Dear Hope for Haiti Family:
As we approach World Water Day on March 22, we are reminded of the critical importance of access to clean water for communities around the world. At Hope for Haiti, we remain committed to providing sustainable solutions to water access and sanitation in Haiti, where access to safe water remains a significant challenge.
Through our partnerships with local organizations and community leaders, we have made significant progress in improving access to clean water in some of the most rural areas of southern Haiti. However, there is still much work to be done.
On this World Water Day, we invite you to join us in our efforts to create a world where everyone has access to safe and clean water.
Recognizing World Water Day
Less than half of Haitians in rural areas have access to water, and an estimated 24% of Haitians living in rural communities have access to a toilet. With your support, our WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene) team is working to change that for thousands of families in rural southern Haiti. In partnership with the Rotary Club of Naples, the Rotary Club of Les Cayes, and HANWASH – Haiti National Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Initiative, we have dug wells, built water catchment systems, and repaired existing water sources.
Additionally, our WASH team provides water filters, as well as hygiene and sanitation training in schools and community programs. In calendar year 2022, Hope for Haiti distributed 9,937 Sawyer home water filtration systems that last up to 10 years and filter up to a million gallons of water. The Sawyer Products filtration systems distributed by Hope for Haiti in total have filtered 83,195,200 gallons of water.
For World Water Day on March 22, our WASH team is hosting an educational session for 40 mothers and their children from our Nutrition Program about water safety and hygiene. In preparation, the team also conducted an in-depth, five-day WASH training for teachers at Rotary partner schools last week.
Mountaintop Mobile Clinic
Our Mobile Clinic team hiked the equivalent of 200 flights of stairs to summit the mountain in Marre à Coiffe – a rural community in Haiti – earlier this month. This is a trek the residents make almost daily to get to the local primary school, clean water, and healthcare. After hiking the 10.5 miles carrying medical equipment and medicine, the team provided care for 202 patients.In rural communities like this one, mobile clinics may be a patent’s first time seeing a doctor.
This challenging but beautiful hike is what inspired our annual hashtagHikeforHaiti Challenge – where people from around the world walk or hike in solidarity to help raise money for our education, healthcare, and WASH programming in communities like Marre à Coiffe. You can join us in person or hike in your community. Sign up today, before the challenge kicks off on April 1!
More From Last Week’s International Women’s Day
In recognition of International Women’s Day (March 8, 2023), Hope for Haiti organized a walk through Les Cayes, Haiti, ending at our Infirmary St. Etienne, where patient exams and cervical and breast cancer screenings were offered at no cost. More than 600 participants joined the walk.Additionally, our team hosted discussions about women’s health, women’s finance, and more at the clinic.
Our Healthcare team has continued offering free breast cancer and cervical cancer screenings/exams every day this month,and will do so throughout March.
Join the global, feel-good movement and make the climb in your community! Climb 200 flights on your own time, anywhere – whether in your gym, home, office, or out in nature! If you don’t have access to stairs or a way to climb, you can walk or run 22,000 steps (approx. 10.5 miles).
Los Angeles Kick-Off Event
Join us in-person at the Hike for Haiti kick-off event at Temescal Canyon Trail in Pacific Palisades, CA, on March 31, 2023! This special kick-off event will feature a scenic hike led by select talent and Hope for Haiti staff, exclusive swag and giveaways, and more. Tickets are extremely limited – register today!
Naples Activation
Join us at Baker Park (50 Riverside Circle, Naples, FL) from 9 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 13. Together, we’ll walk the 1.3-mile loop (pet-friendly and ADA-accessible) in solidarity with the families in Marre à Coiffe. This family event provides a great opportunity for hikers to get their steps in for the challenge and to raise awareness in the Naples community about the Hike for Haiti campaign. To register, sign up for the ‘Hike In Your Community’ option. Registration is also open on the day of the event.
For questions, sponsorship, or partnership information, please email taylor@hopeforhaiti.com.