Haiti: Imagine, Inspire, Create

I am both touched and outraged by this video. 

Haiti IDP Camps video 2 from Adam Stofsky on Vimeo.

I know from the work done by our partner ONEXONE to bring medical supplies and other equipment to Partners in Health, how successful PIH has been in their efforts since (and also before) the earthquake in Haiti.  I know there were challenges faced in getting aid to the people of Haiti in the days and weeks that followed the massive devastation.  But as I prepare for our week long trip to Haiti, I am bracing myself for the face to face reality of so much aid still not making it to hundreds of thousands of Haitians.  Yes this is overwhelming but we must reach beyond that feeling.  We must find a way to put the resources needed into the hands of Haitians and collaborate on solutions LED by Haitians.

My daughter is wearing a shirt today that reads:  Imagine, Inspire, Create.   It leaves me thinking that yes we can work together to imagine what is possible.  And yes, we can inspire a country to renew not just rebuild.  And to renew is to create.  But that must be done by and led by the people of Haiti.  This is way beyond aid and charity.  We in the non-profit sector can do better than this.  One could make a strong argument that we failed on the aid front.  Perhaps it is because we need to explore a better model.