17961: Ray: 17950: Burnham: RE: 17943: (Hermantin)Sun-Sentinel-15-Westminsterstudents raise $3,000 to build sc (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Matt Ray <mray@novell.com>

Let me first say that I'm not bent out of shape and that I know you're
not talking about my group.

I do feel, that the experience of going to Haiti for these youngsters
is a good one.    How much building and painting will they do?   I don't
know.    Could that money have been better spent to pay Haitian
contractors to do the work?   Maybe, but the point is, the money was
raised to pay for the supplies, not to do the work.   The kids are doing
the work for free.     Something that helps that school even more.

But, I think the more important aspect of this project is the fact that
those kids are going to go home from this experience and think about it
for a long time.    Some of them may return.   Some of them may never
return.    But they will be better people because of it.    Now, that
doesn't necessarily help Haiti, specifically, but it will help the world
in general, to have someone who recognizes that there are people in
abject poverty somewhere in the world and they need to be careful with
their resources and maybe not be such a stingy, selfish,
take-everything-for-granted person.

Of course, another aspect is that one of those kids may end up doing
something really important for Haiti some day because of their
experience.   Maybe they'll build a hospital in Haiti or help some kid
get surgery done.    Maybe they'll send money to help build other
schools that Haitians will build.   I think it's Beyond Borders who does
what they call, Tranformational Travel.   They take people to Haiti to
have them "experience" Haiti and then when they go back to the US, they
support BB's programs with greenback.    The more people who "really"
experience Haiti, the more people will try to help Haiti.    I know that
my experience in Haiti when I was 19 transformed my life completely (I
wasn't there with BB, by the way).   I will never be the same again and
Haiti will be in my heart forever.

What does all this cost Haiti?   It will cost Haiti a week of wages for
some people who could have worked on painting the school.

What does Haiti gain?   Who knows.  It could be a little, it could be a
lot.    But at the very least, Haiti may gain a friend or friends for
life.    And Haiti can use all the friends it can get right now, don't
you agree?

Matt

Matt Ray
Volunteer Webmaster & Translator
Healing Hands for Haiti Foundation, Inc.
http://www.healinghandsforhaiti.org
mraymus@yahoo.com
661.588.4400