The Orphanage Today

Much has changed since Jean-Louis took in those first four boys. Maison Fortune Orphanage continues to grow and is now home to more than ninety resident children and provides schooling to over two-hundred children. With construction already underway for the new girls campus and dorms that number is expected to increase.

With little or no clothing, no family, no home and often going long periods without a meal, many of the children now at the orphanage had previously been living in the streets. As you can imagine feeding, clothing, watching over and providing an education for this many children is a full time (and costly) job, but it is also a very rewarding job. It is our goal to provide each of these children with clothes, regular meals, an education and most of all, love and a place they can call home.

Here at Maison Fortuné we know that a well balanced diet is very important to the children if they are to remain healthy and survive. In the beginning we were only able to provide one or two small meals a day and often only water to drink. Thanks to continued contributions (and some of the best cooks around) the orphange is now not only able to provide each resident child with three meals a day, but also provide them with milk or juice with their meal. This consistant diet has made a very big difference in the childrens lives with fewer illnesses and more smiling faces.

After first moving to the new grounds it became apparent that a security wall was needed. This wall was needed not only to help control the children at the orphanage (especially the little ones) and keep them from wandering off, but also to help monitor the entry and exit of visitors to the orphanage. This gated wall was completed in 2003 and now encloses the entire two and a half acre boys campus site, increasing safety and allowing Jean-Louis and the staff to more easily maintain control on the premises. The addition of the security wall has helped prevent previous problems where some of the children from the village would enter the area, taking over the basketball court and sometimes stealing some of our childrens belongings. Windows and shutters were also installed on the small existing buildings at the orphange which are used as dorms. This not only provided some additional security, but the shutters also take the place of regular screens, eliminating the need to constantly repair rips and tears that would leave a normal screen useless.

Providing sanitary water for the orphanage was another high priority and improvements have been made in the water we are able to provide the children. Originally there were only two main sources of water in the area available to the orphanage. One of these sources was the municipal water supply from the nearby village of Hinche and the other the river that borders one side of the orphanage property. Unfortunately both of these water sources have their problems. The river water while plentiful is not very sanitary as it is used by many village residents for everything from bathing and washing clothes, to drinking water. The municipal water supply while filtered to some extent was still not very sanitary and the supply was also intermittent due to constant power problems at the treatment plant. For these reasons we set out to find a means of supplying the children with a consistant supply of clean and sanitary water. A well has been drilled on the orphanage grounds providing a new primary source of water and a water purification system was purchased from Aqua-Sun International. With the new well and the installation of this 3-Stage NSF Certified water prurification system we are now able to remove harmful chemicals and other contaminants that were present in the water. This new system also has the ability to kill many viruses and bacteria through an Ultraviolet Light disinfecting process, delivering water with a 99.999% purity level. The system is both battery and solar powered which is also important as the orphanage has no outside power source and relies entirely on solar and generator power. Being able to economically produce a sufficient supply of clean, sanitary water supply for the children at the orphanage has helped greatly in improving their over-all health.

  

Above: New Water Filtration Room (left) and the new Well being dug (right)

I the beginning the children and staff had to use a single latrine (out-house) which was in great disrepair. Aside from the obvious sanitary issues, there was also a problem with this arrangement in that one latrine was simply not enough. Much has changed since then. In March of 2003 the Penn State University Catholic Community's "Project Haiti" Club provided a generous donation to the orphanage which not only enabled much needed improvements to be made to the the existing latrine, but also the construction of a much needed second latrine. The new latrine provided three additioanl toilets and while not exactly indoor plumbing, it was certainly a very welcome addition. Then in Spring of 2004 even more progress was made when we began construction on the new showers. While these new showers still were not within the existing dorm buildings, they did offer the children a more private and sanitary alternative to bathing in the nearby river.

   
Construction of the new Latrines (left) and the new showers (right)

With the number of children now living at the orphange far exceeding the capacity of the small existing dorms, the next major project was the construction of a new dorm building. After much planning (and fund raising) construction on this and other buildings was started and in early 2006 and construction of the first new dorm building has been completed. This new dorm not only provides additional living space, but has also brought indoor plumbing to the orphanage (something most of the children had never seen before).

  
Above: Original dorm buildings (left) new dorm completed in 2006 (right)

The children originally attended classes in the dining hall or outdoors under a mango tree so a new school building was also a part of the long term goals at the orphanage. With a projected cost of over sixty-thousand dollars to complete this was not only one of the larger projects, but also one of the more difficult goals to reach. Jean-Louis did not know how this could ever be accomplished when some good news was recieved. Monsignor Pitt from Catholic High School in Virginia Beach VA had graciously donated twenty-thousand dollars he had recently inherited, but there was one condition... it was to be used towards the construction of a new school building. This donation made it possible for construction to begin on the the new school building in the spring of 2004 with the remaining costs being covered by various fund raising efforts throughout the construction project. The new school building has since been completed and dedicated as the Fortuné Jean-Louis Primary School.

There are now seven full time teachers working at the orphange and each weekday during the school year the school age children at the orphanage along with over one-hundred additional children from the surrounding area attend structured Primary School level classes at the orphanage. The new school has been a wonderful addition not only allowing the children to attend their regular classes in a more adaquate enviroment, but has also made possible the addition of a computer lab and sewing center. This will allow the the children to also learn additional skills.

   
New Jean-Louis Fortuné School (left) children attending classes (right)

Because the orphanage school is only able to provide primary school level classes, those children that have reached secondary grade level still need to attend school off campus. We are proud to say that several of the children here at the orphanage have already passed the required entrance exams and are now attending classes at the local secondary school.

Secondary School students preparing to head off to class

With the new boy's dorm and school building completed it was time to move to our next project, the construction of an Administration Building. This important addition was completed in mid 2006 and not only provides Jean-Louis and his staff with much needed administrative office space, but also contains guest quarters to be used by volunteers as well as visitors to the orphanage. Visitors will be asked to pay a small fee per night for their stay to help cover the costs of meals and such.

Admin Building and Guest Quarters

Another project at the orphanage was the addition of a basketball court. This project was a pretty big big hit with the children (probably one of the childrens favorites) and gets more than its fair share of use. A donor also provided the orphanage with new Soccer Goals which were another big hit with the kids. To top this all off, Virginia Rush (a youth soccer club located in Virginia Beach, VA), provided enough soccer uniforms for all of the boys at the orphanage.

Children playing on basketball court

Because municipal electricity was limited (available a couple hours a day at best) and costly, the orphanage had originally relied almost entirely on a small amount of power which was produced by some solar panels that had been installed on the grounds. While this was cost effective, the power being supplied by the solar panels was simply not enough to meet the demands. An additional power source was needed and in March of 2004 the orphanage was able to purchase a diesel powered generator and also construct a small power shed to house it. This project also included wiring from the generator to the buildings. While the addition of a generator added additional costs involved with fuel, it has also been a very welcome addition at the orphanage, providing lighting in the buildings that were often dark inside even during daylight hours.

   

Originally plans had also called for a dorm building on the current grounds to house the many orphaned girls in the area. However with the number of boys rapidly growing and Haitian law not allowing boys and girls to share the same quarters or common areas, it was decided this would no longer be feasable and that additional land would be needed for a girls campus. The land adjoining the current boys campus would have been the ideal choice for this, but the owner was not willing to sell. Instead approximately 3 acres of land about a half mile away from the current campus was acquired to be used for the new girls campus. Fund-Raising efforts continue in an effort to raise the money needed for construction of a girls campus. The first phase included a security wall and has now been completed. This was the first priority as it will not only be needed before the girls could occupy the grounds, but will also protect the area and equipment during any construction. After the wall was completed construction began on a new girls dorm, and Administration building and guest quarters. Once construction is completed the girls campus will provide housing for the girls, but they will continue to attend school and dine at the current boys campus.

   
New construction at Maison Fortune Orphanage girls campus

In the beginning the only form of transportation available to the orphange was Jean-Louis' motorcycle, complete with side car. Though not the most appropriate means of transportation, it did enable him to pick up supplies, run other errands and in an emergency, transport any sick children to the clinic in Hinche. Unfortunately the motorcycle was liberated (stolen) one day leaving the orphanage with no mode of transportation. As you can imagine, the orphanages remote location makes some form of transportation a must. Due to the rough terrain and road conditions in the area (where roads even exist that is), It was decided that a four wheel drive truck was needed to replace the now missing motorcycle. It took some time, but in April 2003, Jean-Louis got his wish when through donations the orphanage receives from the states, he was able to purchase a 1996 Toyota Pick-Up for the orphanage. This much needed truck has helped tremendously with the weekly supply runs, transporting sick children to the hospital when needed and other errands.

Jean-René with the orphange's 1996 Toyota Hilux Pick-Up

So as you can see, much has been accomplished at the orphanage, but there is still much to be done. There are still several construction projects that need to be completed. These include a Dispensary, dorms and accomodations for visitors at the girls campus and a storage building for supplies. There are also many smaller projects and the continued need for clothing and supplies. We continue to hope that one day the orphanage will be more self sufficient, but currently we remain dependant almost entirely on outside support to exist. It is with this support we have accomplished so much and hope to continue to accomplish so much more.

The orphanage Receives no government funding and while we continue to hope that one day it will be more self sufficient, currently Maison Fortune Orphanage remains almost entirely dependant on outside donations from those who support our efforts. Without the help of these supporters, the volunteers who visit the orphanage and Jean-Louis' never ending commitment to help provide the children of Haiti with a better life, the orphanage could never have been so succesful.