VERO BEACH — In The Tree, a poetic song written by American composer Tom Splitt, he sings about “The calm quiet strength of a tree, anchored deep in the earth, reaching high in the sky.” In many ways, it’s an apt description of Haiti Partners co-founders John Engle and Kent Annan. Soft-spoken, yet with a resilient strength anchored deeply in their faith, the two have a lofty goal – to help Haitians change Haiti through quality education.
Approximately 200 supporters of their mission gathered at the Community Church in Vero Beach for a Caribbean themed dinner Friday night, to get an update on the progress of Haiti Partners and of the country so devastated by an earthquake two years ago. With quiet fortitude the people of Haiti have endured unthinkable odds, including cholera outbreaks, flooding and political instability, and Haiti Partners has stood by them, determined to help right a centuries-old wrong.
Before sitting down to dinner, guests mingled and perused a large assortment of hand-crafted Haitian artifacts, including exquisite wooden bowls, hammered metal decorative pieces, jewelry and vibrantly colored Haitian paintings. Those new to Haiti Partners also perused copies of Annan’s two books, Following Jesus Through the Eye of the Needle, and After Shock: Searching for Honest Faith When Your World is Shaken.
Suzanne Bolinger, wife of Haiti Partners board president Adam Bolinger, once again arranged the dinner, and had called on friends to join them as celebrity servers. Despite being out of their element, the volunteers, including attorneys, artists, bankers, realtors and the like, did a terrific job.
DJ (David) Jones, a senior advisor to Haiti Partners, started the presentations, saying that although Billy Graham advises not to name drop, he would anyway; citing relationships with Habitat for Humanity, the U. S. Agency for International Development, actors and humanitarians Sean Penn and Patricia Arquette.
“All these and more have sought out Haiti Partners and have enabled them to grow,” said Jones. “That recognition is a result of your help and love.”
“There’s not a community like this anywhere else; you are our core base,” said Jonathan Chan, Haiti Partners partnership coordinator.
“People ask, “Why is recovery from the earthquake taking so long? But when we talk about that question, we have to go back to the very beginning,” explained Chan.
He gave a brief history of the island, known to the French when they claimed it for themselves as Hispaniola, through brutal years of slavery, revolution and establishment as a free nation in 1804, at a cost which would take more than 100 years to repay.
“For 500 years, the deck has been stacked against the everyday Haitian,” said Chan. “Working together, we can walk toward a brighter future.”
Engle shared the various ways donated dollars have been spent, including emergency support, school reconstruction and operation, social businesses, laptops and bibles, scholarships, and training teachers, grassroots leaders and church leaders.
“We’ve used the money to do as much as we can to further our mission,” said Engle, explaining the need to change the education process so that students think for themselves and develop a love of learning. “I dream of a day when all Haitian children are getting a quality education.”
Benaja Antoine, Haiti Partners coordinator of public schools, shared that the process is creating lots of good teachers. “The kids are so excited when they go to the schools; they keep getting better. All we are doing is for the kids to have a better education.”
Annan spoke of the contrast in opportunity between his six-year-old Haitian god-daughter and his six-year-old daughter, a student at Osceola Magnet.
“Life is kind of a lottery, and it’s really not fair,” said Annan. “We get to tilt the world to being a little more fair. One-million children in Haiti don’t get to go to school at all. Through these seven partner schools, we get to make a difference.”