tuesday, October 4, Hurricane Matthew made a direct hit on the coastal city of Jeremie, the town in western Haiti where our Tek4Kids staff and partner schools are located. We have been unable to make direct contact with our staff in Jeremie, but we have heard accounts of the extensive damage from other sources. Many homes are destroyed and many other buildings, such as schools and businesses, had roofs ripped off. Most crops were completely wiped out. Roads and bridges in the area have been washed away. Food supplies and clean water will be scarce and Jeremie’s citizens are very isolated from the rest of the country; a cholera outbreak is a real concern. We are anxiously waiting to hear how our Haitian team has fared through this tragedy. When we are able, we will begin the rebuilding and relief work they will so desperately need. Please stay tuned for details on how you can help support the rebuilding of Jeremie, Haiti through Tek4Kids. We thank you very much.
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Dreams Come True for Tek4Kids Volunteer
Many older folks like to exaggerate about their long treks to school when they were kids, saying they walked miles in the rain or snow to arrive at their destination. But Tek4Kids volunteer Yemi Sulaimon does not need to embellish his story of hardship. As a child growing up outside of Lagos, Nigeria, he literally walked nine miles to and from school, often without shoes.
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Bravo to Our Tek4Kids Volunteers!
Bravo is an exclamation used to express approval when someone has done something well. Certainly, our Tek4Kids volunteers meet this criteria!
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Experiencing Haiti By Kirby Knies
I have written many drafts of this article trying to find the best words to describe Haiti. As I have discovered, it is not easily described. Haiti is not just a place, but something you have to experience for yourself in order to grasp it.
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Changing One Life at a Time by Cheryl Seger
“It’s hard to change an infrastructure but changing one life at a time is possible. I saw many lives being affected through the efforts of Tek4Kids. The water systems, electricity and technical tools have and will continue to help the education system. I was privileged to work with Tek4Kids Haitian staff members, who were ambitious and willing to learn. They were very proud of their work. It warms my heart to know those small kids have purified water and a great way of learning. The kids seemed so happy. It was a “downer” when it was time to leave because it seemed like we just got started and I wanted to continue. The relationships we built during this trip will remain in my heart, from the parish group of nine to the Tek4Kids Haitian staff. This was an experience I will always treasure.” — volunteer Cheryl Seger, who traveled with a group from her parish in Southern Indiana to serve with Tek4Kids in Jeremie, Haiti
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When Can I Go Back? by Allison Schroering
I wasn’t expecting to love Jeremie, Haiti as much as I did. When we were packing up to go back to the United States, I’ll be honest – I didn’t want to leave the place that had changed my life. It was sad and difficult to say goodbye to the people there, as well as the people from the parish who traveled with me. We developed new friendships and made lots of good memories.
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A Close Encounter
On a hot, steamy day in May, Tek4Kids founder Gary Boice prepared to board a plane from Port au Prince, Haiti back to the US. As many of you know, a new Tek4Kids technology school was scheduled to open in September. On Gary’s trip back from Haiti, the goal of finding a new generator for the technology school was weighing heavily on his mind, since buying major equipment can be quite difficult in Haiti. Generators are essential components of all our Tek4Kids projects because electric power is often unreliable.
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Teaching English is a Joy for T4K Volunteer
Tek4Kids volunteer Rose Yunker has been teaching English at our new St. Francis School of Technology in Jeremie, Haiti since September. She recently shared this reflection of her time there.
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Making a Difference in Haiti
Bob Glaser, one of Tek4Kids newest volunteers, recently returned from a trip to Jeremie, Haiti where he experienced a very positive interaction with one of our students. As Bob made the 20 minute walk to our technology school, Beniel Joassaint approached him and introduced himself as one of the new students at St. Francis School of Technology. Beniel was polite and showed genuine interest in Bob and his volunteer work with Tek4Kids. When Bob asked about the new technology school, Beniel could not have been more positive, saying it was the best in Haiti! He said the classes were challenging and appropriate. Beniel also spoke highly of Rose Yunker’s English classes. Bob and his new young friend ended up walking and talking the entire way to the school. Bob later commented on this experience, “If this is an example of the young people we are educating at our school, we should be very proud . . . Jeremie will be better as a result of these students.”
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Volunteer Builds Relationships with T4K Staff in Jeremie
Eric Hoffman has been living and working with our Tek4Kids staff in Jeremie, Haiti since September and shares this account of his experience there: