It is hard to believe that I have been here for one year. Part of me feels like I just got here, part of me feels like I have been here forever. It is still hard to explain to those who don't know me very well how comfortable I feel living here...I will just say that this is where I am supposed to be.
What has happened over the last year? Lots.
First of all, I have made many great friends...friends that are like me, from America, living and working here in Gonaives. And friends that have been here all their lives.
Pursuit of Happiness English Institute. This was not something that I was planning on at all, but I think it is a very important piece of my plans for the future. We are in our second session of English as a second language classes. We have a model for a sustainable school. We have plans for expanding. I think that this school is important for my plans for the future because of the relationships that are being created between Chris and I and our students.
New and old hobbies! I am continuing my hobby of gardening with the added benefit that I don't have to sit and wait through a winter every year...it all just keeps growing. I have a new hobby of bee keeping, it is interesting to watch them work. I am continuing my hobby of carpentry...my last project was to help and teach Amos while building some furniture for his living room.
Slowly learning more about the language and the culture. I enjoy spending time with my Haitian friends, some of whom speak very little English. I think that I am learning just as much as I am teaching.
What are some of the plans for the future?
I am planning on building a school of my own. It will be a satellite location for some English classes with Pursuit of Happiness and I will teach trades there as well. My sister is setting up the legal framework in the United States and I will be doing the work on the ground here in Haiti. I am looking for some land in or near Gonaives to build my campus. I would like to buy enough land to be able to expand in the future...but I intend to start off pretty small.
The first thing that I will teach at my school after English will be carpentry. The building will have to be big enough for a workshop and I will need to get some tools. I would like to teach the students how to use the tools that we all take for granted - table saw, router, planer, jig saw, stuff like that. I would also like to be able to offer "Shop time" to my students to build things for themselves or for sale. With every trade that I teach, I will also put an emphasis on business and teach some fundamentals of running a small business.
After carpentry, I could teach plumbing, electrical, welding, gardening, etc. I would also search out local teachers to be partners with me. I currently know two ladies that teach small groups from their homes - a culinary instructor and a seamstress instructor...they both would love to have the ability to teach more students...they are currently limited by the size of their houses. I would encourage friends of mine from the states to come and teach as well. Many people I know are successful in their business because of the love that they have for their trade. Those are the people that I would like to have come and visit. Stay for two weeks or two months and share their knowledge!.
Right away, I would have a room for me to live in at my school. As the school grows, I would add guest rooms for those visiting from the US and apartments for some of my local teachers if they would like. My dream is to have a community that is focused on education and business.
So that is where I am today! The name of my new organization is "Tools for Success" We have set it up as a corporation and our not for profit status is pending. We have a few more items to work through - like applying for resident status - but we should be able to start fundraising for this project soon.
I appreciate all of the support that has sustained me for this last year. I couldn't do any of this without your financial support and more importantly, your prayers. It is an amazing thing to be able to see God work through those around you.
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