The guys over at Spend Yourself (also linked on the right) asked me to write some stuff for their newest shirt (you can also find this post on their website). All of the proceeds from this shirt go to NWHCM. For more info check out their site, or this link to the NWHCM site as well. As another endorsement I must say that I am a guy that loves a good t-shirt and the Spend Yourself shirt that I have is probably the most comfortable one I own. Chris literally gave it to me off his own back.
I first met Chris (from Spend Yourself) when he came to Haiti last summer. He came with Zack, who I already knew from college. Their trip was short and hectic, as we flew and drove all over the Northwest department of Haiti. Luckily, within the few days of the trip we had several moments to sit and discuss some of the things that they saw and experienced.
We ate Dominoes under the awning of the Coconut Hotel in Port au Prince, and discussed everything from inner city ministry to social justice, church politics to t-shirts, and sweatshops to college basketball. The problems of Haiti were a recurring topic.
They asked me my opinion on Haiti’s most pressing needs, specifically in the area in which NWHCM works. My response was the lack of trees/erosion along with access to clean water. In many ways the two topics are interwoven. Trees and water go hand in hand, and I think this idea is portrayed in the shirt that they put together (pictured above). Without trees desertification of arable land becomes an issue. Without trees, erosion will pollute not only drinking water sources, but also the ocean, driving off fish that are an essential part of the Haitian economy and diet. Polluted water sources, or the lack of water sources in general, cause a myriad of diseases and other health issues. In a country where children die from the dehydration caused by diarrhea, clean sources of water are not things to be taken lightly. The lack of drinking water also hits the Haitian home economically. Many people are forced to buy clean water by the jug or bucket; others pay expensive medical bills at government hospitals for illnesses that could have been prevented by access to a clean source of water. These are just some of the problems caused by a lack of clean water and trees.
If one dug deep enough would they find that there are other underlying factors that contribute to the lack of clean water and trees in Haiti? Most likely, and so a holistic ministry that teaches responsibility and respect is crucial in this work to help Haiti. We have yet to see the long-term results from the disastrous earthquakes that hit Haiti earlier this month, but one can almost guarantee that they will affect every aspect of Haiti life, including access to clean water as well as food production.
The folks over at Spend Yourself have put together a shirt the proceeds of which all go to support NWHCM. They have already raised a large amount of money for the purpose of buying equipment to drill wells for some of the remote areas in the Northwest. Since the earthquake they had to call an audible at the line and are now diverting some of the funds from the shirts towards earthquake relief as well. This has been a long process that started with a trip to Haiti and some great conversations between the people at Spend Yourself and the staff and leadership from NWHCM. Where the story ends is another question.
The word on the shirt “espere” is the Creole verb for “hope.” The implications/interpretations of the word in reference to the shirt seem limitless. As an organization we hope that Haiti can pull through this disaster. We hope for a Haiti in which all people have access to clean water. We hope for a Haiti that reflects the natural beauty and fertile mountainsides that it was once known for. We hope for a Haiti in which people are treated fairly and with respect by citizens within the country and the global community. We hope for a Haiti that will continue to see growth in the body of believers, one in which the global body will show solidarity with, not as all-mighty, benevolent Americans or members of the first world, but as the body of Christ being the body of Christ (I think I stole that phrase from someone).
Essentially, we hope for Haiti the same things that we hope for our own lives and those around us. We can no longer ignore the people living from the margins, living in the parts of the world that are only discussed during times of war and natural disaster. The reality is that these people not only live the moments that we periodically see on CNN but they also live in the expanse of years between the disasters that make it on the news, and sometimes those normal days are harder than the ones that garner international attention and aid.
It is a big message for a t-shirt right? Nevertheless it is a message that we cannot afford to forget, not for Haiti or for any other group of people as well.
Filed under: Curtis' Soapbox, General Haiti Information, NW_Development, NW_General, NW_Relief, Projects, Stuff You Should Support | 1 Comment »












