From May 19-27, 2012, thirteen Duke alumni and friends will travel to Port au Prince, Haiti, for a week of service with Family Health Ministries, an NGO whose mission is to assist Haitian communities in their efforts to build and sustain healthy families.

This is our second trip with Family Health Ministries. The team will spend their week assisting in a medical clinic in Blanchard, just outside of Port-au-Prince. Kathy Walmer, Executive Director of Family Health Ministries and adjunct professor at the Duke Global Health Institute, and Hardy Vieux '93, DAA Board President, will be leading the group again this year.

Please check back often for their messages and updates during their time in Haiti. Blog posts are being written by the group.

May 27 | May 26 | May 24 | May 23 |May 22 | May 21 | May 19

Much of our downtime over the past week was spent on the rooftop of our guest house, enjoying each others company, staring at the moon and stars, and listening to sounds of Haiti - and our last night was no different.

After arriving "home" from our weekend away, we met for a final reflection session on our rooftop. Our conversation centered around the ways in which we'd incorporate our experiences in Haiti into our lives when we returned to the United States. Some ideas were simple: conserve more water, express gratitude and say please and thank you. The adventure in Haiti helped others reflect and provide perspective on professional and personal issues they were grappling with in their own lives back home. Some of us expressed concern about how to share Haiti with our family, friends and colleagues. In a week, we saw the harsh realities of living in an under-developed country that suffers from lack of infrastructure in not only health care but a multitude of areas, including urban planning, sanitation, and "basic" utilities (such as clean running water, sewage, electricity,etc.) juxtaposed with the spirit of the Haitian people, their gratitude, joy, optimism and strong belief in God.

Neither the pictures we have taken nor the words we have written can begin to describe how each of us has experienced Haiti this past week. Haiti will forever be in our hearts.

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Follow Duke Alumni on a Service Trip to Haiti with Family Health Ministries