Member-only story
Looking Back At Haiti’s Earthquake
In 2010, Haiti’s landscape would be changed forever. The devastating earthquake that rocked the country to its core eventually killed more than 316,000 people, left 1.5 million homeless and another 1.5 million injured. This week is the 10-year anniversary of the event that changed the lives of the people of Haiti as well as impacted the lives of millions around the world.
I was in Ventura, California, in 2010, attending college, when I got an email from a friend asking me if I would like to go to Haiti again to help out. Even though the earthquake was so horrendous, I was deep in student mode and hadn’t made any plans to go help, yet. Why would I go, you ask? There are a few things I need to tell you about me and Haiti.
Why Am I Involved With Haiti?
In 1984, I lived in Haiti for two years as a Mormon missionary. Thirteen years after my mission, in 1999, I was living in South Carolina and made the decision to visit Haiti while I was on the East Coast. But I didn’t want to go as a tourist, even though there are many beautiful things to see and experience in Haiti. I also didn’t want to do another religious mission there. I wanted to do something to help Haiti and get nothing in return.
I started looking around for an organization I could get involved with. A good friend of mine told me about Healing Hands for Haiti Foundation (HHH), a rehabilitative group, who among other things, organizes medical missions to Haiti, to help the disabled there. It sounded like just the ticket for me, so I inquired when the next team would be going and started planning my trip to go with them. I would go as a translator and cultural expert.
While living in Haiti, in the 80s, I became fluent in Haitian Creole, the language that most people speak in Haiti. I also fell in love with the Haitian people, which is why I wanted to go back someday. I knew that returning to Haiti was going to be an emotional experience for me, because of the love I had for her people and all the memories I had there.
But I didn’t expect to be impacted as much as I did. Going to Haiti with an organization that did such amazing things for the people of Haiti turned me into an emotional puddle. I couldn’t even talk…
