Once again, as I hike, I am going to be raising funds for a worthy cause. My PCT thru-hike is dedicated to Devoted to Children, a charity that supports orphaned and impoverished children in Haiti. I was lucky enough to accompany the Devoted to Children founders, Kristen and Amber on a trip to Haiti last November. It was wonderful! I fell in love with the country of Haiti, the people, and most of all, the kids and staff at the Devoted to Children residential home.
The residential home has a different way of addressing the problem of orphaned or enslaved (Restavek) children. Rather than a traditional orphanage where children wait to be adopted out to a family -- often outside the country, the children are adopted IN to the home and the D2C family. The kids are provided with a stable and loving environment where they can grow and thrive in their home country of Haiti. I was very impressed with this alternative way of addressing such a prevalent social problem.
This week, another group of volunteers are in Haiti, working on D2C's newest project: an after-school tutoring program open to both the children in the residential home and other children in town. It is the latest in a series of outreach programs to address the needs of the community. Again, I am so impressed with the way D2C looks beyond its initial goal of providing for a small group of children and now works toward a goal of contributing to a stronger community and a better educated future generation.
As my hike progresses, I will continue to post about the D2C family, its projects, and news.
Please click on the COOL CAUSES tab above to contribute to my HikeFor fund for D2C or to visit the Devoted to Children website.
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