Starthrower Foundation

**Thurs. 4 am cyclone now called Isaias. Still enroute for us on the north coast of Haiti. The rain has already begun to fall along the north coast of Haiti. Our drop in centers in Cap-Haitien (on the northern coast) and Sen Rafayel (26 km up Granjil mountain) are making preparations to cover windows and stockpile any reserve supplies they may be able to secure. Tropical Cyclone 9 is heading for us. We are in the bull's eye, with arrival forecast for tomorrow morning. When... Hurricane season begins, staff and I are glued to the NHC website. Our usual mode of communication is text however Auguste emailed that Digicel, our cell provider has been MIA . Covid 19 has exacerbated the challenges we face on a daily basis. If you follow us you know that we have had no electricity delivery for 3 years, not counting the occasional 10 or 20 minutes that arrive and leave without warning every few months. Ten days ago Auguste informed me that 16 batteries for our solar panel system were dead and needed to be replaced asap to continue to generate enough to run our fridge and freezer, essential to prepare dog food and food items for Sen Rafayel we send up the mountain weekly. As we had 8 sponsors drop out when Covid began, we had no funds ... the batteries are $165. US each. Times 16. As we have to have minimal electricity we used funds for staff salaries to purchase and install the batteries. Danius, one of our staff members in the village came down the mountain on his motorcycle to work with the Boss to install the batteries. He is a master mechanic so was the logical choice to give us a back up when the Bos is not available or the mountain track is cut off by protests or weather. Unfortunately he had an accident on the return trip and injured his right hand and left foot. So here we are waiting for a tropical cyclone to blow in, in the middle of a pandemic. Diesel is again scarce and our generator runs on diesel. Salary funds paid for replacement batteries because sponsors have dropped out and our staff need to be paid. They receive such a pittance. And here at home someone has been using my credit card to purchase on line without authorization. Help!! See more

Each week Auguste sends a financial statement which includes funds spent, on what, name of purchaser and a description of items. Every penny is itemized. This then is transferred to ledgers ( one for USD one for HTG) which I carry from Haiti to our bookkeeper in preparation for our financial statement for the government. He includes updates as to what is happening in our drop in centers and on the streets. In last week's post I translated Auguste's email verbatim. In i...t he wrote " Bandits killed a policeman in Shada..." BANDITS killed a policeman -- not those living in the kartye but bandits who were terrorizing those crammed together tighter than sardines in a tin. Today he wrote (and again I translate from Kreyol) "After the bandits had killed a policeman attached to UDMO ( not the PNH or Police Nasyonal d'Hayiti), immediately (he used rapid) the state came and bulldozed the communities of Shada and Konasa and everything that was in every tikay (little shack, house). The state left everyone on the street and said nothing. Sadly Coronavirus was already in those houses. Now we have (infected) people sleeping in the streets with their children. More misery for Haiti." We have staff and students living in those kartyes. We wait to see who needs what. Attached are a few pictures he managed after the purge as well as 2 from our Cap-Haitien drop in center. I know that many are stretched to their emotional limits. So if you can manage some empathy and healing energy for Haiti please send it. We can change the world and we will come out of this. If you are fragile or brittle or prone to frequent bouts of tears as I am these days please send a little reserve left in your tank. I find that no matter how many tears I shed, there are always more. Reserve tank I guess. It's called love and it never runs dry. Namaste Om shanti om. Sharon

Today our Joli turns 14. That is a good life span for a dog in Haiti -- a country with no veterinary care. She has dementia and a tumour on one of her mammary glands as well as a nasty cough which presents itself from time to time . Like all dog lovers, I want her to live forever but I know that is not possible. I also don't want to see her or any of our 4 leggeds suffer but that too is wishful thinking given the circumstances. Seven years ago she gave birth to 5 amazing pu...Continue reading

As the only testing is being done in the South in Port-au-Prince, there is no idea what is happening in the north where we are situated. Our drop in centers continue to function daily with new protocols in place. It is becoming increasingly difficult to secure enough food and potable water. Banks are operating on reduced days and hours as everywhere.