Letters from our artisans - Boss André shares his experience

We all know how the crisis in Haiti is affecting the population in general. Gang violence, gaz shortage, barely any tourism, people having to flee their homes, kidnappings and more. While these things are all over the news, there are thousands of individual stories that also deserve to be heard. We have taken the time to check-in with our artisan leaders to know how their team is holding on. We will be sharing some of their responses here on this journal to invite you in and give you a better idea of how our teams are doing.

Today we are sharing Boss André’s response on how the situation is affecting him and his team.

How has the current situation in Haiti affected your business? Are people still able to come to work daily? How have you had to change how you do business?

Most of our customers have left the Country, especially foreigners who were our biggest supporters. We do not have much demand. Some craftsmen and I live very far from the workshop. The main road we have to take to get there is under the control of gang leaders so we have to watch when there is a clear road (of course it depends on the bandits) to take advantage of going to the workshop. We are forced to separate into two groups: those who live around my house work in my house and those to whom the workshop is more accessible work in the workshop. In this case I always leave the workshop open in case I can't get there myself

We have almost reached our goal for the amount needed to keep offering shelter to some of our artisans. Every gesture counts in helping us move towards that goal. Thank you! Anpil lanmou pou nou!

Stories from the current crisis in Haiti: Words from Ismaella

The crisis in Haiti is still ongoing and we are not yet able to be able to see the light. While we remain hopeful that things cannot possibly stay this way, we cannot hide the hurt we feel each time someone from our HDC family is directly affected by these inhuman acts and by the general instability. We have reached out to many of you for support and the response has been so heartwarming that it gives us the strength to keep going. But the work is not over. We feel like it is important to put names and faces behind these stories. It always seems non-urgent until there is a face attached, for us this is extremely personal and terrifying. Read the words of Ismaella below. 

“My name is Ismaella Carmelle. To tell you a little about my story, I've had to flee my home because of the gang shootings happening all over. I had to leave in april of 2021. I was out that day and they contacted me saying no need to come back. We were in between two gang shootings feeling powerless. Since April 24th I've been living at the workshop where arrangements have been made for us to stay. There is also this fear that something will happen again, that the gangs can come back any time. It is something that we cannot control and feel powerless about.”

-Ismaella, Manager at HDC

Stories from the current crisis in Haiti: Words from Wideleine

The crisis in Haiti is still ongoing and we are not yet able to be able to see the light. While we remain hopeful that things cannot possibly stay this way, we cannot hide the hurt we feel each time someone from our HDC family is directly affected by these inhuman acts and by the general instability. We have reached out to many of you for support and the response has been so heartwarming that it gives us the strength to keep going. But the work is not over. We feel like it is important to put names and faces behind these stories. It always seems non-urgent until there is a face attached, for us this is extremely personal and terrifying. Read the words of Ismaella below. Today, we are sharing the words of Wideleine.

“Gangs came in at the church I attend. They came in to kill a cop. I had 3 kids with me, one of them still a baby of 9 months. No need to tell you how I felt. I started running and lost a friend I was with. My friend grabbed my 2 other kids while I kept the baby. They only killed the cop, however we were all left traumatized and afraid. My husband came shortly after when he heard the news. When we got home, my eldest said he did not want to stay in Port-au-Prince anymore. On July 27th, they killed 2 young men in our area. That was only 2 days after the church incident. That is when I asked for help to leave my area because my kids were not well. We went to the countryside and my eldest stayed and did not want to come back. I came back to PAP with my two youngest but could not get myself to go back to my area. It was never my plan to separate from my child. It grieves me so much to have to do this. Thanks to the home we have with HDC I am able to feel safer. My husband and I feel very scared and are living under constant stress. I don't know what to ask for. Whatever is possible for us to have somewhat of a normal life again is what we are craving.”

-Wideleine, jewelry artisan 

Stories from the current crisis in Haiti: Words from Mona

The crisis in Haiti is still ongoing and we are not yet able to be able to see the light. While we remain hopeful that things cannot possibly stay this way, we cannot hide the hurt we feel each time someone from our HDC family is directly affected by these inhuman acts and by the general instability. We have reached out to many of you for support and the response has been so heartwarming that it gives us the strength to keep going. But the work is not over. We feel like it is important to put names and faces behind these stories. It always seems non-urgent until there is a face attached, for us this is extremely personal and terrifying.

Today we want to share the words of Mona, our HDC mom and kindest woman. Mona is a wise and loving mother, always looking out for the needs of those around her. Mona makes the best pikliz and is always dressed in her Sunday best. For months now, Mona has been unable to go back to her home…

Here is what she has to share:

“One day I went out to go to church. Everything seemed ok, but that day I could not go back home. Everything I tried to get home was failing. I saw many people running around. I couldn't understand what was going on until I saw a man who told me I would not be able to get home today. My phone started ringing non stop and people from my neighborhood were warning me that I should not come home. Gangs had taken over the area and many were endangered.The worst is that it was happening behind my bedroom! I called a HDC employee and was able to stay over at their place. I was then able to speak with Chandler and she gave us the opportunity to sleep at the workshop. This is causing me a lot of pain and a lot of stress. To this day, I still wonder what will happen if I go back home. There are rumors saying they are coming back. Everything is uncertain...” - Mona 

The story behind the aluminum message cuff

Back in 2013 we had a jewelry team member who had a pate business in the mornings. I asked her who she bought her chodyè from and if she could introduce me. She brought in a young man, Jeff. Jeff’s father had a chodyè business (traditionally used in Haiti to make large pots for cooking) and had just recently passed away. Jeff had inherented the craft, but at the time he was maybe 19 or 20. I gave him an old bangle I had from Madewell and asked if he could cast it. Little by little we started discovered other techniques and styles he could make with the sand casted aluminum. He then switched to making chodye jewelry full time with a team of his own.

At one point we were experimenting and I gave him a set of letters to try and stamp the bracelets. He discovered how to make them look really smooth and add the black accent. From there, the message bracelets grew.

These Malleable, sand casted aluminum cuff with a message are so loved. Each cuff has a message with a story!

The first one he brought me I believe was “Tout Bagay Deja Byen”, which means “Everything is already well” or “It is well”, a phrase he chose.

“Kite Yo Pale” was inspired by a sticker on the side of the moto of a driver for HDC. I always loved it.

In 2022, a dear HDC friend, Anne-Marjorie introduced a limited edition bracelet with the message “Lavi abandons”. You can click here to learn more about the story behind it

The aluminum team’s motto is “Tèt ansan fè n ou viv pi bèl”, ‘With our heads together, we can live more beautifully”. Learn more about Jeff and his team through this video