A new beginning for a school in Haiti!

These past weeks have been powerful ones at the College Catherine Flon in Haiti. Three months to the day after the January 12 earthquake, the school re-opened! Using its remaining one-story classrooms, a courtyard, some open space and an empty one-story building some blocks away, the school has re-opened to serve the first 800 students. Yes, that is a far cry from the 5,000 it was serving before the earthquake, but it is an important first step -- and a testament to the dedication of the headmaster and the teachers, many of whom come to work after sleeping in a tent and do not know when, or if, they will be paid. As they are able to find secure buildings or open land, they will continue to add make-shift classrooms.
The goal remains to re-build the school. Thanks to the generosity of so many - SU alumni, students, Shenandoah Valley residents, Rotary clubs, and folks from as far away as Seattle -- we continue to build the fund to re-build the College Catherine Flon.
And re-building now means nearly all of the school... I am very sad to report that Education Nationale in Haiti demolished the remaining building at the school - even though expert stuctural engineer Ned Cleland had proven that it was a strong building worthy of saving. But Haitians remain paralyzed with fear by any building taller than two stories, and even those buildings still standing strong are now left unused. With the grief surrounding the deaths of many students and teachers across Port-au-Prince who died when their schools collapsed, the Haitian government has decided to destroy all remaining schools taller than two stories. On first blush, it is easy to be angry and judgmental about such a short-sighted decision. After all, for a government that can't afford to re-build the collapsed buildings, it is seemingly crazy for them to destroy the school buildings that are still viable. But such a reaction is a luxury afforded to those of us who were not in Port-au-Prince during the earthquake, and therefore cannot fathom the depth of fear in the population.
Re-building most of the school versus all of the school. Either way, the goal remains the same: to get those 5,000 kids back in school. If you wish to support the re-building, please donate on-line at www.su.edu -- click on "Giving to Shenandoah" in the upper-right, then on "Give Now"; designate your gift to "Haiti school" and 100% of your gift will go directly to pay for the re-building of the College Catherine Flon.