Your Invitation
YOUR INVITATION
Each morning our inboxes can feel flooded with an excess amount of information asking us to buy, follow, like and give. With this constant overflow of content, it is easy to become caught up in the mundane of life, especially as we learn to heal after a global pandemic. I am guilty of it myself, overlooking Facebook fundraisers, turning down solicitations for signatures outside my local grocery store, and easily overlooking the significance of our work. It’s true, sometimes it happens.
But, then there are moments when I remember. When I feel the weight, the heaviness, the seriousness of the call. The reality is that regardless of our life circumstances, we all have something to give and something to offer. As communications director for La Pointe Foundation, I have the privilege of seeing first-hand the effect each of us can have on the lives of others. That is why I am especially passionate about a new project that will impact hundreds of lives. This is the building of the Vocational School in La Pointe, Haiti.
After spending almost a decade in this historic Caribbean country, I can say without a doubt that I believe jobs will change things. Having consistent income opens doors for individuals and families in ways handouts can’t. But the hand-up of employment proves to be more complex. For example, we know that you can’t create jobs without education, and you can’t have education without finances, and you can’t have finances without a job. The cycle goes on and on, quickly spinning out of control unless it is broken. And that is where we come in. That is where YOU come in.
For the last 7 years, local leaders have worked hard to bring positive change to their community in Northern Haiti. What started as one building with a few children, is now a small campus with over 600 students enrolled. This is an especially impressive feat considering only about 1/3 of Haitian children ever reach 5th grade.
Although we are proud of this educational accomplishment, reality has proven that we can not stop there. We must join forces to do more, we must break that cycle. That is why we are expanding not only the primary and secondary school but also a brand new vocational school. This two-story education center will impact hundreds of lives through the teaching of trade skills that will help create jobs and future employment, creating a lasting impact for generations to come.
