A message from Haiti

The Herald regularly receives messages on the website WORK. Here’s how it’s described: “We break cycles of poverty by defining and treating root causes whith those we serve, whether that takes up 10 days or 10 years.”
The First Mile “supports waste collectors in Haiti, Honduras and Taiwan to recycle plastic and earn a dignified income while diverting waste destined for oceans and landfills. These recycled materials are then sourced to First Mile Member brands to be processed into consumer products that deliver a social, environmental, and financial impact.”
In other words, the First Mile employs people to collect plastic and turn it into useful products.
The Herald received the following letter on the WORK site:
“My name is Richardson Antoine and I’m the First Mile Manager in Haiti. I would be thrilled to give you an in-depth description of the situation in the Les Cayes community, but there is too much to do. So I must share this quickly....
“The best way to understand the aftermath of the earthquake in Les Cayes, the earthquake’s epicenter, is to be here in person. The team and I are some of the first to see the damage to my people and their communities.
“Upon landing in Les Cayes, I could quickly see that our presence was more than necessary. The families we’ve located have not received support from anyone. We have met with about 70% of our collectors and their families to understand the situation better. I can tell you that they have been through so much in a short period and need so much support.

“Overall, we’ve seen larger organizations focus on repairing the larger buildings that have collapsed. But there are many more little homes like Nancy’s, one of our center owners, and our collectors that have collapsed that aren’t shared by the media.
“I’m thinking of all the hard work collectors do, waking up early to collect pounds of plastic to provide food for their families and ensure a good education for their children. These collectors would have never imagined that the earthquake would be so cruel to them. A destroyed home can be a big restart for a collector. It’s a heavy load on their shoulders on top of the pounds of plastic they carry around.
“As we were assessing the damage with Unecile Jean, a woman collector in the community of Renauld, she told us, ‘My biggest accomplishment as a human was the building of my little house exclusively through plastic collection. And now, seeing that two walls have collapsed, I feel like half of my life has collapsed.’ She continued to say that ‘I would not have imagined that I would receive a visit from WORK. That gives me hope for a better life.’
“To all of you reading this, I would encourage you to support our collectors and their families through our organization. We are not only talking about it, but we go there. Help us put a roof over our collectors’ heads, help us to continue to have their back, help us secure food for their families, and help us make them feel human again – your support matters.
“We have a saying in Kreyol, “Yon sèl now fèb, ansanm now fò,” which translates to “As one we are weak, together we are strong.”
Donations can be made at dowork.org.

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