We were awakened at 6:00am, as the
construction team preferred getting off to an early start. Dave, Scott
and I had lower bunks in the mens dorm, while Emily was housed in the
ladies dorm (which I never saw). Dave and Scott elected to remain in
bed, while I got up to explore.
Married Quarters, Mission Possible compound, photo by Stephen Hermer
Normally, a team would get an orientation tour when they arrive, but we
arrived two days after the rest of our team and missed this. So, being
inquisitive, I wandered around the compound while the construction team
made and ate their breakfast.
Concrete benches over looking the ocean, photo by Stephen Hermer
The compound is right on the ocean, with perhaps 150m of frontage.
Separating the compound from the ocean is a wrought-iron fence, beyond
which is perhaps six or eight metres of rocky beach.
The Mission Possible compound has numerous fruit trees, photo by Stephen Hermer
Most mornings, and this one was no exception, groups of Haitian
fishermen could be seen. Several local rowboats as well as some 15-20m
Lateen sailboats would make their way past. Occasionally, a group of
fishermen would congregate on a broken concrete pier to pull in a drift
net (carried out by a row boat). Other Haitians, sometimes with goats,
would pass the compound on their way back and forth between a nearby
river and their homes.
Haitian fishermen, rowing past the Mission Possible compound, photo by Stephen Hermer
The water varied in colour between blue and turquoise depending on the time of day.
Bethany, a member of my team from Ohio, let me know that our breakfast
was ready (I had cereal and a glass of juice), so I sat in the outdoor
eating area and got to know the others a little better. Emily, Scott,
and eventually Dave came down for breakfast as well. Once we had
finished, we filled out water bottles for the day and loaded into an old
truck (perhaps an old cattle truck) for the drive to M.P.C.A.
The "cattle truck" we used for most of our transportation, photo courtesy of Scott Cantelo
Once we reached National Road 1, the smells and oppressive heat assailed
me again. I had not noticed either at the compound, right on the ocean
with a permanent breeze... but back on the highway and riding through
Lanzac, both were back. Even while passing the squalor of Lanzac, I
couldn't help but be struck by the beauty of the country, with the ocean
always to the right and mountains to the left.
Vocational school on the M.P.C.A. grounds, photo by Stephen Hermer
M.P.C.A. is the largest school operated by Mission Possible. With almost
1300 students and a dozen buildings, plus property all the way to the
ocean, it was a huge school! The Ohio members of our team had registered
students at two schools before we arrived, so they had a good strategy
for tackling this one. We setup in a nice shady area and divided into
two photography teams. I was paired with Stephanie, as was Emily. Scott
and Dave were paired with Theresa.
Stephen Hermer and Emily MacDOnald sort lanyards between groups of students, photo courtesy of Scott Cantelo
The process was pretty simple, as follows:
- Lindsay was organizing each class and handing out nametags, one per child.
- When a class was ready, a "runner" would bring the entire class down to our photography area.
- We would take each child's nametag, attach it to a lanyard, then
place the lanyard and nametag around the child's neck. For older
children, we often gave them the lanyard to put on themselves.
- The child, now wearing a nametag, stays in line until it is his or her turn to be photographed.
- When the time comes, the child is positioned to be photographed.
Generally, this meant having an attractive background and no other
children in frame. It also meant careful positioning to avoid sunlight,
as sunlight often spoiled the photos. It also often meant adjusting the
nametag, as the lanyard needed to be under the collar and even.
- After the photograph, the child is led off to the side, stripped on
the lanyard and nametag, and sent either to wait in a group or back to
class (depending on the teacher).
The photographs are used for the Mission Possible sponsorship
system, as sponsoring the children pays for the school and their healthy
meal every day.
At the beginning, my job was to help Stephanie get the child into
position and then guide them away after the photo was taken. I also
gathered up lanyards and name tags.The lanyards were reused for the
children, as we only had twenty or so. Nametags were used for a couple
of purposes... but mainly as a confirmation that the child was indeed
photographed. Some were reused, with the names of new children (or ones
without birth certificates) written on the blank side. Mission Possible
does not turn children away, and neither did we.
Half way through the day, we switched jobs and I started taking photographs.
We were dealing with much older children in the afternoon, photo courtesy of Scott Cantelo
With Stephanie helping, I took the photos of perhaps 300 children before
switching back with her... as I was starting to feel a little ill.
Bethany and the nurse were quite concerned, treating me as if I might
have cholera (better safe than sorry), and soon everyone was aware of my
cholera scare. Still, I managed to stay in action and worked until we
finished. Lindsay, our team leader, also had a scare. She was twelve
weeks pregnant and suffered heat exhaustion... but by the end of the day
she was feeling better as well.
Resting and waiting for transport back to the Mission Possible compound, photo courtesy of Scott Cantelo
We rode back to the compound in the cattle truck after a long, hot,
humid day. I was exhausted, sweaty and dirty, and still feeling ill.
Once we got back to the compound, I took a quick shower and changed into
cooler clothing to relax for the evening. Pastor Herve had the beach
gate unlocked and Lindsay had no work planned, so we had our first
chance to stroll the beach and relax.
Close up of the beach surface, photo by Stephen Hermer
Because I was feeling ill and exhausted from the long, hot day, I only
spent five minutes on the beach before heading back into the compound.
Still, I managed to find a handful of interesting shells and take some
video/photos, first.
The Mission Possible compound, as seen from the beach, photo by Stephen Hermer
You cannot go to a caribbean island and not take some photos of palm
trees... and the next photograph is the required "sunset on the ocean
through a palm leaf". Cliché? Maybe, but it was beautiful.
Sunset at the Mission Possible compound in Haiti, photo by Stephen Hermer
We ate a filling dinner and relaxed for the rest of the evening. I
filled my water bottle and went to bed around 10:30pm, feeling quite
ill. It was a good day, though, the Ohio team could not have gotten
through all the children today without our help... and those children
were fantastic.