.png)
April-June 2023
Dear Friends,
The YH is pleased to share with you its Quarterly Recap, a summary of activities that have happened in the past three months (April to June 2023). This newsletter contains updates on administrative activities, a sneak peek into the various activities of the YH’s programs: the Youth Center and the Leadership Academy, and events to look out for! (Hint: Summer is around the corner)
Also, check out our photo collections on the YWCA Haiti’s website.
Happy Reading!
YWCA Haiti Updates
The past three months have been marked by continued efforts by the YH team in localizing and successfully securing funding opportunities (a task that is becoming increasingly difficult for non-profit sector organizations). Since May 2023, the YH has been proud and grateful to count the Barbancourt Foundation among its local donors, which will allow the continuation of academic strengthening and leadership activities during the summer period. On the other hand, many efforts have been put into developing in-house fundraising events such as the annual flea markets. For the first time, the flea market was held both locally at YH center and online, allowing those who wished to purchase items through our social media platforms to do so. It was a successful initiative, and we take this opportunity to thank everyone who contributed in one way or another to make it a success!
In terms of institutional strengthening, there have also been great advances. In May, Sandrine Kénol Wiener, Director of Programs at the YH, traveled to Switzerland for a meeting with a main donor Horyzon Switzerland to develop the strategic planning for the years 2025 to 2028. The YH is also in the process of implementing the Quickbooks software to modernize financial management.
As you’ll see below, on a programmatic level, various activities have been accomplished for the Youth Center and Leadership Academy.
Youth Center
Throughout the past three months, the following activities have been accomplished:
Continued academic reinforcement and after-school support from Monday to Thursday
Nutritional and hygiene kit distribution to YC participants in April
Dental hygiene workshop: A big thank you to Clinique Carvonis (@lacliniquecarvonis) for hosting the workshop and distributing toothbrushes and toothpaste to our beneficiaries
The Safe Space program (Fridays and Saturdays) has hosted a series of workshops on the monthly themes of Self-Esteem, Leadership & Civic Engagement, and the Environment.
Various cultural celebrations were marked:
For Easter, participants and staff took part in an egg hunt. Separated into groups, they all had to make use of their teamwork skills to decipher a series of hints each leading to the next to reach the destination where the eggs were hidden.
For Flag Day, the YC staff presented a history of the Haitian Flag, and participants took pride in parading with their flags held high and singing the national anthem.
For Mother’s and Father’s Day, participants handmade cards with personalized notes to their parents.
Continued preparations for the 10th edition of the YH Summer Camp. A big thank you to all those who have donated materials through the YH Amazon list and to all institutions that have donated food and other products. Click here for more on the highly anticipated summer camp and how to contribute.
Leadership Academy:
Since the previous Quarter recap, the first cohort of “Influential Woman” that was launched on March 18th wrapped up on April 23rd with 60 out of 90 young women officially certified. After 6 packed weeks of training on GBV, SRHR to name a few; these young women from at-risk communities neighboring Pétion-Ville and of Martissant are now ready to go on and lead change in their own communities. We could not be prouder of them! Click here for a summary of this first group’s [out of three] journey for this year’s LA program.
This quarter has also seen great feats from the trainees of the Training of Trainers Program (a continuation to the LA program). This dynamic group of 14 young women has undergone rigorous training on themes such as Self Esteem, Child and Adolescent Psychology, Workshop Conception and Planning, Workshop Animation Technics, Teamwork and team management, Communications and technology Tools, and Computer Classes. In addition, they took part in a two-part internship program, allowing them to observe and practice all acquired skills by conducting workshops for girls at the Youth Center and participants of the Leadership Academy. July 1st marks the end of their training cycle, and now onto completing their internship report and finally graduation, which will mark the end of a two-year training and the beginning of a fruitful journey as mentors.
What's Next?
The 10th edition of the YH summer camp will take place from July 17 to August 04 at the Youth Center. This year's theme will be: “An Vole al Jwenn Objektif Nou” (Let’s Fly Towards Our Goals).
Click here to learn more about how you can contribute.
Comments