Empowering Adult Handicapped Haitians

 Meet our new board members:

The Friends of St. Vincent’s board has two new members!

One is Diane D., a member of an Episcopal church in Florida, and a Companion of the Society of the Companions of the Holy Cross, SCHC.  Diane visited St. Vincent’s Center several times, years ago, with Hope Lennartz, founder of Friends of St. Vincent’s.  On one memorable trip, she brought sewing machines to the campus and spent time working with the young people there who wanted to learn that trade.  Diane reports that she is happy to be back in contact again with the adults who have grown up at St. Vincent’s. 

The second is Rachel S., a member of another Episcopal church in Florida. Rachel served as a member of the Young Adult Service Corps, YASC, in Brazil for a year in 2016.  Rachel is an advocate for disability rights, and so she understands the need to follow the lead of our partners in Haiti, and to respect their path.  She is also creative with crafts and with tech: stay tuned!

Sonya Y. continues as president, bringing her experiences at St. Vincent’s in Haiti and her compassionate and imaginative approach to accompanying our friends in their work towards autonomy.  Sonya is a working artist in glass, watercolor, graphic design, and more.  She teaches classes and produces beautiful work. 

Janet O. continues as vice-president.  Janet has visited St. Vincent’s over the years, since 1997, and has also lived in Haiti as dean of a university program of rehab, educating Occupational and Physical Therapists in Haiti, FSRL-UNEPH.  She is currently dean-at-a-distance.  Happily, there is a new Haitian administration now for the university department of rehab, including two graduates of the program who are ready to lead the work of the university.  Janet will be retiring from the dean’s role before long.   

I hope this has been interesting, to hear about some of the people behind these reports!  We are aware of the privilege that we have in accompanying the members of CAHSAV, our partners at St. Vincent’s in Haiti.  It has been the joy of our lives.  We thank you, donors to Friends of St. V., for all the good made possible by your gifts.   

During the quarter ahead, we will continue to send contributions so that CAHSAV members can pay for their internet, for vocational training or high school, for the  services of a part-time nurse, and for “maker” activities in preparation for selling products at the festival at St. Vincent's on Dec. 3, the International Day of the Handicapped Person.  (That is the original name of this festival.)  They will also plan and carry out their annual meeting when they celebrate CAHSAV, on Dec. 31 and New Year’s Day, which is Haitian Independence Day.  

We’ll be contributing, as much as we are able, to completing the construction of the Samuel Elizaire Pavilion which will provide an office for CAHSAV, a gathering place for the children (who like to be with the older residents), and a workshop, an atelier, for the maker activities of CAHSAV members. Once again, stay tuned!  

Thank you for your faithfulness in this important work!  

Friends of St. Vincent’s

Links:

• Friends of St. Vincent's website

Our partners, the adult residents of St. Vincent's Center for Children with Disabilities, have been featured in the St. Vincent's Newsletter for Spring 2025.  We thought you'd like to read this!

Excerpt from the St. Vincent's Center Newsletter: Spring 2025

"The Adult Residents Who Give Back

They are all deaf, blind, or in wheelchairs, but that doesn’t prevent them from serving. The adult residents, all of whom are graduates of the School, play a vital part in the daily life of the Center, easing the burden on staff and advancing the care and education of the students.

Here are some of the ways that they ”pay it forward”:

Now the oldest resident, Jimmy, who is blind, teaches Braille, plays the accordion and, for many years, taught music and accompanied the handbell choir.

Jean-Marc and Mackenson,who are also blind, help the youngest students learn Braille and teach them how to study their lessons after class.

Evens, who is visually impaired, delivers potable water to all 22 classrooms, administrators’ offices, and residents’rooms.

Jonelson is deaf, but he’s the one who successfully oversees the discipline of the youngest at the Center.

Carlentz is also deaf. He interprets for deaf adults and helps wheelchair-bound children move safely around classrooms and campus.

Judith has severe scoliosis, but she’s completed cooking school and, as a gourmet cook, works at the Café which the adult residents have set up and run on the campus.

Although Moïse is in wheelchair, he helps to water the garden, and Maille, also in a wheelchair, is responsible for informing everyone when meals are ready.

Kenson repairs and refreshes wheelchairs for everyone at St.Vincent’s and also for the nearby Partners in Health orphanage and school, Zanmi Beni. Several years ago, he translated the Perkins Institute for the Blind Braille Machine Manual into Kréyol and, with two others, repaired 19 Braille machines.

The daily interaction with students, some 20 of whom reside at the School, makes this multi-generational community a closely-knit family.

Two Deaths in the Family

Adult residents play a vital role in the daily life at St.Vincent’s as the article on the opposite page attests. Thus, a death leaves a big hole not only in the family, but also in the work that keeps the schedule humming.

Samuel Elizaire died in early December from a sudden respiratory infection. At age 41, he had lived at St.Vincent’s since the age of three. He was our much-valued assistant bookkeeper, having graduated from St. Vincent’s, secondary school, and Quisqueya University with a degree in accounting. Samuel was also the person entrusted with the weekly food purchasing, despite being wheelchair-bound. He was the beloved ”Uncle” to all young residents and students, and at nighttime, he was the resident “protector” when Père Duveaux had gone home.

In later December, Lilian Azor also died. Known fondly as “Dixie,” she was deaf and used her experience of that disability to teach deaf children in the school. Visitors in the West Tennessee Haiti Partnership remember all of the meals she cooked for them when they stayed in the St.Vincent’s Guest House prior to the 2010 earthquake. At St. Vincent’s since the days of founder Sister Joan, Dixie was also responsible for supervising younger residents after class.

While enduring physical disabilities, both Samuel and Dixie refused to let themselves be defined by their handicaps. St.Vincent’s is richer for them."