K’bunkers thinking about those in need (Printed Jan. 4, 2008)
By Ashley St. Michel
Staff Writer
Instead of taking a tropical vacation to relieve stress from the holidays, Lisa Lassey of Kennebunk and a group of Church on the Cape attendees will travel to Guatemala to assist relief efforts after Hurricane Noel slammed into Haiti, Guatemala and the Bahamas this past February.
Lassey is the program development director for Partners in Development (PID), a nonprofit organization from Ipswich, Mass. that works directly with people living in extreme poverty in developing countries. The organization was founded in 1990 by James and Gale Hull also of Ipswich, Mass., and assists families in Haiti and Guatemala with a variety of programs that focus on community transformation through education, employment opportunities, adequate housing and medical assistance.
“The programs start with the children,” Lassey said. “We have field directors who go down to the islands and scout children who are really struggling.”
Partners in Development began its mission by offering a child sponsorship program in an effort to send children to school. For $25 per month, or $300 per year, sponsors receive a biography about the child they are assisting and the money allows children to receive nutritional supplements, pays for school tuition, provides food, shoes and school supplies, medical care, one meal a day and tuition to send a high school graduate to college or a vocational center.
Lassey said when the sponsorship program began families reported they also needed assistance finding work. The result was PIDs Small Business Loan Program, which lends participants capital to start or develop a business. Lassey said the program averages about $100 for six months of business development for those who need it.
“Down there, $100 really lasts people six months,” she said.
The sponsorship program also introduces families to the housing program, which moves families from inadequate housing to sturdy homes with bathroom facilities, clean water and a yard.
Partners in Development also offers a medical program. The program was adopted in 2003 and is the newest addition to the organization. It offers assistance to children and families in need of medical supplies and care.
“It’s tempting not to help everyone,” Lassey said. “It’s a doors open policy that we have, so obviously we are not going to turn them away.”
Lassey added the lengthiest portion of the programming is sponsorship. She said it’s hard to tell how long a family will go before a child receives a sponsor.
Although the organization has worked with Haiti and Guatemala for more than 15 years, Lassey said its efforts are currently concentrated in Cite Soleil just outside Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, the area hardest hit by Hurricane Noel.
Hurricane Noel made landfall along the southern coast of Haiti Oct. 29. Heavy rainfall from Noel produced significant flooding and mudslides in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, eastern Cuba and the Bahamas. Noel was also responsible for 147 deaths across the Caribbean and the Bahamas, according to the National Weather Service’s Hurricane Center Web site.
A mixed group of PID volunteers and Cape Popoise church attendees will travel to Guatemala Feb. 13 through Feb. 20. Lassey said currently, there are more than 100 York County volunteers.
“My boss traveled through Guatemala immediately after the storm and found the area which Partners in Development conducts most of its programs suffered a lot of destruction from flood damage,” Lassey said.
Currently, PID is attempting to raise $8,400 to help with recovery efforts. The funds will replace school books, bags, shoes and school supplies for 30 families so children can return to school. The money will provide start-up loans to rebuild 36 small businesses lost in the storm, make necessary repairs to eight homes, conduct feces exams and treat staph infections for those ill from contaminated water and labor for food clean up. Lassey said PID will put $1,000 from its Haiti mortgage toward repairing the homes.
Church on the Cape Rev. Ruth Merriam will join the group in February. Merriam said she is enthusiastic about the opportunity to join PID again.
“I went with a mission team to Nicaragua,” she said. “I really appreciated Partners in Development because you get to work together and you get to sweat together.”
Merriam said the program isn’t a free ride either.
“It’s not a handout, it’s a hand up,” she said. “It’s just an extra boost. It doesn’t take away their self esteem, it’s only reinforcing their way to a suitable life.”
Partners in Development bought land in Blanchard, Port-Au-Prince and Haiti where they have begun developing housing for families. The homes take a few group trips to build, which can result in back-to-back trips, Lassey said.
The organization also hosts fundraisers to raise money for the programs they offer. Lassey said PID has an annual fundraiser, which was started after a volunteer returned to the United States from a trip. She said the woman wanted to continue helping the families in Guatemala and Haiti, so she decided to incorporate a dinner, dance and silent auction in Newburyport, Mass. Lassey said the organization’s first dinner was held one week after Sept. 11, 2001.
“We really weren’t sure how that was going to work out,” she said. “But people were very generous, and we have continued that fundraiser to this day.”
Lassey added the dinner raised more than $50,000 for programming last year.
Trips average eight days and cost $760 plus airfare for interested volunteers. Partners in Development make more than 10 trips a year to Guatemala and Haiti with group sizes ranging from 10 to 14 people. The February trip will consist of building walls and hand-digging holes to begin constructing new housing for the families. Lassey said one way to get involved is to make a donation. Donations can be mailed to Partners in Development, P.O. Box 9, Ipswich, Mass., 01938 or through paypal online at www.pidonline.org. Goods donation arrangements can be made by calling (978) 417-9250.
“I worked the nine-to-five job before and I didn’t like working toward something I couldn’t make a difference in,” Lassey said. “I feel so blessed to have this job. It’s the opportunity of a lifetime. And it has really given me a different perspective on life.”
To contact Ashley St. Michel, call 282-4337 ext. 228 or email news@kennebunkpost.com.
Staff Writer
Instead of taking a tropical vacation to relieve stress from the holidays, Lisa Lassey of Kennebunk and a group of Church on the Cape attendees will travel to Guatemala to assist relief efforts after Hurricane Noel slammed into Haiti, Guatemala and the Bahamas this past February.
Lassey is the program development director for Partners in Development (PID), a nonprofit organization from Ipswich, Mass. that works directly with people living in extreme poverty in developing countries. The organization was founded in 1990 by James and Gale Hull also of Ipswich, Mass., and assists families in Haiti and Guatemala with a variety of programs that focus on community transformation through education, employment opportunities, adequate housing and medical assistance.
“The programs start with the children,” Lassey said. “We have field directors who go down to the islands and scout children who are really struggling.”
Partners in Development began its mission by offering a child sponsorship program in an effort to send children to school. For $25 per month, or $300 per year, sponsors receive a biography about the child they are assisting and the money allows children to receive nutritional supplements, pays for school tuition, provides food, shoes and school supplies, medical care, one meal a day and tuition to send a high school graduate to college or a vocational center.
Lassey said when the sponsorship program began families reported they also needed assistance finding work. The result was PIDs Small Business Loan Program, which lends participants capital to start or develop a business. Lassey said the program averages about $100 for six months of business development for those who need it.
“Down there, $100 really lasts people six months,” she said.
The sponsorship program also introduces families to the housing program, which moves families from inadequate housing to sturdy homes with bathroom facilities, clean water and a yard.
Partners in Development also offers a medical program. The program was adopted in 2003 and is the newest addition to the organization. It offers assistance to children and families in need of medical supplies and care.
“It’s tempting not to help everyone,” Lassey said. “It’s a doors open policy that we have, so obviously we are not going to turn them away.”
Lassey added the lengthiest portion of the programming is sponsorship. She said it’s hard to tell how long a family will go before a child receives a sponsor.
Although the organization has worked with Haiti and Guatemala for more than 15 years, Lassey said its efforts are currently concentrated in Cite Soleil just outside Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, the area hardest hit by Hurricane Noel.
Hurricane Noel made landfall along the southern coast of Haiti Oct. 29. Heavy rainfall from Noel produced significant flooding and mudslides in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, eastern Cuba and the Bahamas. Noel was also responsible for 147 deaths across the Caribbean and the Bahamas, according to the National Weather Service’s Hurricane Center Web site.
A mixed group of PID volunteers and Cape Popoise church attendees will travel to Guatemala Feb. 13 through Feb. 20. Lassey said currently, there are more than 100 York County volunteers.
“My boss traveled through Guatemala immediately after the storm and found the area which Partners in Development conducts most of its programs suffered a lot of destruction from flood damage,” Lassey said.
Currently, PID is attempting to raise $8,400 to help with recovery efforts. The funds will replace school books, bags, shoes and school supplies for 30 families so children can return to school. The money will provide start-up loans to rebuild 36 small businesses lost in the storm, make necessary repairs to eight homes, conduct feces exams and treat staph infections for those ill from contaminated water and labor for food clean up. Lassey said PID will put $1,000 from its Haiti mortgage toward repairing the homes.
Church on the Cape Rev. Ruth Merriam will join the group in February. Merriam said she is enthusiastic about the opportunity to join PID again.
“I went with a mission team to Nicaragua,” she said. “I really appreciated Partners in Development because you get to work together and you get to sweat together.”
Merriam said the program isn’t a free ride either.
“It’s not a handout, it’s a hand up,” she said. “It’s just an extra boost. It doesn’t take away their self esteem, it’s only reinforcing their way to a suitable life.”
Partners in Development bought land in Blanchard, Port-Au-Prince and Haiti where they have begun developing housing for families. The homes take a few group trips to build, which can result in back-to-back trips, Lassey said.
The organization also hosts fundraisers to raise money for the programs they offer. Lassey said PID has an annual fundraiser, which was started after a volunteer returned to the United States from a trip. She said the woman wanted to continue helping the families in Guatemala and Haiti, so she decided to incorporate a dinner, dance and silent auction in Newburyport, Mass. Lassey said the organization’s first dinner was held one week after Sept. 11, 2001.
“We really weren’t sure how that was going to work out,” she said. “But people were very generous, and we have continued that fundraiser to this day.”
Lassey added the dinner raised more than $50,000 for programming last year.
Trips average eight days and cost $760 plus airfare for interested volunteers. Partners in Development make more than 10 trips a year to Guatemala and Haiti with group sizes ranging from 10 to 14 people. The February trip will consist of building walls and hand-digging holes to begin constructing new housing for the families. Lassey said one way to get involved is to make a donation. Donations can be mailed to Partners in Development, P.O. Box 9, Ipswich, Mass., 01938 or through paypal online at www.pidonline.org. Goods donation arrangements can be made by calling (978) 417-9250.
“I worked the nine-to-five job before and I didn’t like working toward something I couldn’t make a difference in,” Lassey said. “I feel so blessed to have this job. It’s the opportunity of a lifetime. And it has really given me a different perspective on life.”
To contact Ashley St. Michel, call 282-4337 ext. 228 or email news@kennebunkpost.com.
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