Time for graduation!

Bengil and Elie

Jonas, Jameson and Dieuve

Milot, Elie, Ralph, Ibens

Bengil and Blaise

Milot, Jhonny, Guervins, Dieuve, Josias, Ralph

Jhonny, Benjil and Elie

The graduating class and the new students

Take a look at the items on the counter. To you it may look like a handful of pocket composition books, some tools and a bunch of jewelry.  To my students it looks like the start of new business opportunities.  The composition notebooks will be sold to other students who have never had the chance to have a notebook.  The jewelry on the counter will be sold and the money will be used to support the manufacture of the leather goods.

The little tools that you see on the counter are the tools for leather craft.  I’ve ordered more tools and hopefully they will arrive in short order.  The 4:00 students have put together a business plan to design and make leather wallets, change purses, book covers and all things leather.  They will be making the items for the next few months, when I return to Haiti I'll bring the wallets back with me, so keep watching my blog and you will see the items for sale.  They will be of original design and each student’s logo will be on each item.  I expect you will see their individual personalities in the designs they present for your consideration.  If you have request, please let me know and I’ll pass on the information to the students. 

I would like to say a special thank you to a several people who have supplied money to begin this venture, without you, this would have been impossible.  Please join me and pray for their success.  Keep watching and buy their handiwork. It will be great to own one of their first works of art!

I write this blog because I want a special someone to know how important his work is.  Day after day, he goes to work.  He doesn’t need to set the alarm clock because his internal clock rings.  That internal clock not only says it’s time to get up, it tells him that his family needs him, that there are people who are depending on his hands to make things work so they can do their job too.  The blue collar worker… not such a flattering title.  

While it may be true he looks good in a blue uniform, it is truer that the work he performs is extremely essential.  I propose we change that title to “essential workers”.  The work he does every day is essential.  His family has always worked with their hands.  It was during his childhood he learned which wrench fit which bolt.  He learned how to change brakes, repair alternators and rebuild engines.  In his spare time he learned how to plumb the kitchen sink and wire the light switch.  On weekends he learned how to plow the snow, re-roof the house and run a skid loader.

He may have not ever sat in a classroom learning the proper punctuation of sentences, how to develop a spreadsheet or how to trade stock on the NYSE.  But then again, we can all communicate without proper punctuation, we can write our numbers down on paper and he’s been bartering since he was about seven! 

I know hundreds of people who have gone to college and only a handful who can change a set of brakes on their car.  What has happened to our country, have we sent everyone off to college and forgotten to teach some to work with their hands?  Soon we will be out of workers and when that happens our society will fall to pieces. There will be no one to manufacture or fix anything.  We as a country must honor and appreciate the “essential workers”, for they are the ones who keep our lives in order.  A computer cannot fix our cars or build our homes or change our brakes.

Let’s stop saying everyone should go to college and start saying we need to teach our children a skill.  Not everyone needs to know how to install a program on the computer.  But we all DO need to know how to fix our own leaking toilet.  

Hurricane Irene

As hurricane Irene sets her site on my students in Port au Prince. These are the messages I recieve from my students.  There are an estimated 600,000 people still living in tents, some of them are my students.

Jhonny Lindor listen mom haiti is still in the bad situation don't you know you are our mom in haiti do not leave us alone mom please we need your help haiti mom all i know one day can help my self and others i love you mom

 

 

Please Jesus do something because "HAITI" is still under tents.

Jameson Ostine

That's me!

Yes, I'm proud to say I was a featured member of Rebuild Haiti Better!

I'm proud to be among many who are dedicated to rebuilding Haiti!

Artists for Hope

One of my favorite places to shop.  Artists for Hope.

I am your friend

This is for my 4:00 students... I'm missing them.