The photos and video scenes of the destruction and suffering after last month’s earthquake in Haiti are heart-rending to most, but even more so for Jamie Deere and her family, who several years ago founded a small foundation to assist Catholic families they have come to know there.
After the initial scare of not being able to account for everyone they knew, they set in motion a plan to rebuild the homes of those families.
Deere, Catholic Charities parish social ministry director, said the story begins with her brother, Jonathan Buford, who went to Haiti as a Peace Corps volunteer from 2001 to 2005. Before that, he served a stint in the U.S. Marine Corps and was a graduate of the Louisiana State University with a forestry degree.
During his trips back to visit family, he told them what he had witnessed there.
Deere and her family came to know a Haitian family and consider them extended family members. In order to help their Haitian family, Deere’s family started the Community Development Foundation for Haiti in 2003.
“The conditions in Haiti are so desperate — and they were even prior to earthquake — that we felt compelled to try and help at least in the small way we could, knowing obviously we could not do a whole lot,” Deere said. “But each family member could take on a child and each became a godparent. We pay for them to attend local Catholic school, their tuition, books, clothing.”
Deere said her brother goes to Haiti several times a year to check on the large Catholic families, including the Charles family. The parents, Leon and Tereza, have eight children. Each child has a godparent from Deere’s extended family of 25, which includes her brothers and sisters, parents, cousins, aunts and uncles. The Charles’ lived in a village named Oriani.
Both parents are college-educated teachers who taught at the local Catholic school but their income was less than $4,000 a year. The family had recently relocated closer to Port-au-Prince in order for the children to continue their education, which is very important to Haitians.
“This is not an uncommon in Haiti, that people that live in the provinces move or send their kids to Port-au-Prince to finish their education at a Catholic school,” Deere said. “Most families have an uncle or aunt that lives in the capital that the student goes to live with when they are in school. The Charles’ family was not so lucky, so they found a small piece of land in Croix-de-Bouquets just outside Port-au-Prince and with the help of CDFH, they built a small house.”
The Jan. 12 earthquake destroyed their home.
“Our primary goal is to go to Haiti in March to rebuild that house and others in that area if we can meet the fundraising goals,” she said.
There are already many volunteers in Haiti who can help with rebuilding, but the question is the funds and the cost of buying the supplies, she added.
Although they started by helping one family, Deere estimates they are helping “upwards of 50 to 100 individuals in multiple families.”
Originally, the foundation helped with education, but now it has started to expand to help the families with medical and other expenses.
Deere estimated it takes $4,000 to $7,000 to build a cinderblock house and they hope to raise $20,000 to $25,000 to build four or five homes.
The foundation raises funds by participating in the Little Rock Marathon each year and recently, Boulevard Bread donated $1,200 toward the goal to rebuild homes, Deere said. They are also accepting contributions.
“Individual families and students have obtained awards through the foundation and more than 100 students have been able to attend school and over $15,000 has been raised towards this program. Funds are utilized for school uniforms, books, resource materials and several students are now attending universities outside of Haiti, with the goal of returning to their villages to educate the future generations,” she said.
Deere said her family tries to do what it can through the foundation.
“We have done things as simple as loading suitcases with toothbrushes, hair barrettes, combs, personal care items, we send them over two or three times a year,” she said. “At Christmas, we send clothes. It does not matter what size, if it does not fit them, they will give it to someone else.”
Deere said when Buford goes, which is several times a year, he takes the maximum amount of luggage allowed.
“My brother is fluent in Creole and because of the time he spent there, he is the natural person to send,” she said.
Donations can be sent to The Community Foundation for Haiti, P.O. Box 7363, Little Rock, AR 72217. All donations are tax deductible.
“No funds are utilized for administration; all funds are for volunteer travel and actual home construction,” Deere said.
For more information, contact Deere at (501) 412-0693 or e-mail her at jldeere@msn.com.
