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 | | In Haiti, CARE provides hot meals to 210,000 elementary students every school day. |
After spending the night in Gonaives, we woke up to enjoy coffee and pastries before getting back on the road to Port-au-Prince. Halfway there, in the dusty town of St. Marc, we visited the Sanon Derac elementary school, where CARE provides hot lunches to 485 kids every school day. The program allows the kids to focus on their studies instead of their hunger pains. In Haiti's poorest areas, CARE provides hot meals to 210,000 elementary students throughout 1,282 schools like Sanon Derac. For many of these children, the meal provided by CARE is the only one they receive.
The school's director told me that one year he had a class of 96 students. He said that he preferred having 96 kids in his class rather than having them in the streets. He was full of energy despite his hardships. At Sanon Derac, the director and eight teachers put their hearts into their calling, working late into the night to arm their students with a basic education. It's a start, but Haiti needs much more than that. More children would surely drop out if hot meals were not provided at school.
 | | Sixth-grader Roseline Louis helps her teacher distribute lunch. |
Roseline Louis, 12, was one of the bright sixth graders I met in the Sanon Derac elementary school. That day, it was her turn to pass empty bowls to her teacher, who filled them with a hot wheat and soy mix for each of her 57 students. Roseline's brother and two sisters also attend Sanon Derac, where CARE has been providing hot lunches for 10 years.
"I like it because it tastes good," said Roseline, who quietly told me she often saves a little of her meal for later because it might be the only food she eats that day. "It means a lot to us to have this food."
Sophie Perez, CARE's education manager in Haiti, explained to me that, "The children are considered the lucky ones because they eat. Academic performance improves. Children are not only smarter but stronger."
 | | CARE works with parent associations to ensure their children drink clean water in school. |
The children also are given lessons about health and hygiene. At Sanon Derac, CARE helped organize a parent association and trained the teachers and parents on improved hygiene methods. "Last year, working closely with the parent association, CARE helped to install a latrine and running water system at the school," added Perez. "With water, our goal is to bring the habit of washing hands back home from the schools. We also distribute first-aid kits to the schools and provide training in how to use them."
After shaking everyone's hand, we were back in the truck. Making our way to the hotel in Port-au-Prince, I counted six tires burning in the middle of the city's streets. People were not happy with the fact that they would not be able to participate in local and parliamentary elections because they had no voting card: a reminder of the value people place in democracy.
Continue to the Epilogue.
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