WHY HAITI?

I was asked recently, why Haiti? This was my response:

Why Haiti? Why not Haiti? For me to describe why I would be willing to do this, I can only say that you will only know why if you ever get the chance for the most precious thing that can ever happen to you does; for a child to know that they are the most important thing in the world to you.

           

Every one of my children is worth everything and more. And I will not stop until they are 

all home and safe and healthy and happy and on a path to live their fullest lives.

           

Come smell the streets here. Come try to bathe and clean yourself in water that might 

break a microscope. Look into the eyes of people who outwardly look as broken as a 

human can possibly be by life and yet gracefully and joyfully hold hope in their hearts 

that their children will have a better life because of their sacrifices.

           

Life in Haiti can't be simply summed up by telling you it's "hard". That doesn't even 

scratch the surface. It is unjust. It is imbalanced. It is unfair. Based on the longitude and 

the latitude of our births, any one of us born into what we consider to be the struggle of 

our first world lives could have been born into the struggle that is a Haitian life.

           

We've made the choice to open our hearts and welcome the struggle. We knew going into 

this that it would be that - a struggle. But we also knew that there are 300,000 children 

in Haiti who need families. Many of them don't eat. If they eat, it's often mud made into a 

small round "cake". Many will never be educated. And they will likely die from ailments 

that basic healthcare would take care of. And turning our heads and looking the other 

way while we sip another latte or buy another outfit or happily splurge on a pair of shoes 

while a child walks in garbage with no shoes and tries to pull their next meal from a heap 

of cast off and rotten food is a bit too much for us to stomach. My children have a 

chance because we will give them the doors and let them open them and discover what 

their future holds. And it won't be mud cakes.

           

These decisions are not for just anyone. But they have been the absolute right decisions 

for us.

           

There are two kinds of people who come to Haiti. Those who are disgusted by what they 

see and smell and are afraid to touch. And then there are those, like me, who find Haiti 

to be home. And this home will never ever leave my heart. There is a beauty and a 

strength here that I have continually been touched by that is nearly indescribable. The 

respect I have for Haiti and her people is beyond comprehension.

           

My children will grow and prosper in America, but they are stronger than any American I 

know. They are rooted in forced slavery and come from a history of fighting for hundreds 

of years to live. Their spirit represents the ultimate survivalism. And if I can give them 

safety, and health and love, then we will all step back and watch them blossom and 

succeed.

           

They are my children. We are the lucky ones. That’s why.