Putting up a Shelters System dome for Andre's relatives

Delmas 57, the narrow street where Andre's family lives, has turned into a tent city for about 70 families. Many of the neighborhood houses, like Andre's family's house, survived the earthquake with just cracks, but everyone's too spooked to sleep inside. Only three houses have been destroyed completely on their street, the dead still trapped inside the rubble. By the time Andre arrived on March 9, the smell of death had already left the area.




Here's Andre's cousin Joanne and her fiance in the makeshift shelter that 14 of Andre's aunts, uncles, and cousins were sharing, made from a very large tarp that they got from their minister. When it rained, the ground got wet, so they asked Andre for one of our Shelter Systems domes. We had hoped to set it up on the land in the mountain village, but they're still negotiating.

Here's a little cutie in the camp who I couldn't resist photographing.



We set it up on the rooftop of his uncle's house so they could see what it looks like and so they'd believe that it's really 14' in diameter.

I had hoped they would keep the other structure and move one family into the dome. But they're too afraid to sleep on the rooftop for fear that a bigger earthquake will come and topple the walls from the neighboring houses. So Andre took it down and helped them set it up in the camp.

They tried to leave up most of their original shelter, forgetting about the 7' height. As Andre was setting it up, his uncle was still taking down some of the supports of the tarp. I was afraid they'd puncture the dome with the nails, but luckily only one small rip had to be patched with duct tape. By evening, they were ready to lay out all their bedding. All 14 fit cozily into the dome which is designed for 8-10 people.



Andre and I and his brother-in-law are the only ones in the whole neighborhood who are sleeping inside a house. I've been trying to set an example that it's safe. I told them about Santa Cruz's 6.9 earthquake in 1989 and how we were told it might be 50-100 more years before the pressure builds up on the Loma Prieta fault line again. Port-au-Prince hasn't had any aftershocks for 3 weeks, but most residents are afraid to sleep inside even if their house is intact.

The city is going around and inspecting the houses. Some, like the one above with the SUV trapped inside, got red tagged, meaning they have to be demolished. This house is next to the camp. Other houses got yellow tags meaning they must be repaired before they can be inhabited. Andre's house got green, which means it is inhabitable now. Andre's stepfather is a builder, so he will hire some people to help him repair. Materials alone are $4,000-$5,000, but the labor will be cheap, just the opposite in the U.S. where materials are cheaper than labor.

The rains are beginning. I wonder how long it will take for many Haitians to venture back inside their houses. But for hundreds of thousands, they no longer have a house to go back into and they will be living in tents....maybe for years.

2 Months After the Quake: Plans change yet again

Today marks two months after the Jan. 12 earthquake. Hundreds of thousands are still homeless and camping out on the streets of the capitol. Andre is spending his fourth night in a tent in Port-au-Prince and is growing weary already. He's been great about staying in touch via iPhone, emailing lots of photos: of the land we wanted to buy, the cracks in his family's house in Port-au-Prince, and family members with their tents. I'm joining him next Wednesday morning after 26-hours of travel and two stopovers. We have reservations to return April 7, but Andre doesn't know how we can stay that long. When he went downtown he saw a man bleeding to death in the street from a bullet wound. I don't know if I'm ready for this.

Today was a productive day for me. I bought a solar backpack off craigslist, which will supposedly recharge cell phones and iPods. Because of lack of electricity it's been challenging for Andre to keep the iPhone charged; he even had to pay one time for recharging service. The city sometimes turns on the electricity in the houses, but you never know when or for how long, which is how it always was, even before the quake.

A friend who went to the same high school with me in Chula Vista, back in the 1970s, surprised with a generous cash donation, plus two suitcases, one filled with toiletries, first aid kit, tiny sleeping bags, and mosquito netting.

I spent half of her donation on assorted flashlights: mini-Mag lights, wind-up flashlights, key chain mini-lights, and rechargeable batteries and charger. The Haitians always need flashlights in Port-au-Prince, even before the quake, because they rarely have electricity. Whenever we visited, they let us use the kerosene lamp. I could read for a while, but not too long because the light is so dim. Soon I'd just give up and go to sleep. You can't do anything in the dark and you can't leave the house because the whole neighborhood is pitch black. Only some hotels and businesses used to be powered by noisy gasoline generators. This was before the quake. I don't think there are any hotels and only few businesses left.

I spent a lot of time today on the internet, connecting with a carpenter/EMT who has enough frequent flyer miles for a round-trip ticket. He said he'd love to go work with Andre's stepfather, depending on what happens with his business. I also hooked up with John Calvert, an expert on perma-culture. He suggested a variety of ways to get water to the land...assuming we could buy the land. It seems all that's changed.

Andre and his stepfather had a meeting with the owner of the land in Athis that they wanted to buy. Now he's changed his mind and doesn't want to sell. I don't understand why he would string Andre's stepfather along for a month if he didn't want to sell. Mathieu must have gone back and forth between the capitol and the mountains at least a dozen or 20 times while investigating this deal. I could hear the frustration and discouragement in Andre's voice when he told me the news.

But there's good news too: damage to the Port-au-Prince house doesn't look that bad, at least not from the photos Andre sent me. I'm not an engineer and I'm not seeing it in person, but as a Californian, I'm used to cracked buildings. Often it's just cosmetic damage. Even after the 6.9 earthquake in Santa Cruz many buildings were saved by retrofit seismic repairs.

In a way, it makes more sense to repair the house in Port-au-Prince first. The land and building project can't finished before the rains, and tent living will get old fast. I love camping, but when it starts raining hard, I'm ready to pack it in and look for a hotel. Andre's family's house is about 1000 square feet on the main floor, has two smaller apartments in the basement, and a new two-room apartment for his sister, her husband and their kids on the third floor. So there's plenty of space for extended family members to squeeze in.

I'm also a little relieved that the land deal is on hold because I've worried that Andre's siblings wouldn't be happy in such a remote, rural location. His parents, aunts and uncles, and grandma all grew up in the mountains, but not the siblings and cousins. Andre is the only one of his generation who did because he spent his childhood with his grandparents. He knows the country life and enjoys it. As an American, I like the mountain village also because it's cooler, cleaner, healthier and has a nice view. But it seems the initial panic to get out of the capitol is fading now that the aftershocks are dying down and the rains are coming soon.

It happened here in Santa Cruz as well in 1989. They evacuated our neighborhood because the Victorian house next door to my grandma's house fell on her gas line. I was in Italy at the time, but my housemates and my grandma were instructed to camp out on the Santa Cruz High School football field, as aftershocks rattled their nerves. On the third night it started to rain, so everyone went back into their houses. I'm guessing the Haitians will do the same.

One of the 14' dome tents that Andre brought was for a friend's family. They are extremely grateful for their new home. But in the camping area that Andre's family shares with about 70 families, there's nowhere to set up such a big dome tent, and I'm bringing another one soon. Andre's family is sleeping in a borrowed tent, which may be reclaimed if Andre's sister and her in-laws return to the capitol. Even though many of his relatives are sleeping under tarps, Andre is afraid to let anyone borrow the dome because they might not want to give it back when we need it. I was hoping we could use them on the land while we're building, but since that might not be happening, and since his family might be able to repair and move back into their house, I'm not sure what we'll do with the dome tents. They cost $350 for the tent, $50 shipping from Georgia, $50 for the floor tarps, and $100 for excess baggage charge -- that's $550 times three -- so I don't want to just give them away. Everyone wants one, but who can afford to buy them?

Well, it's always good to be flexible and open minded. There's definitely no script for a disaster like the Haitian earthquake. We're two months into this thing and the end is nowhere in sight.

Burners without Borders -- another wish list for Haiti

A few weeks ago, I searched the word "Haiti" on craigslist. I found a carpenter here in Santa Cruz who said he was looking for work for a few weeks to get money together for his upcoming trip to Haiti. He was going with an organization called Burners Without Borders. It sounds like it's Burning Man meets Doctors Without Borders. He said he was taking his tools with him and was hoping to help with the reconstruction efforts.

I wrote to him and said I could give him some small jobs, since my regular guy is in Mexico right now (Daniel, for people who know me). I was also curious to know more about him and this organization. I heard back from him once, but that was it. Then I got busy and forgot about him.

Now I'm looking at photos of cracks in Andre's family's house that Andre sent me with my iPhone --thanks to AT&T for the great international plan they came up with to help the relief effort in Haiti. I take back all the bad things I've said about AT&T in the past. From these photos, I would definitely agree with Andre and Dr. Tony Hoffman that the house should be repairable. With fewer and smaller aftershocks, little by little, the family is cooking inside, using the bathroom, getting a change of clothes, and plugging in their cell phones to recharge when the random electrical service comes on. By the way, even before the earthquake most families in Port-au-Prince only got electricity a couple of hours ago, usually late at night when everyone was asleep.

I bring up Burners Without Borders also because I was interested in their list of needed supplies:

SEEDS: apricot, cabbage, tomato, potato, carrots, red and white beans, yams, corn, pistachio, papaya, cauliflower, squash, watermelon, purple onion, sweet peas, garlic, beans/red and white, peppers and spicy peppers.

SUPPLIES: Crutches, Naproxin, Immodium/ anti diarrhea meds, Baby formula,Bottles, Nipples, Food/A packs, IV Needle Inserts, Slings (all sizes), Pedialyte Powder, Adult Crutches, Canes, New Socks for Amputees, Cast Shoes (Left and Right), Saline forwards, Gloves, Anti-fungal ointment, Antibiotic ointment, Sulfa, Antibiotics,

OVER the COUNTER MEDICINE - Tylenol (adult and peds), Motrin (adult and peds), Tussin, Dressings, DUST MASKS (the concrete dust here is VERY bad)

I didn't know if you could bring seeds on a plane internationally. I'll have to check about that because if we succeed in relocating his family to the mountain village they would certainly be able to grow some food. I have a friend who works in the garden center at Pro-Build and I will give her this seed list. Andre did take some of these supplies and over-the-counter medicines last time. I'm waiting to hear back from him regarding what else they need or what they need more of.

Andre sent me photos with an iPhone

Andre arrived in Haiti on Tuesday, March 9 at noon. His brothers Reginald and Johnny were there to pick him up, along with his five 50-pound bags, 40-pound carry-on and day pack. We were really lucky to get all that on the flight because American Airlines tightened their baggage restrictions on all flights to Haiti. Normally, on international flights they allow two 50-pound bags for free, plus up to three more for $100 each. At the last minute we found out we could only take one extra for $100. We already had them all packed, so we decided to get to the airport three hours early and act like we didn't know about the change. Our plan worked.

Upon arrival in Port-au-Prince, Andre was upset to see that his bags had been opened, especially the two relief tents which we had wrapped so carefully and sealed with packing tape, mummy-style. He had to pay off the customs officers with shampoos, soap, toothbrushes and toothpaste. But the rest got through: two 14-foot dome tents, two smaller tents, three air mattresses and foot pump, three 16' x 20' tarps for the floors of the dome tents, flashlights, hand tools, soccer balls and cleats, some clothes, jump ropes, nuts, canned tuna, packaged foods, more toiletries, medications, band-aids...plus even more stuff I can't remember now.

Before Andre left, I called our cell phone companies. Verizon has no service in Haiti. My iPhone with AT&T service would work, plus they have a special plan because of the relief workers. For $20 per month pro-rated, we have an international plan for Haiti and the Dominican Republic: phone calls anywhere in the world for 25 cents a minute (instead of $1.99), data (internet and email) for 50 cents a MB instead of $20, and text messages for 10 cents each. They couldn't tell me exactly how many emails you get for one MB of data, but it's roughly 300. About half that many if there are attachments. So he took my iPhone and I have his Verizon phone.

Andre's been busy since he arrived. He handed out the stuff he brought. The finger flashlights that someone from Minorsan donated were a big hit. He also went up to the village of Athis with his stepfather and brother. They're ready to buy the land, but the escrow office is destroyed. So he got a meeting with the seller on Friday to talk about making a deposit on the land through a lawyer, to guarantee the price, and hopefully to allow them to start building.

Andre also sent me photos of his friend "Coach", his Aunt Miche and sister Beatrice in front of the tent that a friend donated. This friend's sister works for Eureka Tents, so she was able to get a returned tent for $20, regularly $150 new. Miche is sharing it with four others. Andre's family hasn't been able to put up the dome tent because there's no space for it. They're staying in a campsite with about 70 families not too far from their house. They can't go anywhere else because they wouldn't be able to keep an eye on their house and their possessions. Another dome tent went to a friend's family and they've been able to set it up. Andre didn't send me any pictures of that yet.

He did send me pictures of the Hotel Villa Imperial where we used to pay $5 a day to go swimming, use their wi-fi, and recharge cell phones and my laptop. The owner of the hotel died in the earthquake. I was glad to hear that the manager survived. Fortunately, he was out in the parking lot when the earthquake hit. Andre sent another picture of a destroyed building just a few blocks from his folks' house.

Andre thinks his family's house might be repairable. That would be the best short term solution to get them safe from the rainy season that's coming up soon. I asked him to see if he can find a seismic engineer to inspect it -- preferably from California or another place that gets earthquakes frequently.

I'm leaving on Tuesday, changing planes in Miami and Santo Domingo. I have an overnight layover in Santo Domingo. I was joking that I should set up the dome tent and air mattress for myself in the airport. My own little refugee camp. Andre and I are booked on the same return flight on April 7, overnighting in Miami with some Haitian friends.

Another successful fundraiser

Thank you so much to everyone who donated silent auction items. helped set up beforehand and clean up afterwards, who brought all the yummy food, and who bid on these great auction items. Altogether we brought in over $2000!!

Andre and I are just so grateful to all our friends and this wonderful community for the love and support you give us. We know that Haiti has been in the news for nearly two months now, and with the

earthquakes in Chile and Taiwan, everyone's on overload regarding earthquakes. We're hearing that many relief workers are leaving Haiti now, just as the rainy season is beginning. The UN is predicting a second wave of suffering as Port-au-Prince prepares for flooding and disease. 150,000 survivors of the earthquake are living in areas that may be evacuated. In the midst of all this, Andre is preparing to fly there tomorrow. Today we spent the day packing his five 50-pound bags and 40-pound carry-on plus day pack. A lot of the wonderful purchases and donations we've collected will have to wait for my trip over in a week or so. It was so hard to prioritize and decide what to take first and what can wait. We also just learned that American Airlines has tightened their baggage restrictions and will allow a maximum of three 50-pound bags, rather than five, even though we're prepared to pay the $300 overage fee. Well, we'll take it all and pray that we get it all on board. We'll be arriving three hours early before the plane's cargo gets filled.

It was great to see so many of our friends altogether in one place. Usually Andre prefers to be out of the spotlight, but he seemed to enjoy chatting with everyone about how his family is doing. We've heard from Dr. Tony Hoffman of UCSC who's working on children's rights in the Delmas neighborhood not far from Andre's family, that his stepfather should see a doctor. He's either depressed or ill.

We finally spoke to our friend Rose who just got back to Florida after two weeks in Haiti. She's starting the adoption process for a one-year-old malnourished baby boy whose mother died in the earthquake. She had hoped that the US embassy would give him humanitarian asylum, but she couldn't get an appointment.

Before she left Florida, Rose had tried to buy a tent to take with her, but every store was sold out. We're lucky to have the three relief tents we bought from Shelter Systems, as well as four smaller tents that were donated.

Rose had a hard time getting out of Haiti. She'd paid $130 to fly to D.R., but it cost her $500 for the hour and a half flight back home. She misses little Alan already. The adoption lawyers she spoke to said it will probably take 6-12 months to get him to the U.S. and it's going to cost quite a bit too.

Rose was surprised to see so many white people in Port-au-Prince. That will be something new for me too. I'm so used to being the only "blan" for miles. Poor Haitians would cross the
street and follow me around asking for money and telling me they're hungry. Rose was surprised to see all the white people riding in the back of tap-taps, getting rides on motorcycles, and filling up her flight home. She said there were probably about 20 Haitians on the flight and the rest were Americans. When Andre and I went in June it was me, a few missionaries, and a plane full of Haitians.

Andre and I have a few goals for our trip to Haiti. First of all, we want to
find out if there's another way to buy the land in the mountain village since the escrow office was destroyed in the earthquake. We'd also like to see if there are any structural engineers who can evaluate his family's house in Port-au-Prince and see if it could be repaired. Maybe that would be a faster way to get them out of the rains.

I also want to meet Tony and Starry, two Americans in Haiti who I've been in contact with. And I plan to go to Jeremie to visit Andre's sister Marjorie who moved there with her husband and his family about a week or two after the quake. She had never been before, but it seems she likes it. I've always wanted to go to Jeremie. Now that Andre's sister, brother-in-law, nephew Joel and goddaughter are there, I have my excuse.

Our new dome tents from Shelter Systems

We ordered three 14-foot dome relief tents from Shelter Systems, a Santa Cruz company. Soon after the earthquake rocked Haiti, the U.N. ordered 3000 tents from Shelter Systems, their biggest order ever. Several mission groups have ordered 100 or 200 to go to Haiti also. Up until now, these dome tents were most popular at Burning Man gatherings.

Jeff, who works at their westside warehouse, was super nice and showed Andre how to assemble one in just 25 minutes. You don't need any tools, and they go together like tinker toys. The finished product is strong, light, durable, comfy, private, well ventilated, etc. etc. They don't have any seams or zippers to rip.

Eleanor Hamner, the company's business manager, spent 13 years of her childhood living in a dome tent in Aptos, CA. Needless to say, her parents who started Shelter Systems, were hippies. Her dad still sports long gray hair and beard. "But we all live in houses now," says Eleanor, even though she says she loved living in the dome tent.

The bad news is we just found out on American Airlines website that they have new restrictions for flights to Haiti. Originally, when we bought Andre's ticket for March 8, we were told he could take two 50-pound bags, one 40-pound carry-on and a day pack for free, plus a maximum of three more 50-pound bags for $100 each. We were preparing to take the max. Now we find out he can only take one 50-pound extra bag. We're also concerned about the bulk of the relief tents, even though they only weigh 43 pounds each.

Our plan is to get to the airport three hours early on March 8 and bring three extra bags. I will use all my chutzpah to try to get them on the plane. If not, I bring two back home until I fly over to Haiti in a week or 10 days. I decided to wait until Andre gets in touch with me from Haiti about the situation over there before I make my reservation. A friend who has lots of frequent flyer miles has offered to let me have them, but I'm going to pay her half the price of a ticket. That's really generous of her.

Andre's family has been trying to discourage us from coming. His brother asked him if he's really ready to see his country in ruins. It sounds like such a desperate situation. Maybe we won't stay a month after all. We'll see once we get there.

EVENT: March 13th Concert @ The Parish Publick House