Wanted to share with you what our wonderful supporter Shelby Rondeau had to say about #FOHO today: Just as many of you, I genuinely appreciate my life every single day and not just on Thanksgiving. But as the holiday approaches, it seems we all become a little bit more in tune to the joys in our lives and we hold our families and friends a little bit tighter. I am so thankful for the love that surrounds me and I feel so blessed to have so many diverse, strong and beautiful people in my life. And it may sound strange, but that even includes many of my friends here that I never actually see in person, but who still bring light into my life just by opening windows to their worlds with pictures and stories that they share on FB. You make me smile and I am thankful for all of you. In this moment of reflection, I want to share with you a cause that I support called the Future of Haiti Organization, or FOHO. It is an orphanage in Haiti where all children come from below-poverty-line level families, and is run by two amazing people, Leslie Person Hobbs and Claude Reginald Jean. Some children at FOHO have been orphaned by the earthquake in 2010 or other natural disasters, some have been abandoned, and some have been voluntarily entrusted to FOHO by families who could not afford to feed them. FOHO provides these children with nutritious food, safe shelter, and quality education. But it goes well beyond that. The main goal of FOHO is to educate these children to the level that they will move on to professional careers and be able to contribute to the quality of life in their country. Many of us look at Haiti as outsiders and think they need to leave in order to find better opportunities, but the reality is that this is their country, and they need to improve the country for themselves and create better opportunities at home. And that is why FOHO is so inspiring. Leslie and Claude Jean are working to make FOHO the world’s first self-sustaining orphanage. They have installed a 120-chicken coop, they have an organic gardener who is donating her time to design an organic fruit and vegetable garden, and they are currently raising funds to install an onsite bakery to bake bread for the children and also be able to sell for income. I encourage you to take a look at their site, read more about what they do, see the children, and even reach out to Leslie or Claude or for more info. There are many ways to help –one way is to sponsor a child for their food ($30/month), education ($30/month), or both ($60/month). You can also make a one-time donation, or even buy one of their wall calendars for $20. These are real people running FOHO, and these are real children that need help. There are sometimes even opportunities to Skype with “your child” or send them notes. Donating or volunteering is a very personal decision and I’m not writing this to stand on a soap box or pressure anyone. I just want you to know more about FOHO because I think it’s a very special place. futurehaiti.org
Posted on: Wed, 12 Nov 2014 04:48:16 +0000