A Starfish Interview with Elisabeth Kennedy, Co-Founder of HELO Haiti 

1. How did you get involved with OSF? / How did OSF begin in your community?

This is a funny story. I met Andy by chance, through a friend. Allison Mead had travelled to Haiti with me several times and still sponsors one of our girls, Mydelie. After one of her trips, she was visiting a friend in the hospital and expressed her frustration/wish to be able to communicate with Mydelie via internet, but there was no internet in Laborde. Allison's friend replied, "You have to meet my friend Andy!"

Allison met Andy and told him all about HELO. Andy emailed, interested in working in Haiti, and I made plans for him to come visit HELO and several other locations he was interested in. We met at the Port au Prince airport. Allison described Andy as "a really tall white guy with grey hair" that I wouldn't be able to miss. I walked back and forth several times trying to find this really tall white guy outside the airport, and finally found him sitting down outside also looking for me. 

Honestly, Andy and I took a chance on each other, and we've never looked back. I hoped against hope that he would pick HELO for his first computer center in Haiti, but I took a gamble because I took him to see other orphanages and other schools. By the end of the trip, he told me he picked HELO because "we are a family, not an institution." I took a chance and won so very much for my students, and a relationship that I value tremendously. I think Andy won, too, because of the love that he has for the children of HELO, who love him just as much.

2. Tell us the story of your community.

HELO is an acronym for Home Education Love and Opportunity, which are the qualities I wanted to provide to children in Haiti. I'd been working in Haiti for several years (in medical settings mostly) and found that so many children were unable to go to school. So many children craved love and attention.  I am most fortunate that God led me to Les Cayes, which is so much safer than Port au Prince. I started the nonprofit in 2006. In 2007, I found a house that I loved in Laborde, 30 minutes outside of Les Cayes, and paid a year's rent with personal funds because I'm terrible at asking for money (or anything else) and thought if I made a personal investment, it would be easier to ask others.  After finding qualified parents, HELO started in that little house with ten beautiful children. The children were home schooled, a teacher came in to teach them each day. In 2009, we bought the large partial of land nearby and started building -- first a school. My vision was never as large as HELO has become, but with faith and necessity comes change. 2010 caused a tremendous growth at HELO as we went from that one little home to three and our school keeps growing to this day.

3. What are the biggest challenges your students face?

The biggest challenge my students face is their country, which has always been challenging but now is falling into chaos. Sadly, attempts to get the qualified students out of the country for college is also a challenge due to prejudices against Haiti. Thanks to the internet and OSF's computer center, many students are able to keep learning even when the schools are closed because of unrest. Thanks to the music studio and photography lab, children are able to create -- which is so important always, but especially in the midst of unrest and uncertainty. 

The educational system in Haiti is also an inherent challenge to all students. Teaching is in French, state exams are in French, if exams are not passed, students are barred from continuing. Exams take place in 9th, NS3 (12th) and NS4 (14th or "philo"). Many students are barred from high school, but even if they can continue to high school and do not pass at NS3 or 4, they cannot go on to college. HELO now has full-time vocational classes to help our students learn a trade, either a backup to college plans or a fall back if exams are failed.

4. Tell us the story of one of the students.

How do I pick one student? It's like picking a favorite child, I love them all. Every one of them. Let me pick Kendy because you all know him. 

Kendy will be 21 this summer. He is a true orphan and came to HELO in 2010. Kendy was always very shy but studious. He is a serious, deep thinker, a quiet observer, but he will speak out to injustice and stand firm. He is a man of quality, humble, and very kind. Kendy found his passion through OSF. Photography has changed his life. He started with a donated camera, gobbled up every opportunity to work with any volunteer who visited who had photography skills, some traveled with OSF and others traveled with HELO. It was We Make Movies that introduced Kendy to film making, and he took off and has never looked back. He is also very competent with computers, another skill he can credit to OSF and Paulo, our first computer teacher. This helps him tremendously in photography and film making as he navigates the programs, the MacBook, and the I-phones with ease. This past summer he taught a class at HELO, and thanks to his talent we now have other budding photographer/film makers. 

Kendy dreams of majoring in film, specifically in the United States. He wants to develop his talent and return to Haiti to open a film school and studio, we talk of film festivals and spreading talent throughout Haiti and the world. He is passionate, and given the opportunity, will excel and make an impact wherever he falls. 

Kendy holds fast to his dream and is currently taking English classes at the American University of the Caribbean in Les Cayes and has applied to the State University of New York. I pray he can safely get to the US Embassy and this time be awarded a well-deserved visa to further his studies.

The good is that Kendy was literally taken from the poorest area of Les Cayes where he had no future, no hope, no one and found a home at HELO. I do believe that Kendy found home, education, love and opportunity. I pray that the opportunity to further his studies and his enormous talent is realized this year. I hope this is just the beginning of his story.

5. How has OSF affected your kids?

I believe Kendy's story is one example of how OSF has affected HELO's children. Beyond the benefits of the internet, computers, music, photography, is the hope that OSF has given the eldest students in the form of scholarships. Statistics are about 2% of Haiti's youth can attend college. The hope of attending college is huge to our students. Statistics for girls is more stark -- average is 3 years of schooling. HELO has 1 college grad, 1 graduate from a Canadian program in hospitality and tourism, another girl in her 3rd year of college, and two about to apply to medical school. OSF's affect is immense.

6. What kind of changes have you seen in them?

Confidence -- students like Kendy and now Jameson who found such a confidence in themselves when they discovered a passion and something they excel at. Students like Jean Michel or Magda who have pursued their musical talent. Kenderson who has created beautiful beats and now has a small business creating music. I've watched passions ignited, and confidence gained as OSF continue to support them and the programs that introduced them to these gifts. And hope, the most valuable and powerful gift of all. I've seen eyes shine with the hope that OSF gives them to better their lives.

7. What are they learning?

Students are learning English, computer skills, job skills, music, photography, film making. 

8. What kind of opportunities has it created?

Opportunities created have been working with experts like Tony Black, Margot Bingham, Sam and Aubrey Mestman to name a few. Opportunities to explore music, photography, film that would not have been available otherwise. Opportunity to attend college. Opportunity to communicate with the outside world via the internet -- that first dream of Allison's that has become so powerful, from keeping in touch with friends/sponsors to apply for college, interviewing via Zoom, studying on line. 

9. How does this center benefit the community?

The center benefits the community because our students (450 total) have access and work on the computers both during and after school for research. Classes are taught outside of school -- all access English classes, several vocational programs, including beat making and photography as workshops.

10. What is your biggest hope for the center and the community?

My biggest hope for the center is that it grows. We have limited laptops to a large number of students. When I was in Haiti, I was working on updating and growing our space, I would like a library -- like a research area where students can come, research via internet or simply find a dictionary.... couches and tables designated for their use. Maybe book groups -- oh so many hopes and dreams. I was also teaching business skills like writing letters, sending emails, but that will be taken up by another teacher in my absence. 

The center and vocational school is very beneficial to the community because many adults enroll. As we expand our vocational school, more and more young adults and adults will be learning a trade and hopefully get work. 

11. Any particularly interesting stories you want to share from the center?

I spoke at the gala about our center, about the hope that OSF brings to HELO. These have been challenging years, throughout COVID we were able to do Zoom programs and classes, learning continued via the internet. OSF provided "you are not alone" Zoom calls. . . Then came a catastrophic earthquake, two of three schools destroyed, one home demolished. It was computers and We Make Movies that kept youth busy, creating, learning. Creation while there is so much destruction is powerful and healing. It kept our youth from despair. 2022-2023 has brought a new level of violence to Haiti. Most NGOs have left. Many schools are closed. Our students have a refuge, they kept studying via internet even when schools were closed. They kept creating. They keep creating. And above all, they have hope. They know they have HELO and OSF behind them, doing all that we can to help them succeed. Hope is powerful and priceless. 

12. What is the best way someone can help this center?

How can people help? We need computers. We have 8-10 to over 450 students. We have two macbooks -- one is the original from goodness I'm not sure what year; the other for We Make Movies with two i-phones. One Macbook is loaned to Kendy as he works on another films, and Kenderson has the older one which he uses for beatz. While students in both photography and music are using Dells or Thinkpads, we all know the macbooks are best for creating. But, no one complains, I assure you! well, maybe a little about wanting their own, but they understand these are for the center for everyone's use. We recently had a drone donated for use in film making (I'm excited to see what Kendy does, but even more so for Jameson, who specifically asked for it). We have two printers that limp along. All that to say, if people want to help, they could help with hardware or cash donations (it'll be a lot easier to purchase a printer in Haiti, for example) and to purchase furniture and books to create the center of my dreams. They can donate to OSF scholarships -- which literally change lives.