Starfysh

STARFYSH HAS DETERMINED TO FOCUS ON ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOST DESPERATE GEOGRAPHIC LOCALES AND PEOPLE GROUPS: THAT OF THE ISLAND OF LA GONAVE, HAITI. IT IS BOTH OUR PURPOSE AND OUR EXPECTATION THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO REVERSE THE CYCLE OF POVERTY THERE THROUGH THE ADDRESSING OF ESSENTIAL INFRASTRUCTURAL NEEDS (WATER, AGRICULTURE, HEALTH) WHILE DEVELOPING A MODEL FOR SUSTAINING THOSE IMPROVEMENTS (EDUCATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT). WHILE WORKING TOWARD THESE GOALS, WE WILL NOT IGNORE THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR DEMONSTRATING CHRISTIAN COMPASSION IN TIMES OF URGENT, IMMEDIATE, AND DESPERATE NEED.

EDUCATION ALL AGREE THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL THING THAT MUST BE REPAIRED IN HAITI IS HER BROKEN EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM. ONLY HALF OF PRIMARY SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN IN HAITI ARE ENROLLED IN SCHOOL. ONLY 22% OF CHILDREN IN HAITI ATTEND SECONDARY SCHOOL. FEWER THAN 2% OF CHILDREN IN HAITI FINISH SECONDARY SCHOOL. 70% OF STUDENTS IN HAITI FAIL NATIONAL TESTS. 40% OF ADULTS IN HAITI ARE ILLITERATE. 90% OF ALL SCHOOLS IN HAITI ARE PRIVATELY OWNED AND RUN BY CHURCHES AND OTHER NON-GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATIONS. 10% ARE GOVERNMENT-RUN. IF THE PEOPLE OF THE DESTITUTELY-POOR ISLAND OF LA GONAVE, HAITI ARE TO EVER RISE FROM THEIR MISERY PERMANENTLY, IT WILL NOT BECAUSE OF OUTSIDE HELP, BUT BECAUSE HER OWN PEOPLE DO THE RAISING. WE RECOGNIZE THIS, AND HAVE PLACED A HIGH PRIORITY IN EDUCATING, TRAINING, AND DEVELOPING YOUNG LEADERS. OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS, STARFYSH HOPES TO IMPACT THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM OF LA GONAVE AT MANY LEVELS. CREOLE LANGUAGE RESOURCES SINCE THERE ARE VERY FEW BOOKS AND RESOURCES IN THE HAITIAN CREOLE LANGUAGE, WE WILL WORK TO PRODUCE THEM. THUS FAR WE HAVE PUBLISHED THE PRESCHOOL READER, AN NOU LI (LETS READ) AND VWAYAJ YO AVEK TWIGA (TRAVELS WITH TWIGA), A CHILDRENS STORY WRITTEN AS A MENTOR TEXT THAT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHERS CAN FOLLOW IN WRITING STORIES THEMSELVES. IN ADDITION TO PROVIDING THE BOOKS TO CHILDREN AND ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHERS ON LA GONAVE, WE ARE HOPEFUL THE BOOKS WILL ALSO FIND THEIR WAY TO CHILDREN AND SCHOOLS THROUGHOUT THE REST OF HAITI. STARFYSHS VISION IS TO RAISE THE ISLANDS LITERACY BY NOT ONLY TEACHING CHILDREN HOW TO READ, BUT INSTILLING IN THEM A PASSION TO LEARN AND INSTILLING IN TEACHERS A PASSION TO TEACH. TEACHER TRAINING WE HAVE EXPERIENCED AN OVERWHELMING EAGERNESS AMONG THE ISLANDS SCHOOL TEACHERS TO LEARN THEMSELVES, TO IMPROVE THEIR TEACHING SKILLS. WE SPONSOR AND CONDUCT SEVERAL TEACHER WORKSHOPS AND CONFERENCES EVERY YEAR AND ARE CONTINUALLY AMAZED AT THE ENERGY AND RECEPTIVITY AMONG THE TEACHERS WHO ATTEND. IN ADDITION TO PROVIDING TEACHING TECHNIQUES, OUR TEACHER TRAINING CONFERENCES ARE A TIME OF MOTIVATION AND TEAM-BUILDING. THE REPUTATION OF OUR CONFERENCES QUALITY IS SPREADING TO SCHOOLS ACROSS EVEN THE FAR REACHES OF THE ISLAND, TO THE EXTENT THAT IT IS HARD TO TURN AWAY VILLAGE SCHOOLS WHO WANT TO SEND THEIR TEACHERS TO OUR CONFERENCES. SPONSORING A TEACHER OR EVEN AN ENTIRE CONFERENCE IS A GREAT WAY TO INVEST IN THE LIVES OF NOT ONLY TEACHERS, BUT IN THE LIVES OF CHILDREN FOR YEARS TO COME. SCHOOLS HIGH PRIORITY IS PLACED ON MAKING IT POSSIBLE FOR CHILDREN TO ATTEND SCHOOL. WHERE SCHOOLS ALREADY EXIST WE WILL RESOURCE THEM. IN VILLAGES WHERE THERE ARE NO SCHOOLS, WE WILL DO WHAT WE CAN TO SEE THAT THEY HAVE ONE. OUR PILOT EXAMPLE IS MAKOCHON, A VILLAGE IN THE MOUNTAINS OF LA GONAVE WHO, AS OF A FEW YEARS AGO, HAD NEVER HAD A SCHOOL FOR ITS CHILDREN TO ATTEND. TAKING OUR TIME, WE DEVELOPED RELATIONSHIPS WITH MAKOCHONS PARENTS, CHILDREN, AND LEADERS AND SET INTO MOTION THE VISION OF STARTING A SCHOOL. TODAY, THERE IS A VIBRANT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WITH PASSIONATE TEACHERS AND ENERGETIC STUDENTS WHO EAT A NUTRITIOUS MEAL EVERY DAY AND PASS THEIR NATIONAL TESTS AT A RATE THAT FAR SURPASS HAITIS NATIONAL AVERAGE. PRACTICAL LIFE SKILLS READING, WRITING, AND ARITHMETIC ARE FUNDAMENTALLY IMPORTANT, BUT ONLY SO FAR AS THESE TRANSLATE INTO IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR OURSELVES, OUR FAMILIES, OUR VILLAGES, AND OUR ISLAND. IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT WE INFUSE LEARNING WITH THE THINGS THAT WILL BE USEFUL NOT JUST FOR SURVIVING, BUT FOR THRIVING AND PROSPERING, TOO, AS EACH FINDS HIS/HER PERSONAL ROLE IN RAISING LA GONAVE UP TO WHAT SHE CAN BE. TOPICS LIKE NUTRITION, GARDENING/FARMING, SOIL MANAGEMENT, HEALTH AND HYGEINE, BUSINESS CREATION/MANAGEMENT, SKILLED TRADES, LEADERSHIP, ETC. MUST BE INTEGRATED INTO THE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE SO THAT STUDENTS ARE READY TO TAKE THE IMPORTANT NEXT STEPS AFTER GRADUATING.

ISLAND HEALTH ANY SERIOUS ATTEMPT AT RAISING THE HEALTH OF A COMMUNITY MUST START WITH HYGEINE. THE STARTLING REALITY IS, FEWER THAN 10% OF ALL FAMILIES ON THE ISLAND OF LA GONAVE, HAITI HAVE A HOUSEHOLD LATRINE. THE GERMS OF HUMAN WASTE SEEP THEIR WAY INTO THE SURFACE SPRINGS WHERE THE FAMILY WATER IS OFTEN GATHERED. SHOELESS CHILDREN RUN AND PLAY ON GROUND WHERE INTESTINAL PARASITES LIE IN WAIT FOR THEIR NEXT HUMAN HOST. THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT IT COSTS VERY LITTLE TO CONSTRUCT A HOUSEHOLD LATRINE. A DEEP PIT CAPPED WITH A CONCRETE BASE AND STOOL CAN BE BUILT IN JUST A FEW DAYS. COMMUNITY HEALTH EDUCATION (CHE) IS, WITHOUT QUESTION, THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY TO IMPROVE THE OVERALL HEALTH IN A PLACE LIKE LA GONAVE. MEASURING THE IMPACT OF CHE DEMANDS MORE TIME AND PATIENCE. UNLIKE TREATING ACUTE ILLNESS, LIKE CHOLERA OR INTESTINAL PARASITES, ETC., CHES RESULTS ARE REALIZED IN THE LONG RUN AS WE SEE THE INCIDENCE OF PREVENTABLE ILLNESSES GOING DOWN, HEALTHIER CHILDREN LEARNING BETTER AND MISSING LESS SCHOOL, AND THEIR PARENTS BEING MORE ENERGETIC IN THEIR GARDENS AND WORK. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT THE SAD REALITY IS THAT THE ISLAND OF LA GONAVE CURRENTLY HAS VERY LITTLE IN THE WAY OF AN ECONOMY, WITH VERY FEW GOODS OR SERVICES BEING PRODUCED THAT COULD ECONOMIC LIFT BY BRINGING DOLLARS TO THE ISLAND. THE GREAT MAJORITY OF LA GONAVIAN BUSINESSES ARE TINY STREET VENDORS WHO SELL PRODUCE AND MERCHANDISE IMPORTED FROM HAITIS MAINLAND. A FEW LARGER BUSINESSES DO EXIST (E.G., CASKET-MAKERS, CINDERBLOCK MAKERS, ETC.) BUT EVEN THESE BUSINESSES HAVE LA GONAVE AS THEIR ONLY MARKET. THE ISLAND HAS NO EXPORTS, NONE EVEN TO HER COUNTRYMEN ON THE MAINLAND. NOT COUNTING DOLLARS BROUGHT IN BY FOREIGN CHARITIES AND NON-GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATIONS, THE VAST MAJORITY OF LA GONAVES DOLLARS FLOW AWAY FROM THE ISLAND. SEQUESTERED BY THE SEA, LA GONAVE SEEMS TO BE ON HER OWN. THE DEGREE TO WHICH OUR EFFORTS BEGIN TO THRIVE ON THEIR OWN WILL DEPEND ON THE EXTENT TO WHICH WE ARE SUCCESSFUL AT BUILDING LOCAL CAPACITY AND ECONOMY. TO THAT END, IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT WE BIRTH AND STIMULATE VILLAGE ECONOMIES THAT WILL ENABLE THOSE COMMUNITIES TO ASSUME BOTH CONTROL AND FUNDING OF THE INITIATIVES WE SET IN MOTION. IF THE VILLAGE IS TO PROSPER, IT WILL ONLY BE BECAUSE SHE PROSPERS FROM THE INSIDE OUT, NOT VICE-VERSA. A CAREFUL LOOK AT STARFYSHS VARIOUS PROJECT EFFORTS (E.G., AGRICULTURE, EDUCATION, ETC.) REVEALS THE IMPORTANCE WE PLACE IN INTEGRATING A ECONOMIC MODEL INTO THE PROJECT DESIGN. CLEAN WATER ONE TECHNOLOGY WE HAVE FOUND TO BE EXTREMELY EFFECTIVE AND ACCEPTED BY THE PEOPLE OF LA GONAVE IS BIO-SAND FILTRATION (WWW.CDC.GOV/SAFEWATER/SAND- FILTRATION.HTML). THOUGH IT IS POSSIBLE TO MAKE THEM OUT OF CONCRETE RIGHT ON SITE IN A FAMILYS HOME, WE HAVE FOUND THAT THE MOST TIME-EFFICIENT, COST-EFFICIENT WAY OF GETTING BIO-SAND FILTERS INTO THE OVER-10,000 HOMES ACROSS THE MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN OF LA GONAVE IS TO USE A COMMERCIALLY MANUFACTURED, LIGHT-WEIGHT YET HEAVY-DUTY, STACKABLE BIO-SAND UNIT CALLED HYDRAID ONE TRUCK FLATBED CAN EASILY HAUL 100 FILTERS AT A TIME. WE STILL NEED TO HAUL HEAVY SAND AND GRAVEL, BUT NO CONCRETE. THE FILTERS ARE EASY TO INSTALL AND REQUIRE NO ELECTRICITY. OUR FIRST STEP TOWARD THIS VISION HAS BEEN TO INSTALL RAINWATER CATCHMENT SYSTEMS IN LIFE GARDEN AND AT MAKOCHONS NEW SCHOOL. THE 12,000 GALLONS OF WATER IN THE SCHOOLS CISTERN WILL BE PLENTY OF WATER TO SUSTAIN THE SCHOOLS GARDEN AND TREES. SO FAR, WE HAVE 8,000 GALLONS OF RAINWATER CISTERNS AT LIFE GARDEN. WHEN DRY TIMES COME, LIFE GARDEN WILL CONTINUE TO NURTURE YOUNG TREES FOR FUTURE PLANTING. PHASE ONE OF OUR RAINWATER HARVESTING VISION IS TO SEE EVERY LARGE BUILDING ON THE ISLAND (SCHOOLS, CHURCHES, ETC.) STORING WATER HARVESTED FROM ITS ROOF. PHASE TWO OF OUR VISION IS TO SEE SMALL RAINWATER CISTERNS NEXT TO EVERY HOME, STORING THE FREE FRESHWATER THAT DROPS TO ITS ROOF DURING THE RAINY SEASON. EVERY GALLON OF CAUGHT RAINWATER IS A GALLON THAT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE FETCHED FROM A DISTANT SOURCE, AND SO IT STANDS TO REASON THAT CATCHING RAIN CAN FREE UP CHILDREN TO ATTEND SCHOOL AND PARENTS TO ATTEND TO OTHER IMPORTANT TASKS. COFFEE LIFE GARDEN COFFEE IS AN INITIATIVE OF STARFYSH, A NON-PROFIT, GRASSROOTS MOVEMENT ESTABLISHED IN 2010 TO PROVIDE MEANINGFUL AND SUSTAINABLE TRANSFORMATION TO 100,000 HAITIANS LIVING ON THE ISLAND OF LA GONAVE. STARFYSH HAS CHOSEN TO FOCUS ON THIS ONE ISLAND, KNOWN AS THE FORGOTTEN HAITI. OUR GOAL IS TO HELP ITS PEOPLE OVERCOME DESPERATE POVERTY THROUGH VARIOUS INITIATIVES INCLUDING CLEAN WATER, EDUCATION, AND AGRICULTURE. LIFE GARDEN IS THE HEART OF STARFYSHS AGRICULTURAL EFFORTS, CENTERED AROUND ITS AGRICULTURE RESEARCH AND DEMONSTRATION GARDENS, A 6 ACRE, MULTI-SITE CAMPUS WHERE SEEDLINGS ARE NURTURED FOR DISTRIBUTION AND WHERE FARMERS CAN COME TO LEARN FARMING CONCEPTS AND TECHNOLOGIES THAT WILL HELP THEM BETTER GROW FOOD FOR THEIR FAMILY AND TO SELL AT MARKET. LIFE GARDEN COFFEE IS GROWN AND HARVESTED, ONE HAND-PICKED BEAN AT A TIME, BY HAITIAN FARMERS, ORGANIZED IN FARMING COOPERATIVES, FROM WHOM WE PURCHASE THEM AT A FAIR AND MEANINGFUL PRICE THAT SUPPORTS THEIR FAMILIES. FINALLY, YOU WILL BE INTERESTED TO KNOW THAT 100% OF PROFITS OF SALES WILL BE INVESTED BY STARFYSH DIRECTLY BACK INTO PLANTING COFFEE AND FRUIT TREES IN OUR EFFORT TO REPLENISH AND RESTORE HAITIS LANDSCAPE WITH LIFE-GIVING GARDENS AND FORESTS.

AGRICULTURE FEW DISAGREE THAT AGRICULTURE WILL PLAY A CRITICAL ROLE IN THE OVERALL DEVELOPMENT PICTURE OF HAITI. RE-ESTABLISHING THE STRENGTH AND PRIMACY OF THE FAMILY FARM MUST BE AN EMPHASIS IN ANY THOUGHTFUL STRATEGY TO BRING TRANSFORMATIVE CHANGE TO THIS LAND. MUCH IS HEARD ABOUT HAITIS ECOLOGICALLY DISTRESSED LANDSCAPE. BUT IN OUR EXPLORATION OF LA GONAVES 387-SQUARE MILES, WE SEE GREAT AND EXCITING POTENTIAL FOR RESTORING HER LAND. INDEED, MUCH OF LA GONAVE IS MOUNTAINOUS, BUT THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF PARCELS OF FERTILE GROUND, SOME LARGE, SOME SMALL, JUST WAITING TO BE CULTIVATED. SOME SAY THE TOPSOIL IS GONE, BUT WE DISAGREE. MUCH OF THE LAND, INDEED, IS BARREN, PARCHED, AND NON-PRODUCTIVE. BUT THE SOIL IS THERE, JUST WAITING IT SEEMS, TO BE REJUVENATED, PLOWED, AND PLANTED. STARFYSH HAS BEGUN THE GREAT TASK OF RESTORING THE LAND BY SUPPLYING FARMERS WITH SEEDS, TREES, AND LIVESTOCK. THIS INITIAL STRATEGY WILL, OF COURSE, BE AN IMPORTANT ASPECT OF OUR ONGOING WORK. BUT WE MUST ALSO BE ABOUT THE HARD WORK OF MAKING SURE OUR WORK LASTS. WE MUST TAKE THE LONG VIEW. IN ADDITION TO SUPPLYING SEEDS AND PLANTING TREES, WE MUST TRAIN FAMILY FARMERS AND AGRI-BUSINESSMEN AND WOMEN TO CARRY ON THE WORK AS WE MOVE ON TO OTHER ISLAND LOCALES. FOOD STORAGE, SEED SALVAGE, COMPOSTING, PEST CONTROL, FERTILIZATION, RAINWATER HARVESTING, AND IRRIGATION TECHNIQUES MUST BE TAUGHT. IN SOME CONTEXTS, SUCH AS HOMES WITH NO TILLABLE LAND, NON-TRADITIONAL (E.G., CONTAINER AND ROOFTOP GARDENING) TECHNIQUES WILL BE TAUGHT. WE HAVE ESTABLISHED A GROVE OF APPROXIMATELY 1,200 MORINGA TREES. THESE TREES ARE BEING USED FOR A) SOURCE OF SEEDS, B) TRANSPLANTING, C) LEAF HARVESTING, PROCESSING, AND PACKAGING. MORINGA, OUNCE-FOR-OUNCE, ONE OT THE MOST NUTRITIOUS FOOD SOURCES IN THE WORLD, GROWS WELL EVEN IN THE MOST TROUBLED SOILS AND HAS GREAT POTENTIAL HERE AS SOURCE OF NUTRITION WHERE DISEASES STEMMING FROM MALNUTRITION ARE SO PREVALENT. MOUNTAIN CAMPUS STARFYSH HAS RECENTLY SIGNED A LONG-TERM LEASE FOR ANOTHER 4-ACRE SITE IN THE MOUNTAINS. THIS PARTICULAR SITE IS OBVIOUSLY FAR DIFFERENT FROM OUR SEA-LEVEL CAMPUS, ITS SOIL BLACK, FERTILE, AND ROCK- FREE. HERE WE WILL BE ABLE TO PROPAGATE TREES TO GREATER MATURITY BEFORE RE-PLANTING, ENHANCING THEIR PROBABILITIES FOR SURVIVAL. THIS CAMPUS WILL LEND ITSELF WELL TO PROPAGATING SPECIES THAT THRIVE AT ELEVATION (E.G., COFFEE, CACAO, ETC.)

RELIEF NOT ALL OF STARFYSHS EFFORTS FALL INTO THE CATEGORY OF DEVELOPMENT. FROM TIME TO TIME, WE ARE MADE AWARE OF AN URGENT AND EXTRAORDINARY NEED TO WHICH WE ARE COMPELLED TO RESPOND. SUCH WAS THE CASE LAST SUMMER WHEN THE ISLAND WAS NEAR-FAMINE CONDITIONS AND WE PROVIDED FOOD TO SEVERAL HUNDRED WHO WERE FACING STARVATION CONDITIONS. MORE RECENTLY, IN EARLY 2022, WE PROVIDED FUNDS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A SMALL APARTMENT FACILITY (NEAR THE SALT FLATS) WHERE, TO-DATE, SEVEN HOMELESS PEOPLE HAVE SINCE MOVED IN AND ARE BEING CARED FOR. AGAIN THIS YEAR, WE ARE KEEPING OUR EYE ON THE HUNGER SITUATION ON LA GONAVE. AND, AS IN EVERY YEAR, WE HOLD OUR COLLECTIVE BREATH UNTIL WE GET THROUGH THE SUMMER/FALL HURRICANE SEASON.