Fundraiser Planned in Support of Haiti School Project
Posted by Susanna Henighan
A fun day and concert to raise funds for the Rotary Club of Tortola's Haiti School Project is well underway as the organizers prepare to entertain residents and visitors on Virgin Gorda at a Pirate Show to be held at Leverick Bay on Tuesday, November 24th.
The upcoming concert by entertainer Michael "Beans" Gardener is a continuation of several successful pirate parties held in the United States, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the BVI to raise $100,000 to build and equip a school in the lle a Vache Haiti.
Ile a Vache is a small island located on the southern coast of Haiti, and La Hatte is a village on that island. The Rotary Club of Tortola first learned about La Hatte and Ile a Vache from Michael "Beans" Gardner, a singer and entertainer based in the British Virgin Islands who visited the island several years ago. Moved by what he saw and experienced there, Gardner established a foundation with his own funds which in turn opened the Good Samaritan School. The school is for poor and orphaned children who otherwise would not be able to attend school. It is free and open to all.
The Haiti School project is being undertaken in partnership with the Rotary Club of Les Cayes, Haiti, and the Good Samaritan Foundation. When the new school is built, it will provide free education to the children of La Hatte. The Rotary Club of Tortola previously provided water tanks for the school and helped fund teacher's salaries for the 2008-2009 school year. Additionally, ten outboard engines to aid with the village's fishing fleet were shipped to the village last December from the Virgin Islands via Fairwinds, a Gulfstar 55 skippered by Harry Birch, who volunteered for the transport.
Education is an essential tool to enable an individual and a country to grow and prosper independently. In Haiti, one of the poorest nations in the Western Hemisphere, many children do not attend school because their families cannot afford it. By helping Haitian school children get a good education, we can help Haiti break the cycle of poverty said Haiti School Fund chairman, Rotarian Stephen Cooper.
Cooper is encouraging residents on Virgin Gorda and the yachting community to support this event by attending and participating in the planned activities which are geared towards raising funds for the project. "We need your help to reach our goal of $100,000, and to give the children of Ile a Vache the gift of education," Cooper said. "We have been fundraising all year and now have almost half the money raised so we should be able to get the construction started early next year, We are working with professional engineers in Haiti, who have designed a simple school building with six classrooms and space for a director's Office and a few other simple amenities," Cooper further explained.
The collaboration between Rotary clubs means that 100% of all contributions will be securely channeled to fund the school project.
Our next fundraising "Pirates with a Porpoise" Party is going to be held during Thanksgiving week, on Tuesday 24th November at Leverick Bay, Virgin Gorda starting mid afternoon, with Michael Bean's Pirate Show starting at 5pm. There'll be sandcastle building, crab races and a Pirate Dress competition along with Raffles and Auctions of some great stuff. For more information about the upcoming fundraiser or how you can make a contribution towards the project contact any member of the Rotary Club of Tortola.
Ile a Vache is a small island located on the southern coast of Haiti, and La Hatte is a village on that island. The Rotary Club of Tortola first learned about La Hatte and Ile a Vache from Michael "Beans" Gardner, a singer and entertainer based in the British Virgin Islands who visited the island several years ago. Moved by what he saw and experienced there, Gardner established a foundation with his own funds which in turn opened the Good Samaritan School. The school is for poor and orphaned children who otherwise would not be able to attend school. It is free and open to all.
The Haiti School project is being undertaken in partnership with the Rotary Club of Les Cayes, Haiti, and the Good Samaritan Foundation. When the new school is built, it will provide free education to the children of La Hatte. The Rotary Club of Tortola previously provided water tanks for the school and helped fund teacher's salaries for the 2008-2009 school year. Additionally, ten outboard engines to aid with the village's fishing fleet were shipped to the village last December from the Virgin Islands via Fairwinds, a Gulfstar 55 skippered by Harry Birch, who volunteered for the transport.
Education is an essential tool to enable an individual and a country to grow and prosper independently. In Haiti, one of the poorest nations in the Western Hemisphere, many children do not attend school because their families cannot afford it. By helping Haitian school children get a good education, we can help Haiti break the cycle of poverty said Haiti School Fund chairman, Rotarian Stephen Cooper.
Cooper is encouraging residents on Virgin Gorda and the yachting community to support this event by attending and participating in the planned activities which are geared towards raising funds for the project. "We need your help to reach our goal of $100,000, and to give the children of Ile a Vache the gift of education," Cooper said. "We have been fundraising all year and now have almost half the money raised so we should be able to get the construction started early next year, We are working with professional engineers in Haiti, who have designed a simple school building with six classrooms and space for a director's Office and a few other simple amenities," Cooper further explained.
The collaboration between Rotary clubs means that 100% of all contributions will be securely channeled to fund the school project.
Our next fundraising "Pirates with a Porpoise" Party is going to be held during Thanksgiving week, on Tuesday 24th November at Leverick Bay, Virgin Gorda starting mid afternoon, with Michael Bean's Pirate Show starting at 5pm. There'll be sandcastle building, crab races and a Pirate Dress competition along with Raffles and Auctions of some great stuff. For more information about the upcoming fundraiser or how you can make a contribution towards the project contact any member of the Rotary Club of Tortola.