Volunteer View
Student Jules Jean Anold with teacher Krisitn Laboe
On Saturday, May 9th, 455 nervous students flooded through the school gates and crowded into classrooms to vie for the chance to be one of LCS’s next 60 Sixième students. They sat down, wiping sweaty palms on shirt fronts and exhaling loudly in mental preparation. These were 12-year-old kids who knew the stakes; lives can be changed by education.
A good education is a lifeline; it is an asset that cannot be taken from you, even in a country wrought with instability and destitution. Through God’s grace and the generosity of many, LCS continues to touch the lives of the young Haitians that pass through our classrooms. But our students are not the only ones at LCS who receive an education; everyone has something valuable to gain from the Louverturian experience.
For me, this has been a challenging year of growth as an individual and in community. I thank my students for an eventful year of trial by fire. While they have helped me to grow as a teacher, they have also taught me to take people for who they are. Poverty is a strange thing. It can distort our expectations and perceptions of people. But these students are not defined by their poverty.
At LCS, we have workaholics and athletes. We have social butterflies, troublemakers, and wallflowers. Each of our students can surprise you with their unique talents and interests. One day one of my Quatrième students – a four foot tall 14 year-old – twirled into the classroom asking me if I could dance ballet because he wished he knew how. And I have never seen anyone take the game Boggle more seriously. Some of my best classroom memories come from my discussions with my Rhèto students about the complex issues in To Kill a Mockingbird and their insights on the changes they see in the world since that time.
This year I have also coached the girls’ soccer club. They are talented and enthusiastic girls who seize every opportunity to play and grow as a team. My students will always have a special place in my heart, but they are just like any group of kids elsewhere in the world. We are working to give them the chances that other young adults have.
Looking at our Philo students today, I can imagine them as the wiry little kids they once were. They have grown into strong, bright men and women who will serve as leaders for their peers. I envision great things for them: university, working for change, leaving their mark on their country. Without a doubt, they will give back.
