The Blog

Looking Back, Moving Forward

As we all approach the celebration of a New Year, we also look back on the years that have passed. For those of us at Haitian Families First, the New Year brings memories of the destruction caused by the January 12, 2010 earthquake, and of the heroism of our founders, Jamie and Ali McMutrie. They kept the children of the orphanage they were then directing safe and healthy despite the destruction of their building and despite the scarcity of food, water, and medical supplies in the earthquake’s immediate aftermath.

The week that followed January 12, 2010 was a dramatic and traumatic one for many of us. Jamie and Ali saved a lot of lives and a lot of families in those days, a fact to which the media coverage of them has testified. But what hasn’t been caught on film—not yet, anyway—is the fact that they have saved a lot of lives and a lot of families in the two years since the earthquake.

Every day, all day, they travel all over the city and all over the small nation of Haiti helping families in need: men who have lost their wives in child birth, who do not have the means of feeding their newborns, let alone access to reliable childcare. Single mothers who, despite having employment, still cannot afford to send their children to school. Parents who, because they cannot afford medical care, are forced to relinquish their children to an orphanage or watch them suffer at home.

This has been the daily reality Jamie and Ali McMutrie have faced alongside many families since their return to Haiti almost two years ago. And it is a reality we at Haitian Families First want to share with you.

Starting on January 12, 2012, we will be launching a social-media campaign to share with our supporters what Jamie and Ali’s work in Haiti is like now, and what we at Haitian Families First hope to accomplish in the future. Every day, we will tell a different story about our organization and the people with whom we work, both in the U.S. and in Haiti. So be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Our journey continues, and we want you to be part of it.

Jean C. Griffith, Executive Director, Haitian Families First