Children of Haiti receiving one
meal a day provide by What If?
Foundation

When I visited Haiti with a delagation, about one and half years after the earthquake of Jan. 2010, I was shocked to find how little was done with all the money given to the country (1.6 million by international donors and 2 billion in recovery aide). It looked like the earthquake had just hit. At time of our visit NGO’s had abandoned the camps set up after the earthquake and there was no sign of housing or road construction. One of our companions on this visit, a civil rights lawyer, wrote after our visit an article called Haiti Seven Places Where Earthquake Money Did and Did Not Go. It was shocking how little of the money went to Haitian government or Haitian companies. The US government and major NGO’s like Red Cross, Oxfam and Save the Children had received the major share of the money. When I came back from Haiti I stopped giving money to major Non Government Organizations (NGO’s).

However, I noticed a number of small, private organizations that were doing the job, helping feed people, building new houses. One was the What If Foundation that provides food and educational opportunities to underserved children in Port-au-Prince, Haiti — in partnership with the local Ti Plas Kazo community. We visited the location where they feed 1200 children each day and, for one meal, became one of the adult volunteers who prepare and serve the meals served after school. Some children brought containers to put some of the large helping of Haitian rice given to them to take home to parents. Reading the for the foundation I saw a real true pie chart where the major share of money donated is going directly to serve the poor.

Compare this pie chart below with the one done based on the Milwaukee St. Vincent de Paul Society who mission is also for one to one service of needy by volunteers. (Both are below). As I was outraged with the big NGO’s not helping those in need in Haiti I am upset at the local Milwaukee St. Vincent de Paul Society spending millions of dollars on a thrift store in the suburbs while neglecting people in need in the poorest areas of the city. Looking at the two pie charts all I can say is join us at the Poor People’s Picket on July 18, 2015 on the side walk in front of new store, 4476 S. 108 Street, Greenfield, WI from 9:30am −10pm.

There is not much we do for people in Haiti, except prayers and donations, to organizations that doing works of mercy in Haiti. However, right here at home, by working together, we can make a difference.

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