Friday, January 8th the team decided to go to Citadelle Laferriere, a large fortress that sits on top of a mountain. The hike up was super intense!! Some of us decided to go up via horse, while the others braved the treacherous walk. No matter how you got up there, the view from the top was spectacular!! We learned a lot about Haitian history and culture, and overall it was a very nice day.

The team with Oscar (top right) and one of the Brother's (front and center) from the Asile that accompanied us for the day.

At the top of the Citadelle. 

Where they used to keep the prisoners back in the day! Very cramped quarters.

Later that evening, we met with Dr. Maklin, his wife and children, Oscar, and 2 members of the HMBN committee for dinner. We were able to talk about the trip, and the future of the project. It was a nice way to close out a successful week.

Delicious dinner in Cap Haitien.

Saturday, January 9th was the team's last morning in Haiti. Before we left, some of the team wanted to see some of the famous Caribbean beaches that Haiti is home to. Dr. Maklin was generous enough to give us a ride to check it out, allow us to splash around for a few hours, and drive us to the airport to make our flight home. What an amazing trip it was! Hopefully if you have read this you have a better sense for what we accomplished, experienced, and what really motivates us to work hard on this project.

Quick beach trip before our flight out.

- Nicole

Thursday, January 7th, we again split into 2 teams. AJ, Nimah, and Evan stayed to check on the water system that had been installed for the Brother's back in 2014 by a Living Water team from First Presbyterian Church of Richmond with the help of AJ. AJ and the Brother's have maintained in contact since, and is the reason we were invited to stay with them while we helped Dr. Maklin. In turn for their kindness, AJ and the rest of the team wanted to help out at the Asile any way possible. Nimah and Evan also conducted an as built of the guest house at the Asile for Dr. Maklin, as he would like to use the blueprints as a layout for a guest house for the Hospital, where visiting nurses and doctors can stay.

Because Frank was preoccupied with well work for a majority of the week, we wanted to give him an opportunity to visit the community. Frank, Shivangi, Nicole (me), and Jessica went out with Dr. Maklin to the remaining communities that will be serviced by the Hospital to administer more surveys, get a sense for the community structure, and really just try to talk to as many different representatives from the various communities as possible. We were amazed to see just how terrible the road conditions were in some places! See below video just to get a sense for what we're talking about.

We also were able to stop along the road and see how "Casabe" is made. Casabe is a thin, cracker-like bread made out of yucca. It is sweet, and was super delicious! We bought a whole bag to bring back to the Asile.

Casabe being made.

Later that evening we reunited as a team, shared what we had accomplished for the day, ate a delicious meal, and went to bed to prepare for the following day.

- Nicole

January 6^th, 2016 was the team’s Asile Day. We are very grateful to the Brothers of the Missionaries of the Poor for letting us stay in their guest house, and we designated a day to spend at the Asile- touring the grounds, playing with the children in the orphanage and disabled children’s house, and working on replacing one of the well pumps that supplies water to the facility. 

We started the day with a tour of the Asile, during which we learned that Oscar also met his wife there. The Brothers set him up with a girl in the Asile, and helped them have a wedding and build a house when they were done with their schooling. The heartwarming story made us appreciate this special place even more.

Nimah helping with lunch at the orphanage.

The tour ended at the faulty well, where Frank showed us the method that he and the team of workers, which included Oscar, were using to remove the oil that had accumulated in the well. Frank stayed and supervised the process, and the rest of us headed back to the Bethlehem House for disabled children to spend some time with them.  Like on Sunday morning, we found it difficult to see the conditions of these children. However, seeing the smiles on their faces and their affection as we played with them and helped feed them lunch made the experience worthwhile. We know these children are lucky to be at Asile, and we will definitely think of them and help the Brothers in any small ways we can moving forward.

In the afternoon we checked on the progress at the well. Frank and his team were eventually able to get the faulty pump out of the well, and install the new one that Frank had brought. However, the pump wasn’t running and Frank, AJ, Oscar and the others spent the afternoon troubleshooting to try and determine why the pump wasn’t receiving power. Meanwhile, Nimah, Evan and I worked on conducting a site survey and making a drawing of the guest house we were staying in for Dr. Maklin so that he could use it for reference in designing and building a guest house at his hospital site. Jessica and Francesca worked on organizing the data from the interviews we have been administering in the communities into a spreadsheet for future analysis. Despite frustration about the issues with the pump for the Asile, the team ended the day feeling productive and ready for our final day visiting the communities surrounding Plaine du Nord.

Evan (far left), Frank (second from right) and a few men from the Asile fixing the well.

- Shivangi

Today, January 5, 2016, the Dlo Geri team split up into two groups again. The first group, comprised of Jessica, Nicole and the team’s groundwater expert Frank, went back to the hospital site to perform the hydrogeological test on well B, the last well, and do a percolation test for the soil. The second group, comprised of AJ, Evan, Nimah, Francesca and Shivangi (me), drove with Dr. Maklin through more of the communities that would be served by the hospital project  to talk to people and collect information.  We dropped the first group off at the hospital site, and addressed the first obstacle before splitting up: well B had a pump in it since the construction crew had been using the well while on site. The previous day, we tried to lift out the pump, but it seemed to be around 30 feet down in the well and we were nervous about breaking the PVC pipe due to bending while removing it.  AJ asked Dr. Maklin to drive his truck up to the well casing so that he could stand up on top of the truck and hold onto the pipe. We were able to lift the pump out of the well successfully and proceed with the day’s goals.

Shivangi taking water samples at the well.

The second group then departed the hospital site with Dr. Maklin and saw for ourselves the poor road conditions in the rural communities. We stopped in the small town of Duty, then drove to Grison Garde where we visited Dr. Maklin’s clinic in Tovar (part of Grinson Garde), the Robert Ford Haitian Orphanage and School, and a state run clinic where Dr. Maklin works part time. Dr. Maklin said he was interested in water treatment at his clinics, and the team assessed the water assets at 2 Grison Garde clinics. Dr. Maklin told us that Grison Garde continues further down the main road we were on, but we decided to turn back and head to La Bruyere so that we wouldn’t be too far from the hospital site when the first group finished up there. In La Bruyere, we saw a big group gathered at one of the many wells Dr. Maklin had installed. Women and children took turns pumping water into their buckets to carry home.  We wondered how far away home was for some of the children we saw walking away with their buckets of water balanced on their heads.

At each of the communities we went to that day, we had the opportunity to conduct a survey and gather some basic information about the size and population, local government structure, and some of the issues they face. We learned that all of the local clinics are for primary care, and the doctors refer patients to the hospital when their condition is more serious. Milot, the site of a renowned hospital with affordable care, is very difficult and time consuming to travel to for people living in these communities because of the poor road conditions. Another hospital in Cap Haitien is a little closer in location but unaffordable for most people.  We drove back to the HMBN hospital site that afternoon with a renewed sense of motivation, realizing what this hospital would mean to the people living in the surrounding communities.  

Community members bringing water from the wells to their homes.

The second team (AJ, Nimah, Evan, and Francesca) finished earlier then expected going around to the communities, and used the remainder of the afternoon to do a site survey of the Hospital site, did an as built of the Hospital building, and performed a structural assessment/photo log of the Hospital. As the two teams finished up their work,  some of the men that had been helping out with the well wanted to learn more about water supply, treatment, and sources. Class was in session, as AJ and Frank went into professor mode and gave a mini lecture on their respective areas of expertise in water. Very cool to see!

Professor Frank!

Professor AJ!

- Shivangi and Nicole 

January 4^th of 2016 Dlo Geri split into two teams: one team, comprised of Nimah, Evan, and Shivangi, joined Frank, the team’s hydrogeologist, to test the three wells at the hospital site. Frank brought a 15 gallon per minute pump to test the yield of the wells, as well as sample bottles to test the water quality. The day was a success. The team was able to test 2 of the 3 wells, and they seemed to be producing a good yield that indicates an adequate water supply for the current demand for the hospital. Dr. Maklin has plans to expand the hospital to a final capacity of 200 beds, but will start by building a 60 bed facility. The team was joined by a few members of the local community that were eager to learn more about the system. They worked very hard, and caught on quickly to the technologies we were using. It was reassuring to see community members engaged early on in the process, as it sets a foundation for a sustainable project. 

Conducting flow rate tests at one of the wells.

Team two, comprised of Jessica, Nicole (myself), Francesca, and AJ, went into the community to survey locals. Francesca was able to sit down with a few community members and administer surveys, which gave her an opportunity to better understand the community structure, as well as the needs of the community. Furthermore, we were able to drive around and see how terrible the road conditions are. To drive 2 miles took more than 10 minutes – this just further proves how much Dr. Maklin’s hospital will help to improve lives. It will take much less time for these community members to seek medical attention. Driving around the community, we were also able to see just how much Dr. Maklin has done – he has installed over 70 wells, reducing the time it takes for locals to get water on average from 5 hours to just over 30 minutes. The community really loves and respects Dr. Maklin. We also had an opportunity to visit one of his clinics, of which he has 5, to see where he currently takes care of most of his patients. The facility is small, but offers a lot. The hospital will give him a much better opportunity to take care of much more patients. The evening concluded with a delicious meal prepared by the Brothers

Jessica pumping water from one of Dr. Maklin's community wells!

Francesca (center) administering surveys to community members.

Dr. Maklin's clinic (on right)

- Nicole

January 3^rd of 2016 Dlo Geri spent the morning volunteering at the orphanage for the disabled children here at the Asile. I think I can speak for the majority of the team when I say the initial shock factor of walking into the room was something we were not at all prepared for. These children were in bad condition, left by their parents and fortunately taken in by the Brothers to be cared for. However, the Brothers are limited with help so these children embrace any attention and affection. The children quickly began to warm up to us, and we each teamed up with a few of them to play. They were hugging us, holding our hands, and playing with us, just enjoying our presence. Once the initial shock factor had left us, we all really enjoyed our time. However, I will say it was a lot of work and renewed my respect for people who do this day in and day out. Afterwards, the team prepared for a community meeting that was being held at the hospital site. Dr. Maklin, the coordinator of the hospital project, had arranged it so that all communities that would be serviced by the hospital were present for the meeting. The meeting was a success. Francesca, the team’s translator, did an amazing job at representing the team, explaining our involvement with the hospital project, and answering any questions the congregation had. We also had Oscar there to help, who was our secondary translator for the project (and ended up being a very valuable team member with the well work) who grew up at the Asile. The team was also able to give out surveys to community members, collecting over 70 surveys. These surveys help to collect cultural, geographical, political, and other basic information. Dr. Maklin then gave a tour of the soon-to-be hospital grounds, explaining what purpose each room would serve. Afterwards, the team played with some local children. They loved our cell phones, but more specifically taking pictures! We were able to take some great photos with the kids (see below). Just like the previous day, our evening concluded with a team meeting where we discussed the day and went over our itinerary for the following day.

View of the hospital site.

Close up view of the hospital. Construction is well underway!

More views of the hospital construction.

Community members at the meeting, which was held at the hospital site. 

Francesca (on mic) representing Dlo Geri at the community meeting!

Dlo Geri team with Dr. Maklin (center) and Oscar (second from left).

Nimah (far left), Nicole (me, front and center), Francesca (back left), Evan (back right), and Shivangi (far right) taking a selfie with some community children. They loved taking pictures with our phones. 

- Nicole

January 2^nd of 2016 was Dlo Geri’s first official day in Cap Haitian, Haiti. We arrived approximately at 2:30PM and were welcomed almost immediately by Dr. Eugene Maklin, the doctor who is at the forefront of the Plaine du Norde hospital project for which Dlo Geri is designing the water and wastewater treatment system. Almost immediately the team realized we were not only immersing ourselves into this project, but also into an entirely new culture. The majority of the Haitian people were very friendly and welcoming, but we did find ourselves refraining from referring to ourselves as” Americans”, as this seemed to suggest we would pay for any and all types of services, even those we explicitly said we did not need but were forced upon us. An example being people helping us with our luggage, when we said we did not need the help, but did so anyway and expected compensation afterwards. Despite the chaos, we soon found ourselves in an “oasis” of sorts at the Brothers’ Asile. The Asile, far removed from the busy and noisy streets of Cap Haitian, hosts the Brothers of Missionaries of the poor who care for disabled children, orphaned children, and elders that have been left or abandoned. We took most of the afternoon to settle into the guest house, a spacious building complete with a kitchen, living space, and enough beds and bathrooms to accommodate 20 people comfortably.

The guest house (left). 

The inside of the guest house. 

We then enjoyed a lovely meal prepared by the Brothers. It gave us an opportunity to talk to the Brother’s, better introduce ourselves, and understand the kind of work they do here at the Asile. What the Brother’s have going on here is absolutely amazing! The love and compassion they have towards others is outstanding, and infectious. Just speaking with them and hearing their dedication towards their mission was so inspiring. It’s a real treat to be able to stay here during our work here in Haiti. Our evening concluded with a team meeting where we discussed the day and went over our itinerary for the following day. We all enjoyed a nice, cold (which was actually extremely refreshing) shower and headed to bed to rest up for the next day. 

Whole team (minus AJ) at Newark airport around 5AM, ready to go!

View of Haiti from the plane!

- Nicole