Hope Keeps Alive

Avan Tiraj, tout lotri bel. Before the drawing, the lottery is always nice.

Here he stands, the final link in a long chain of good intentions.

East of the fundraisers and website donations, south of the Washington meetings and black tie events and beyond the calls of tap-taps and the tire tracks of UN troop transport vehicles, stands a boy, leaning against a wall.

Because of the mud we had to abandon our dirtbike a few hours outside of town. After the second day of walking through the countryside visiting families with Mystal, a Case Manager for Chemen Lavi Miyo (CLM, Fonkoze's program for the ultra-poor), I began to wonder what we were even doing. We weren't waving any magic wand and changing lives. We weren't building houses, bringing food or delivering new clothing. We were just sitting, talking, and moving on.

The final day in the province outside Boukan Kare, I was taking photos of the boy above when Mystal yelled my name. I turned to see him sitting with a woman and her children. She was speaking in a slur of creole. He translated for me, "She say she lost all her business to disease. Fonkoze gave her 2 goats, and now she has none. She also lost her crops in the storm. She has 6 kids. But she says that Fonkoze brings her hope. She says, 'Hope keeps alive.'"

The woman wasn't crying, she didn't even look sad. Sitting against a tree, a lifetime away from a hospital, a phone, a police station or a paved road, she looked directly at me with an unshaken stare of dignified sincerity.

Fonkoze Santa Barbara

The Fonkoze group in Santa Barbara, headed by Maureen Earls, is doing an amazing job of raising funds for women in Haiti. I first learned about Fonkoze by reading an article written in the Santa Barbara Indpendent. The article is a great resource for learning more about the organization. The people of Fonkoze SB are some of the kindest I have met, and their hard work is truly making a difference.

Marty Jenkins is a part of Fonkoze SB and he is one of the most knowledgeable people I have met with regards to Microlending. He has spent the summer abroad visiting and working with Microfinance Institutions. His blog is also a great resource for learning more about MFIs.

For information on Fonkoze SB, or to get involved, contact:

Maureen Earls
mcearls@cox.net

For information on fonkoze visit their website:

www.fonkoze.org

Komanze > Begin

A spirited echo of laughter subtly navigates the MIA terminal, a rare pairing amidst the usual savor of Cuban pastries and Guatemalan coffee grinds. The Miami morning air already on the rise, alive with an eager humidity that seems to have silently escaped from the half empty bags of Antiguan coffee beans.

One wakes up to the lowering of landing gear as its shudder spreads throughout the plane like the splinters of a cracked windshield. Stepping out of the 747, the swirl of greetings, the rush of hot air and the vibrant urban landscape offer a firm embrace laced with a raw emotion that is seemingly inappropriate for a first encounter.

Minutes later, while walking through Port-au-Prince trying to chase the breeze as it navigates through the colorful chaos, I notice a leaf dancing around its branch in a whimsical struggle. Suddenly the leaf sits still, suspended in victory, before falling in freedom.

Haiti.