VIP Haiti

4-H Haiti was organized by Ventures in People in partnership with MARCH (Management & Resources in Community Health) in 1996. Focusing on providing hands on instruction in Community Health, Nutrition and Agriculture to the youth of Haiti, many of whom don't have the opportunity to receive a formal education.

What is 4-H? 4-H is more than gardening, sewing and cooking. 4-H also helps youth learn how to set foals, organize their time and evaluate their progress. It brings together youth in the community making new friends and learning from each other. For those who cannot afford to go to school (over 50% of the youth population) it provides an education of useful lifetime skills. Adults in 4-H help youth grow by sharing their experiences. They learn to develop their own practical and leadership skills and make friends in this family oriented program.

We started 4-H Haiti with two clubs in '96 with a membership of twenty young people in each club. Today, we have 19 clubs with a combined membership of nearly 1500 youth between the ages of 9 and 17, learning valuable skills that can be used to support a healthy family life.

4-H provides a method for the young Haitians to obtain needed skills to feed their families, to support the economy and provide hope. Skills learned in the 4-H clubs are changing communities.

Your support of these programs helps VIP to complete a very valuable part of its mission; "To help Haitians help themselves." Won't you please help?

The 4-H Pledge is the inspiration for youth - it challenges their whole being! "I Pledge my HEAD to CLEARER THINKING; my HEART to greater LOYALTY; my HANDS to LARGER SERVICE; my HEALTH to BETTER LIVING for my CLUB, COMMUNITY, and my COUNTRY."

4-H Haiti projects are based on individual interests and talents; for instance the disabled girl who has lost both legs. She learned to crochet plastic tote bags from a member of the others Club, who in turn had learned it from a VIP trip participant in January 2007. Imagine our surprise and delight to see how the "ripple effect" of our efforts takes place.

In January 2008 we had the opportunity to meet with leaders from the 15 clubs in the Mirebalais area. Here is what one of the clubs had to say. "We're very proud to let you know that we have learned almost everything we need to be someone in life. We do not want to stop, but keep going wiht the faith and insurance that our suporters (VIP) will lead us in a right way."

As 4H develops community leaders and develops talents to help youth learn practical ways to imporve life for themselves, their families and communities, we realize that the $150 grants from VIP have helped immensely. The frants provide community vegetable ardens, tree projects, cisterns for clean water, latrines for pedestrian travelers, and all the other worthy projects in progrss. We want to THANK THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THIS EFFORT AND HOPE YOU WILL CONTINUE. We can't do it alone!

VIP helps support an animal husbandry project run by Wisconsin Veterinarian and Haitian Veterinary Agent. A participant receives one week of training in goat husbandry and is given a pregnant goat upon completion of the course. The goat will have been bred to an American buck to increase the quality of the kids produced. The participant contracts to give the first female kid back to the project. It costs $120 to train a member and give him or her a pregnant goat. Goats are valuable property in Haiti and provide needed food, income and a sense of community for a Haitian family. The goat's mild and meat provide extra protein in the Haitian diet which is high in rice and beans. The local veterinary agent also provides one or two follow up visits to check on the donated doe. We always have more people interested in joining this program than we have money to provide the training and goats. Donations to the goat project can be designated.

VIP has also contributed to a veterinary technician training project which sends US and Canadian veterinarians to Haiti to teach Haitian agents practical skills and provide clinical care for livestock.


4H members are often requesting to learn First Aid procedures they can apply in case of Emergencies in their homes and communities.	Steve, a UW Oshkosh student, teaches the 4H and Mothers Clubs about clean water techniques.

4H members listen intently to the speaker at the meetings. Meetings provide an education for students who can't afford to go to school. 4H Junior Leaders graduate from Membership to Leadership
	Haitian volunteers Jeannette and Senevil (left), coordinate the work of 14 Clubs in the Mirebalais area covering nearly 100 square miles.