Profiles of our Lay Missionaries
Art teacher, Liz Lawne has been working in an orphanage run by our mission
partner, Our Little Brothers and Sisters in Haiti since July 2010. The
orphanage is located in the mountains of Kenscoff, an area of great beauty.
Some months after arriving in Haiti Liz wrote, “I am blessed to be volunteering
in such a place, surrounded by nature and breathtaking scenery which is sadly
in stark contrast to the grim and abject poverty which defines the streets of
the capital.”
“With Irish Aid funds the orphanage grounds have been completely landscaped
with a wide variety of wholesome vegetables, providing employment for local
men. The children participate in the sowing, tending, harvesting and eating
of the vegetables.
In April (2012), Liz updated us further: Since arriving back in Haiti after the Christmas
break I have been working on developing the Special Education program. Over
a three-week period I interviewed many teachers. I was very surprised to find
that these qualified teachers were not necessarily adept to working with
special needs children. In the end, I was very lucky to find a wonderful bright
young woman,not a trained teacher but who has buckets of energy and is
excellent with the children. Marie Carmel and I got to work straight away.
Christian Millien, who grew up in the orphanage and who is visually impaired
and disabled and Gladimere an older adolescent, who has behavioural learning
difficulties, work with us as classroom assistants. With fifteen Special Needs
students in total attending this program daily, it soon became apparent that
we really needed another teacher.
Once more luck shined its light on us in the form of local man Mourisette. We started training him as a Special Education teacher in the middle of February. He has proved to be hardworking and very kind with the children.
During the month of March when I had little or no time to work in the Special
Needs classroom due to several deadlines, these two teachers along with the
assistants did an outstanding job of running the classroom to a high
standard by themselves. The Special Education classroom really is a joyful
place to come and work each day. Witnessing these children achieving small
successes, such as learning to hold a paintbrush, learning to write the number
2 or learning to read is truly a gift, one for which I’m very grateful.”