See It: The Community being helped

This spring, I will be traveling to Jacmel, Haiti, with my friend David Hazard to work on a project at Haitian Children’s Home (HCH).

Haitian Children’s Home (www.haitianchildrenshome.org) is an orphanage operated by Danny and Leann Pye, missionaries from Florida. The orphanage houses about 22 children of various ages, ranging from newborn to teen-aged. Through international sponsorship, these children are provided the food, housing, and education (primary and secondary) necessary for a fulfilling life in Haitian society.

Nonetheless, children at HCH still face many challenges. Several of these children have lived harsh lives before arriving at HCH. Some have been sexually-abused by family members and others have nearly become a restavik, or child slave.

In order to help the children at HCH express themselves both creatively and emotionally, David Hazard and I will be traveling to the orphanage with cameras, film, and the desire to train a new crew of young photographers. From April 18th to April 26th, the two of us will stay at HCH, teaching basic photography and helping the children to speak using the camera to amplify their voice. During that week, we will develop the film that the children use in order to help them see how different techniques affect the images they take. Hopefully, by the time we leave, these children will understand the fundamentals of photographic art and will be able to express their emotions through a new medium.

After David and I leave, the children will continue to take pictures, day-after-day and week-after-week. When I return to Haiti on May 10th, I’ll check in with them to make sure that their cameras are working correctly and that everything is going well. Although, for the most part, I’ll be about an hour away in the mountains of Seguin, I’ll continue to make trips to HCH as needed to check in on the children and their progress.

Once I leave Haiti again in early June, I’ll take all of the film that the children have shot back to the States to be developed. After all of the film has been processed, I will choose two images from each child and have them mounted and framed for display. These images will then be brought back to Haiti in August for a formal exhibition in Jacmel.

The final images will also be displayed in educational and fundraising exhibitions in the States with all proceeds going to Haitian Children’s Home and their programs.

I truly believe that this project has the power to change the lives of the children involved. The ability to express one’s self through art can be extremely therapeutic and educational. Sometimes words simply can’t express the emotions that we have inside. I hoping that by helping the children at HCH to learn photography, they will have a new way to let out these emotions in a creative and artistic fashion.

Projected Timeline for Project

April 18th – 26th, 2008: Kyle Denison Martin and David Hazard will travel to Haitian Children’s Home in Jacmel, Haiti, and begin instructing children in basic photography. Each participating child will have two rolls of film developed during this week so that they can reflect on their photography and how different techniques affect their pictures.

April 27th – May 9th, 2008: Children at HCH will continue to take photos, using the film that was brought by Kyle and David in April. Additional film can be shipped via air-mail as needed.

May 10th, 2008: Kyle Denison Martin returns to HCH to check on the children and ensure that their equipment is working correctly.

May 10th – June 1st, 2008: Although Kyle will be working at the HCO clinic in Seguin, he will continue to consistently visit HCH and address any needs of the children there.

June 1st, 2008: Kyle Denison Martin will return to the United States with all of the film taken at HCH. This film will be developed in the U.S.

Late June/Early July 2008: Morgan Stewart and others have planned a fundraising dinner and concert to benefit the project and cover the cost of enlargement, matting and framing of the images from HCH. This dinner and concert will be held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

August 2008: Two images from each participating child at HCH will be enlarged, matted and framed. These images will then be brought back to Jacmel, Haiti, for a formal exhibition.

August – December 2008: The images taken by the children at HCH will be displayed in a series of exhibitions and educational programs throughout Michigan, including various galleries at Michigan State University. The images will also be displayed during fundraising events for Haitian Children’s Home and their future programs.

Estimated Budget for Project

Air Travel, Food & Lodging for Kyle Denison Martin
(1) Air Transit - $421.00
(2) Food, Lodging and Transit (on site) - $120.00
Subtotal=$541.00

Air Travel, Food & Lodging for David Hazard
(1) Air Transit – $578.00
(2) Food, Lodging and Transit (on site) - $120.00
Subtotal=$698.00

Equipment and Developing (Haiti)
(1) Cameras (20) - $499.00 ($24.95 each)
(2) Film (100 rolls) - $189.00 ($1.89 each)
(3) AA Batteries (128) - $59.47
(4) Developing Film (2 rolls each) - $600.00 ($15.00 per roll)
Subtotal=$1347.47

Developing (United States)
(1) Developing Film (60 rolls) - $600.00 ($10.00 per roll)
Subtotal=$600.00

Prints, Matting and Framing (United States)
(7) Prints, Matting and Framing (20) - $1000.00 ($50.00 each)
Subtotal=$1000.00

Final Total=$4186.47

See It: The Community being helped

I’ve worked as a volunteer for five years for the Foyer de Sion Orphanage in Haiti. I spent hundreds of hours working on fund raisers, secretarial work, and reunions. Most importantly, I was blessed to be able to spend a week volunteering at the orphanage. Seeing the devastation and poverty in Haiti, and serving the children there, completely changed my life and brought into focus my intense desire to help children.
One of the main fund raisers I did, took 2 years. When a book store went out of business, they donated all of their left over books, and miscellaneous book store items to be sold so that 100% of the profit would go to support the Foyer de Sion Inc. orphanage. I took the responsibility of categorizing and sorting all of the items, and entering every item into Microsoft Access so that I had an inventory list. I then turned our dining room into a bookstore and organized and displayed all of the items on shelves, and tables. I sold them from my home for 2 years to raise much needed funds for a Haitian orphanage. I spent a total of over 150 hours getting the items ready for sale, and selling them. I was able to raise a lot of much needed money for the orphanage to use for food, formula, and medical care for the children in their 3 orphanages in Haiti. It was also used to buy building supplies for a new orphanage building they are currently building.

See It: The Community being helped

     We are making calendars to raise money to build a house in Haiti. The family that would live in the house is very poor and have had many misfortunes in their lives. The eldest son was born handicapped and his mother is often very ill. The mother's other son is in highschool. Not only is he an amazing English student, but he is the best student in the entire high school. The family is severely impoverished and our help would be a drastic improvement for their lives. Since the fall we have been working on this fundraising effort. We will need to raise $2000 to build a single house. So far we have held a party for the cause and a dance marathon. From just these first two events, we have raised about $1,000. We feel that making and selling calendars to our school community is just the right "kick" to get us the money we need!       We have a special class in school dedicated to constructing the calendar. We have decided that the calendar will be the 2008-2009 school year featuring unusual international and national holidays. For example, in August we have "Sea Serpent Day".      

See It: The Community being helped

Youth in Haiti are constantly embroiled to social issues within their country. Whenever political upheaval occurs, they too are faced with the challenges that come as a consequence of that. What great need this would create for a community of guidance and support? However, there are limited places that these youth can meet for mentoring, to share ideas, enjoy a game of soccer, perform community service, or plan a get together. They find no initiative that allows them to participate in an action to form better decisions or help develop the community they live in. Schools are often the primary source of social gathering. But not all are fortunate enough to afford primary education. Quite frequently recreation is found in the streets, where violence, stealing, and prostitution continue to dominate.

Project Love Peace Hope is geared towards uniting Haitian youth in Haiti in an effort to promote change within their communities. With young and unbiased minds ideas can be formed to target areas that need change. Moreover, there are no greater witnesses to the actual problems within any country than the natives themselves. This past July, we chose 12 teens in the first summer program in the area to become educated about their country, past, present, and future. We created small projects on how to help build Les Cayes, held discussions, visited organizations, and even performed skits...and we had a lot of fun!

See It: The Community being helped

My name is Mitchell Arnold and I’m a 15-year-old student/soccer player from Wisconsin. I started Peace Is The Goal as a goodwill initiative in October 2006. This ongoing initiative aims to make the world a better place to live by spreading the message of peace and giving through “the world’s game”, soccer.

Over the initiative’s first 22 months, I have completed 26 projects which have delivered nearly 400 pieces of new soccer equipment (worth more than $5,250) to orphanages, schools, missions, churches, agencies and individuals that house, shelter, educate and provide direction to kids. These kids live in dire conditions in countries such as Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Honduras, Mexico, Iraq, Afghanistan, Serbia, Jamaica, Vietnam, Romania, Senegal, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the United States.

These kids have little, if anything. They are desperately looking for something positive to do. They love the sport of soccer, but many don’t even have real equipment to play the game. Rocks, plastic bottles or garbage are often used as balls. I created Peace Is The Goal to give needy kids soccer equipment (balls, cleats, goalie gloves, shinguards, pumps and storage), give them something positive to do, give them hope and give them a smile.

I hope that my gifts create a link between youth in American and in other nations, and serve as a model that stresses the importance of doing good works. Anyone, even a kid from a small town in Wisconsin, can create change and foster an environment of understanding.

I have worked hard to advance PITG from a good idea to an initiative that is tangibly helping others. If you would like to contribute soccer equipment or funds to this cause, please let me know.

Peace Is The Goal projects to date include:

November 2006: Institution Univers school in Ouanaminthe, Haiti
Items donated: 36 soccer balls, 6 large soccer ball storage bags, 6 soccer pumps

February 2007: La Vega Christian School in La Vega, the Dominican Republic
Items donated: 6 soccer balls, 2 large soccer ball storage bags, 2 soccer pumps, 1 youth instruction trainer

March 2007: G.O. Ministries and G.O. Ministries Sports Outreach serving in Santiago, the Dominican Republic; Batey Nueve, the Dominican Republic; and Ouanaminthe, Haiti
Items donated: 10 soccer balls, 2 soccer pumps

April 2007: Wisconsin/Nicaragua Partners of the Americas project in Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua
Items donated: 5 soccer balls, 1 soccer pump

April 2007: Maison Fortune Orphanage in Hinche, Haiti
Items donated: 8 soccer balls, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

May 2007: Ball for All project aiding children in Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo
Items donated: 8 soccer balls, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump, 2 pairs of soccer cleats

June 2007: Soccer for Life project aiding children in Honduras
Items donated: 8 soccer balls, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

July 2007: World Vision project aiding children in Africa
Items donated: 8 soccer balls, 1 soccer pump

July 2007: Project aiding children in Ecuador
Items donated: 10 soccer balls, 2 soccer pumps

August 2007: Institution Univers school in Ouanaminthe, Haiti
Items donated: 8 soccer balls

August 2007: Guadalupe Preparatory School (independent charter school for impoverished and at-risk youth) in Guadalupe, Arizona
Items donated: 14 soccer balls, 1 basketball, 2 playground balls, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 2 soccer pumps

September 2007: Operation Enduring Hope project aiding children in Afghanistan
Items donated: 10 soccer balls, 1 soccer pump

October 2007: Any Soldier project to aid Iraq children and protect U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq
Items donated: 11 soccer balls, 1 medium soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

October 2007: Any Soldier project to aid Iraq children and protect U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq
Items donated: 11 soccer balls, 1 medium soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

November 2007: Any Soldier project to aid Afghanistan children and protect U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq
Items donated: 12 soccer balls, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

December 2007: Any Soldier project to aid Iraq children and protect U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq
Items donated: 16 soccer balls, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer backpack, 1 soccer pump, 3 pairs of used soccer cleats

January 2008: Rancho San Juan Bosco orphanage in Tecate, Mexico
Items donated: 16 soccer balls, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump, 2 pairs of soccer goalkeeper gloves

February 2008: Jamaica National Children’s Home
Items donated: 8 soccer balls, 1 soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

February 2008: Project aiding orphanage in Vietnam
Items donated: 6 soccer balls, 1 soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

March 2008: Held one-day soccer camp for Yaqui Native American kids in Guadalupe, Arizona
Items donated: 20 soccer ball bags, one soccer ball, one soccer skills DVD, one soccer skills book

April 2008: Oyate Teca project aiding Lakota kids on the Pine Ridge Reservation in Kyle, S.D.
Items donated: 8 soccer balls, 2 pairs of goalkeeper gloves, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

April 2008: Arab mission project aiding Eugemot orphanage in Ghana, Africa
Items donated: 6 soccer balls, 2 pairs of goalkeeper gloves

May 2008: Any Female Soldier project to help create youth soccer tournament in Serbia
Items donated: 10 soccer balls, 3 pairs of goalkeeper gloves, 2 pairs of shinguards, 1 soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer ball pump

June 2008: Any Soldier project to aid Iraq children and protect U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq
Items donated: 11 soccer balls, 2 pairs of goalkeeper gloves, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

June 2008: Project aiding the Blessed Hope Orphanage and Academy in Uganda
Items donated: 13 soccer balls, 2 pairs of goalkeeper gloves, 1 large soccer ball storage bag, 1 soccer pump

July 2008: Project aiding Outreached Hands of Romania, located in Calarasi, Romania
Items donated: 20 soccer balls, 4 pairs of goalkeeper gloves, 4 soccer field cones, 2 large soccer ball storage bags, 2 soccer pumps, 1 soccer training DVD, 1 soccer training book