Summary

Michelene is nine years old, and stopped going to school when her father died. She loved school but can’t go because her mother, who is sick, doesn’t work. “We cannot eat regularly. Sometimes we have one meal a day. Most of the time we eat bread, sometimes rice with salt, just white, and nothing else.” Sponsorship level: $12 per month.

Household

Michelene is nine years old. Her mother’s name is Marry Editte Charles. They were born in Cite Soleil, but they come from Cayes (in South Haiti). Michelene stopped going to school in third grade when her father died, and has not been in school since 2005. She loved school but she cannot go because her mother doesn’t work. Her mother Marry Editte is sick. She suffers from diabetes, and now she cannot move. Child Michelene is suffering from hunger. She doesn’t find food easily.
Her mother has five children. Two of them are restaveks and none of them going to school. Once she try to commit suicide because life is so difficult for her.

Living conditions

Mother Marry: “Since my husband disappeared everything broke down. My house is a rental and it’s too small. That’s the reason we gave my two children to stay with other families. I need money to pay my current rent and I want to another place too.”
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Finances
Mother Marry doesn’t work. She doesn’t have any job because of her illness. She doesn’t earn any money. She has a friend who gives her $20 Haitian dollars (U.S. $2.85) per month.
Marry says, “In front of my house I can sell soap, salt ,oil and so forth. A long time ago, before my husband died, I sold these things. Each day I could sell a lot of things for about $190 Haitian dollars (U.S. $27.00).”
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Education
Marry can’t read and write, and has no skill training.
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Health and food
“My mother is sick and she cannot move her body. She cannot walk. Even going to the toilet. She cannot go to the hospital because we don’t have any money to buy medicine. We don’t have any help. We cannot eat regularly. Sometimes we have one meal a day. Seriously, in a week we eat two times. Most of the time we eat bread, sometimes rice with salt, just white, and nothing else. Four people are eating this meal. When we are hungry, we ask somebody on the streets. Sometimes they give us something, sometimes they don’t.”

Community information

“We can not find good water to drink. We walk for four blocks to find some water. Sometime we get water from the sea. We don’t buy water.”
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Education system
“We have no school close to us. We can walk for 45 minutes to one school. My mother doesn’t want to go to school. She prefers to do a small business.”
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Legal political
“We are not safe in this area There are body killers, and a lot of vagrants. That’s the reason we want to change, move to another place.”
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Economic situation of the community
“There is a public market in Cite Soleil but it’s far from us. We never go to the church because we are Vodou. This religion Vodou doesn’t do anything for us we are going to change it.”

Personal qualities

“There are many things good in me. I am loving, sharing, peaceful. I have something bad too. For example my religion. Vodou it is not good, it is something can make you criminal. ‘Can you give an example?’ No, I can not explain, because it is something personal.”

Life Plan

Immediate needs
Food.
“Shoes, and rent for my family’s house.”
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Development
Go back to school.
School supplies and my school uniform.
“I want my mother find money to make a small business.”
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Goals and dreams
“I want to finish my school and go to the university, to learn medicine. That’s my dream.”

Sponsorship

The main purpose of this sponsorship is to send Michelene back to school for one year, as well as receiving a uniform and basic school supplies. $14 a month for one year is enough to do a lot for Michelene, but it will not solve all of her problems. In addition to sending her to school, this sponsorship will pay for some food for her. It will also pay for basic medical care for her mother. Furthermore, we will explore ways to help her mother start her business.
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-- Send to school
-- Food
-- Medical help for mother
-- Begin to plan a business for her mother

Interview details

This interview was conducted by Cajuste Jean-Luis, March 2008