As the weeks, then months, pass by since the devastating Haiti earthquake of Jan. 12, the University of the Virgin Islands continued working to keep Haiti’s needs on the front burner Monday with a consciousness and fund-raising breakfast on St. Croix.
Andre McBean, a native of Haiti who has resided on St. Croix for more than 40 years, gave an emotional description of his experience flying out of Haiti just two hours before the quake and his work gathering supplies since then.
McBean went to Haiti twice in the past several years to learn more about doing sculpture in wood, most recently in January.
"For some reason, I decided to go back home early," he said. There were no flights available Sunday or Monday, but finally he was able to get a flight that Tuesday, he said. "It was expensive to change the flight, but I took the brunt of the cost and paid," he said. "I got on the flight without a thought, and I did not really know anything had happened until afterwards when I arrived and my wife met me saying how glad she was to see me safe."
McBean has a house in Laboule (a hillside suburb of Port-au-Prince) that was damaged but is still standing; and while he has no family back in Haiti, he has friends, he said.
"Some of my friends had close calls; some lost limbs and many have lost vehicles and homes, but everyone is OK. At least no one was killed," he said.
Since then, McBean spearheaded an aid drive through People United for a Better Virgin Islands and Gentlemen of Jones, collecting more than 360 boxes of food and medical supplies and filling a 40-ft. shipping container.
"People were so giving on St. Croix," he said. "Even kids helped with what they could. I remember … a young kid gave us a bag with $48 in pennies from breaking open his piggy bank."
For now, McBean said he thinks he can be of more use collecting on St. Croix, leaving the field work to groups like Doctors Without Borders and the Red Cross. But he plans to go back at some point. Meanwhile in Haiti, "they are in good spirits and have good hope for the future," he said. "With such a catastrophe, it has been unbelievably quiet. You have not been hearing about a lot of looting or chaos."
Cathy Daniel, Haiti coordinator for Speak the Word Ministries, said her church has been focusing especially on the needs of women, collecting baby formula, diapers, wipes and feminine products that are in very short supply in Haiti right now.
Speak the Word is a non-denominational church that spends much of its time and attention on community service and charitable works. Before the disaster, Daniel had been going back and forth to Haiti for the past two and a half years, helping to start a school and raising money for teacher salaries, she said. Now, in addition to collecting goods and money, they are looking at trying to build a temporary orphanage, she said.
"We have people just come up and give their kids to the pastors, saying ‘"I cannot do this anymore, I cannot provide food, clothing or shelter.’"
Once the speakers were done, the nascent UVI Inspirational Choir gave its first public performance, with a stirring rendition of gospel artist Kirk Franklin’s Haiti relief song “Are You Listening: A Love Song for Haiti.”
Composed of singers from church and school choirs all over St. Croix, the new choir has been practicing for the past three weeks under the tutelage of UVI Residence Hall Supervisor Priscilla Williams.
About 30 residents came to the fundraising breakfast, which UVI Student Affairs Administrator Miriam Elliott said was aimed as much at "raising awareness for Haiti," as at raising funds.
"Keeping people focused on Haiti and not getting sidetracked onto the next big thing is part of the challenge," Elliott said.
