GETTING TO KNOW ISMAELLA

My name is Ismaella and I am 30 years old. I was born in Port-au-Prince Haiti in 1991. Before I started working for Haiti Design Co. my mom was working there as part of the sewing team. When she spoke to the administration about me, I was able to get hired in 2016. At first, I was a regular employee but then I grew and was integrated in the committee before being promoted manager of the jewelry team called FANM DJANM. This is my position today! I supervise the ladies, I create jewelry samples and keep production going

If I could say more about me, I would say that I am a foodie. I love a lot of dishes! But if I could list just a few things I would say rice and beans, Haitian legim , Eggs and plantain with a fresh salad. My favorite colors are: brown, coral, bordeaux and mahogany.

As a child I always had many ideas and dreams. I wanted to be a veterinary. I wanted to learn many languages. I also loved painting and drawing. After high school I entered law school where I spent 4 years but I do not practice right now. I still have many things I want to accomplish. I am learning English. I do not draw anymore but I use my creative side to make the jewelry which gives me a lot of joy.

My biggest motivation in life is definitely my mom. She gives me strength and motivation for everything that I do. She pushes me to keep going. I always think of our future and this gives me courage to work well. My mom is artistic like me and very good with her hands so we work together. The banderole in the picture above is one we made together for the church. The best lessons I have learned from her are wisdom and humility.

When I am not working, I love being on social media. I love talking to my friends on the phone. We do not physically see each other often but we stay in touch. I consider myself as a peaceful person. I love observing before talking or reacting. I love listening to music: Konpa, Gospel, French songs, English songs…you name it. One of my favorite songs is : “When we were young” By Adele..

Covid Reflections: Part III

Today’s Covid Reflection was written by Abraham Rivage. Abraham is a member of our quality control and fulfillment team. He will, without a doubt, always greet you with a beaming smile and warm energy. We hope you enjoy his thoughtful essay today!

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“As Covid spreads, it has been hard to ignore the headlines and to witness its effects across the world. Sports teams can’t play, Planes aren’t flying, Cruise ships aren’t sailing, churches can’t gather.
Since the shutdown, I have been trying to stay busy. I have been focusing on learning new English words. I have spent a lot of time chatting with my significant other and friends. I have been blowing off steam through working out every day. I have also been focusing on my business more. I sell carbonated drinks and phone minutes from my house.
Since schools are closed once again, I have been trying to help my son learn, and have been teaching him about the virus and how to protect himself against sicknesses. I haven’t been going out a lot, as when you live with other people, the risks you take, aren’t your risks alone, and I want to keep them safe.
I have to be honest though, I have been pretty stressed and anxious with everything that is going on. Haiti is normally extremely busy- and I feel like many of us have been afraid of the quiet, emptying streets. When streets aren’t busy in Haiti, it’s usually a sign of some kind of danger or trouble, so I think a lot of people struggle with that in the back of their minds. It can be hard getting over your fear, and have to do things like take public transportation because that’s the only option you have.
Staying encouraged can seem so difficult. It’s so easy to feel uninspired when you’re spending all of your days at home. But so much creativity and perseverance can be drawn from the options that we have today. Having access to the internet and books and other things are a luxury that I think we often take for granted.
When I have felt overwhelmed by my problems, I have opened things that have given my comfort, like my Bible, or doing one of my hobbies, or by reading something enriching. I think we often forget how important exercise is for our mental health too. Even if you are running up the stairs at home or doing breathing exercises, this is a way for our anxiety and stress to leave our bodies.
Finding moments of peace can be hard right now, but I think that’s the point. We need to find them, they probably won’t just happen upon us. We must search for them, and hold fast to them once we do find them.”

Covid Reflections: Part II

Today we are featuring the essay written by Ismaella Louis Carmelle, our talented, powerhouse jewelry manager.

This essay was written during the Covid19 shut down May 2020.

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“The world has been facing a terrible pandemic where countries all over the world are experiencing saddening death tolls. About two months ago, the authorities in Haiti ordered us to stay home as well, although this isn’t really a possible reality for many of us. I have been continuing to work at HDC, although that looks much different right now, as almost everything has been paralyzed given the situation with COVID.
It’s been quite boring to have to stay home, as I am sure many of you know, but on the other hand, time at home allows for the strengthening of ties with your family. It allows families to spend more time together, help each other more, discover more about one another. Every evening, my family gets the chance to pray together now.
Things are getting harder. Our economy continues to decline, and it’s hard to count on others for different things, as the whole world seems to be suffering.
How strange the world has become- where an embrace is now seen as a weapon, where we must refrain from getting too close to someone else.
In Haiti, the things that used to bring us such comfort are now prohibited. We cannot meet together to pray, and the only heart-to-hearts we will find is now over a phone. It has become quite stressful, and people are so afraid of other people, as everyone is afraid of getting sick. It sometimes feels like we have become slaves to water and soap, and in trying to avoid physical contact.
I experienced the terrible earthquake of 2010, the cholera outbreak, the spread of chikungunya, but Covid-19 is the first of its kind in my generation. I think it’s important to remember that it may be the first pandemic for us, but it’s not the first for humanity. When so many feel like this is the end, or fear for their lives, I find comfort in remembering that this too will pass, just like all the others did. That gives me a lot of hope and helps me to realize that life goes on, and the generation that follows us may even experience something much worse.
In any case, this virus will pass, and it’s important that we remember to keep living our lives, and to continue applying healthy measures to stay safe and well.”

Covid Reflections: Part I

Last summer HDC was forced to shut down from April - August 2020 due to Covid 19 restrictions and a significant loss in orders, also due to Covid 19. A few of our artisans shared their reflections during their time at home during the shut down. Once the workshop was re-opened, a whirlwind of life and new challenges hit us pretty hard and we were so busy trying to get through the remainder of the year that we never shared these thoughtful essays with you all. We also never imagined that this pandemic would last as long as it has, and here we are almost a year later, still battling this pandemic worldwide and still suffering volatile political conditions within Haiti.

As many of you outside of Haiti are snowed in and still living the “socially distanced” lifestyle, we thought it would be a good time to share these Covid shut down reflections with you all from a few of our team members last summer.

To kick us off, we are featuring the essay written by Evans Noel, known as Jerry around our workshop. Jerry has been with HDC since 2015. He is our head of quality control and product development for our leather department.

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Hi everyone,

This is Jerry from HDC- I’m sure you have heard from me before at some point!

I wanted to write a quick post to check in with everyone about what this season of life has been like for me in Haiti.
For those of you who don’t know me, I am married and I now have a beautiful daughter, Brianna Rae. During Covid, I feel like I have done a lot of reflecting on my life. I have been thinking about how Corona is almost like a consultant for the world, and is doing inventory for everyone to see what they have and what they don’t have, to see what you should have done and could do better, to see where you were and where you are now. For me, it has reminded me that God is at the door, readying the world for His return, whenever that may be.
Obviously, Covid is quite a sad thing but I also think Covid has offered a lot of opportunities for us. I know it has for me. Whenever I reflect on my life, I often find that hard times usually have unexpected blessings among them.
This time during Covid has brought me some blessings. It has given me a sense of a mini-vacation to spend time with my family, especially with my newborn baby, who was born in February 2020. This extra time spent together has been very special.
Another opportunity I have found during this time, was the time to be creative in trying to start a new business. I first started selling Papadap wholesale, which are phone minutes, so that smaller vendors can then resell minutes. I also began selling Kokiyol in the same way, which is a kind of pastry.
It has been really important for us to start trying to sell different things because of how the world has stopped, and there is a lot of unknown in the future. My wife and I didn’t want to have to stop too, it was a little scary thinking about being home for so long, where we would spend what we had without being able to go to work to earn more.
I have also used my time at home to re-define what it means to be a married man. I began putting in more effort to help around the house- like helping with laundry and cleaning. Sometimes my wife is so tired from breastfeeding and caring for Brianna that I do all I can to help, like with getting her to sleep. Brianna loves to fall asleep on my chest.
With a new baby, I have been very careful to make sure people wash their hands when they arrive at my house, and we are careful to utilize masks when we are out. Even though masks aren’t comfortable or convenient, I think it is nice that we have options to help protect ourselves.
I can’t imagine having to wake up and not be able to see Brianna’s smile, or my wife’s smile. Those two things are the most beautiful sights in my life. Hearing about Covid losses makes my heart weep with those who have lost such precious things in their lives.
But I think it’s important to choose not to remain in fear of what you could lose, but to seek out the hidden blessings that are for us to create and work for.

**NOTE: This post was written in May 2020. HDC re-opened the following August and Haiti is no longer shut down due to Covid.

BRIDGING THE GAP

Day 7: BRIDGING THE GAP

In our final day of #HDCFam Week we are focusing on the core value that brings us all together- bridging the gap for and with our artisan families. Today’s essay is written by Jerry, the head of quality control and a member of the leather team at Haiti Design Co.

“My name is Evens, but usually people call me Jerry. I have been working at HDC for a while now, and even met my wife there. She has a daughter that I feel is my own now, and we have our first baby on the way. I’m really happy to have them as my family. 

I manage quality control at Haiti Design Co., which means that I go through every single product to make sure they are perfect before we ship them to our customers. I also work with the leather team, and help lead tours when visitors stop by to see the workshop. I am also a designer, and HDC always provides opportunities for me to use my skills and create new designs.

Something that I really love about HDC is that most people who begin working with us have no idea that they have the ability to do great things, and have the potential to change their community, and then when they start working at HDC, all of these things are revealed. HDC has provided a lot of training, and has helped a lot of dreams to become a reality. 

One of my biggest dreams was to own my own house. My wife and I were always struggling to pay rent every year. Saving for the future isn’t something that exists in my culture or really is even a possibility, but after receiving training at HDC, this changed for me, and my wife and I began saving for our dream.

After participating for a while in a program that Haiti Design Co started called “Save for Tomorrow”, my wife and I sat down and talked with the HDC leaders about our goal of buying a house, and our financial plan to do it. They were so impressed with our motivation and how much we had saved, that they agreed to give us a loan to complete what we needed. 

A mutual friend of ours helped us find a house, and we bought it. Now we have our own house, and I am so proud of that. I really like our home because it looks like a cube, and at night there is a nice breeze that sweeps in and helps me sleep. It has been really fun to make our home more interesting. We have painted the inside white, have put down ceramic tiles, and have begun to purchase appliances. It’s a great feeling to not have to worry about next year’s rent, to not be so stressed, and to just feel so comfortable in your own home. Our home is the nicest house I have ever lived in.

I really appreciate HDC because it is such a unique organization in Haiti. HDC wants to see less people living in poverty, and more people living a vibrant life, but instead of just asking for charity, they instead ask people to take a look at the beautiful products that we create. I don’t have enough time to talk about all of the different things HDC does, but getting to talk about the dream that HDC helped me achieve is a pretty great thing that I wanted to share.