On the way to St. Etienne which is located high in the mountains, our truck had a flat tire. Unfortunately, we did not have a spare, so we elevated the truck to remove the flat but then required a large rock to staialize it. A 23 year old man, living...

We drove to St.Etienne, which is high up into the mountains to meet with the Fondespwa women. The devastation resulting from the earthquake is even more severe than in the valley. What is sad, these women were already so materially poor. Unfortunate...

As we move throughout communities where Fondespwa works, the devastation from the earthquake is clearly evident. These families will most likely be living in tents for many months or possibly years, unless a plan is devised to accelerate them acquiri...

Fondespwa had two meetings which we always have every other Monday. They are each 1 1/2 hour in length consisting of singing, taking attendance, repayment of loans and then a teaching. Toward the end of the session they  sing again as the H...

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Beginning at 7 AM, we again visited the women entreprenuers. We met them at a small road side market, in the street as they were on an errand but mostly in their homes. This was again a sobering day but one that provided a little encouragement.Milord...

As with yesterday, we travelled around the countryside meeting with the members of Fondespwa. It is always so much more beneficial going to their homes as one can intimately see how they live. That is where I have learned everything first hand. Every...

Today was spent with a number of the women of Fondespwa, on an informal basis. First thing this morning, we went to the school where some women are living in their makeshift tents. We set up a couple of benches in the church, which is the only safe b...

Yesterday, I flew into the Dominican Republic as commercial flights have still not resumed into Port au Prince. Landing in Santiago, the same island as Haiti, one can immediately see the distinctions: many, many restaurants, 3 and 4 star hotels, myri...

I will be leaving for Haiti on Monday, February 15. As commercial flights are not yet allowed in Port au Prince, we need to fly into the Dominican Republic, then by smaller plane to Jacmel arriving late on Tuesday. For the next 2 weeks, I will be mee...

I have done as much as I can during this trip and in a few hours, it is time to fly home. It appears a good deal was accomplished and hopefully a solid foundation has been laid. A venture does not succeed without a great team. Fondespwa fortunately h...

Lex and Renee decided we should go to Jacmel, which is on the southern shores of the western side of this country, to take a little break after the fairly intense prior 15 days. We left around 11 and began the ride up the mountain to Jacmel, which is...

For today and tomorrow, there most likely will not be much to write in this blog. I attended most of the day to the necessary paper and organizational issues. These need to be in place prior to my departure on Monday. Now comes the execution piece an...

At nine this morning, we met with our first graduates of Fondespwa. The meeting, was held in our usual place, a small room above the orphanage where missionaries visiting Haiti stay. To make room for the group, we moved out the 4 beds and placed them...

After so many meetings and interviews over the course of the last 11 days, today fortunately, was spent primarily in the office catching up on the necessary administration responsibilities. At this juncture, what is needed are contracts and position ...

Fondespwa is committed to providing three services to our members: low interest rates on the loan, a high savings rate and excellent training/education. At some point, we will expand to providing other financial services such as health insurance, lif...

We had two major meetings today with the primary goal of literally providing the entrepreneurs with their loans. Our first session, was at noon for 42 of the women and then at 2:30 with 41. Martine, went through the process of how we collect the...

Sunday in Haiti is a quiet day. All businesses are closed, in Port au Prince, as are most in the rural areas other than the occasional roadside stands. Many Haitians go to church. I had the opportunity, to attend two services, one in Grand Goave and ...

Our efforts today, were focused on the administrative aspects of integrating new members into Fondespwa. Renee has spent yesterday afternoon and all of today inputting the profiles of the women into our data base. In addition, with Martine, our Loan ...

Today was a fun day, as we received the legal documents of the women, so we could create an account for them in our data base and establish their passbooks and ID cards. We had the women arrive, in their groups of 5-7 at various times throughout the ...

We concluded our interviews by seeing the last group of women which totalled about 45. As with all of them, they have their stories of added hardship due to divorce, husband abandonment, debilitating illness, death of their children, their savings an...

A good number of women were waiting for us, as we began our 8:00 session and this continued till 3:30. To date, it appears we will have 123 women that we believe are qualified and are interested in Fondespwa. Most of these women can neither read or w...

I was thinking it might be interesting for others to know how we are interviewing 220 women entrepreneurs. We have divided the list of women so that 60 are being seen each day. Thirty in the morning and 30 in the afternoon. There are 4 of us who are ...

They really don't have a break from this arduous lifestyle. I read, work, watch TV , go to movies, eat at restaurants, travel around and go to a gym. Their days are so routine. Get up early, work all day, with little to show for it, go home to a hot ...