Rick's Story: A Trip To Haiti

From the start life has always been a battlefield for me and my family. In Haiti my father had studied to become an engineer despite his poor upbringing and my mother had worked multiple jobs to help support the family. Life in Haiti had already been tough but after a coup d’état and an election there was finally hope that Haitians would have to live under a repressive government no longer. The new government created hope which was then solidified when Duvalier announced his candidacy, by this time he was already a well-known physician that took part in many public health campaigns. My father remembers when Duvalier was elected, with promises of rebuilding a broken country and the happiness that followed, but this did not last. Shortly after

Haiti was once the first black independent republic in the world and the richest island in the Caribbean. Today Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest countries in the world. What could have happened to Haiti in almost two hundred years of history? The country experienced repeated civil war and foreign intervention. Haiti is not isolated from the international world. Thus, it was not out of concern for ordinary Haitians that the United States intervened in Haiti. It was out of concern for profit and stability within the United States' own backyard. The purpose of this paper is to show the negative aspect that the United States had played in the government of Haiti.

The community service that changed my outlook on life is my missions trip to Haiti. When I saw how the Haitians lived day by day, I realized that my life in America is extraordinary compared to theirs. My dream is to send musical instruments to anyone who wants to play in their church.

Karly Segrave was a fifteen year old girl when Hurricane Katrina Hit. Her mother worked at St. Tammany Parish Hospital, so when it was time to evacuate she stuffed everything she could into a backpack and went on her way. Most of the employees at the hospital brought their familys with them, so space was limited. Karly slept under her mothers cubical for three weeks. “At first it was fun,” she watched movies, played games, and had tons of people to talk to. Then days turned into weeks and the hospital begun to run low on food. She began to realize that it wasn’t all fun and games.

So this boy by the age of 14, named Tim, lived in the worst neighborhood. There were murders, kidnappings, and even robberies. Whenever Tim witnessed something so tragic as of these topics I have listed above, he started to bawl. He cried and cried and cried until his mother came in with some cookies and warm milk and fed it to him like he was still her little 1 year old. Tim was never allowed to go outside. For 1, there was this gang called, “Victorians”, and whenever someone tries to cross their path, they would rob them of their money and beat the victim up. Tim had once crossed their path, and they tried to rob Tim, but 1 of the members passed out because Tim had thrown a pipe at the member’s temple, which was located on the sides of his

Growing up in Haiti has strengthen my survival instinct at an early age. With barely enough to eat, we was dying one by one. Medicine and treatment was very rare for us. Imagine dying from a simple cold due to the fact that aspirin and cough medicine was foreign to us. I recall walking around wishing for better days or looking for ways to help. And I remember being told I was coming to America. America, the place where even the most impossible dreams come true. America, where education is free and very beneficial. Regardless of how young I was, I knew with every fiber in my little body that I would try my hardest to be successful in America. Unable to speak english, school become a challenge. But to all my teachers surprise it took me less

Brief history… Haiti takes up about 1/3 of the land of the island Hispaniola, neighboring the Dominican Republic. The whole Island was once under the control of Spain in 1942 after Columbus made an appearance. In the 17th century, France colonized on part of the Island and renamed it Saint-Dominigue. It wasn’t until 1803…300 years, tens of thousands of African slaves, and one hierarchal social system later, did this chunk of land become the independent republic, Haiti. (1).

When I was ten years old I gave some families in Haiti some clothes. Yes, I know every family has a clothes, but when you live in an area with people who have less then what you have it is sad. In the summer of 2012 my family and I went Haiti. Before that my mother told me to procure any clothes or shoes that do not fit me to put it in the box. Family members in Haiti would come to be able get any kind of item for their family. Every year my family would consolidate money, clothes, shoes, or toys to bring to Haiti. It would be a 3” by 4” feet box to fit everything people needed.

Hello friends and family, I just got back from my trip to Haiti and Florida and am so excited to tell you all about my experiences in both places!

Being a member of a hard-working class and visiting Haiti, I’ve witnessed the socio-economic conditions that plague my community such as health shortfalls that could’ve been eradicated with education and ingenuity. Born to a Haitian immigrant, in a single parent home, I’ve learned to appreciate the structure and close-knit community that has shaped my outlook on life and define the person I am. In Haiti, every immediate neighborhood, every adult became your parent and transferred into every aspect of my life. This ideology derives from Haiti’s national saying “L’Union Fait La Force”, which means “Unity Makes Strength”. You could not pass a village or neighborhood in Haiti without a woman -- no matter the age -- carrying out food and a bucket

59 percent of Haitian live in poverty and do not have their basic necessities. The Giver is a novel that was read as a class and also the article "Haiti in Crisis". In The Giver the people live in a utopia and have a perfect and happy life. The people who live in The Giver's community have a complicated free life and do not have to deal with the world problems. In the article "Haiti in Crisis" by Bryan Brown and Patricia Smith it explains how Haiti is a very unfavorable place and they are trying to rebuild from the horrific things that has happened in their past.

Shortly before my recent mission trip to Haiti, I decided to take the chance and sign up for a mission trip for Ecuador in June 2016. As I was trying to convince my parents to sign off on the trip, their one concern was the funds that I would need. I continuously told them that if it is God's will, He will provide. Now, a short three months after they agreed to let me go, I am happy to say that I have more than half of the funds needed to go. With that being said, I am still short on money for the actual trip which includes a place to stay, my plane ticket, meals, some construction tools and other expenses while on the trip. Although this stuff is mostly paid for at this point, their are other expenses that I need covered. With this being said,

The world will continue to throw everything it has at us, but together as humans we must push on. We have learned that in order to survive we have to be courageous and never give up. This spirit is in all humans but we see most when we are tested by our world. Through technology life has becomes a lot easier, but the world is always there to pry out of us what it truly means to live. Just because to it’s easy now doesn’t mean it will always be like this. There will come a time when our perseverance is tested, and as humans we can not stay knocked down. In conclusion, Pitts’s article shows everyone that despite the world being cruel, anyone can make the choice to push on through the storm. The Haitian people set great examples for the rest of us. They have shown over and over that just because life challenges us, doesn’t mean that we have to give in. The world is very cruel and if you let it, it will knock you down and keep you down permanently. As humans we have the courage to survive through anything the world could throw at

Haiti has long been known for its major export of Haitian migrants in search of a better way of life. It is an exodus that goes back several decades, however with recent times the numbers have increased dramatically. In fact, that numbers of Haitians fleeing Haiti in the early 1990's far exceeds the numbers recorded in earlier years. Between 1972- 1979, some 8,000- 10,000 Haitians arrived in the United States. Compare this number with the 14,443 Haitians interdicted between September 30, 1991 - January 1, 1992. By early 1994, this number totaled over 41,000 (Report on the Situation of Human Rights in Haiti, 1994). Economic deprivation has always been the predominant influence for the migrating of Haitians, yet in the

This story is about couple that fell in love. The boy had to leave Haiti because he is against the government and he had a radio show that influenced the people against the government. So, he was wanted by the police and he had to leave Port au Prince in a boat to Miami.The boy and his girlfriend tell their own sad stories through a series of letters. Since, they cannot mail these letters to each other, they are writing to release their frustration, nostalgic and loneliness because they are far away from one another.