Winter 2005                                             Volume 7    Issue 1

Winds reach 150 miles an hour, uprooting trees and pulling at the foundation of homes.  The pounding rain is relentless as it turns canals and ditches into rushing torrents of water.  The weather finally clears, devastation is everywhere.  Many are injured, trapped, and killed.  Downed utility wires create additional hazards to navigate.  The nearest hospital is 45 minutes away, only accessible by foot on a rugged trail, and its resources are scarce.  No volunteer fire department, EMS or rescue department exists in the community.  No one has ever been trained to care for even the smallest injuries. 

This is a reality lived by over 8 million in the country of Haiti today. In the past Haitians only hope has been waiting for U.S. human and financial aid to pour into the country.

A group of CERT trainers from Michigan in partnership with the Haitian Soleil Foundation traveled to Haiti in November to train 22 Haitian public school teachers, administrators, and community leaders as CERT instructors.  The training was conducted at the Haitian headquarters of the Soleil Foundation in small fishing village outside of Leogane, Haiti.  

Not knowing what to expect in teaching the first international CERT group, the team of instructors modified pieces of the program for the remote, rural setting.

The first day of class began with the morning group of students arriving in perfectly cleaned and pressed dresses, dress slacks, and dress shirts.  Each student carried in a chair from his/her home to sit.  The first class began with the use of an interpreter and goats walking through the classroom.

After the initial introduction of the program the students were asked if the CERT program was relevant and applicable in their community.  Every student was able to provide a specific example of how CERT could provide additional life safety in their community.

Five Michiganders finding their way to a remote fishing village might seem a near impossibility, however; the founder of Soleil Foundation made it a reality.  Paul Cormier, Emergency Manager of Bay County, Michigan, founded Soleil Foundation in 1995 to provide free access to education for Haitian children.  Cormier's first visit to Haiti was when he was on active duty in the U.S. Coast Guard.  He says it was then that Haiti chose him.  Appalled at the lack of public education, Cormier made it his personal mission to provide what he could.

At the 2004 Fall Michigan State Police Emergency Management summit in Traverse City, Michigan, Paul Cormier; Steve Leese, Emergency Manager and 911 Director of Huron County, Michigan; and Cathy Muma, Emergency Manager and Public Safety Coordinator at Northwestern Michigan College realized over dinner the advantages a CERT program and Citizen Corp Council could offer a third world country like Haiti.  By November the three had formed a team which included Leese's son, Tony, a senior at Ferris State University, Richard Marth, a paramedic from Traverse City; Becky Johnson, a Coast Guard Reservists and her Don.  This team then made plans to implement CERT for the first time outside of the U.S.

With the assistance and guidance of Gary Zulinski, Program Director of Michigan Citizen Corps, the plans became a reality.  The team left for Haiti November 21, 2004.  They touched down in Port-Au-Prince and made their way by van to Leogane.

At the 2004 Fall Michigan State Police Emergency Management summit in Traverse City, Michigan, Paul Cormier; Steve Leese, Emergency Manager and 911 Director of Huron County, Michigan; and Cathy Muma, Emergency Manager and Public Safety Coordinator at Northwestern Michigan College realized over dinner the advantages a CERT program and Citizen Corp Council could offer a third world country like Haiti.  By November the three had formed a team which included Leese's son, Tony, a senior at Ferris State University, Richard Marth, a paramedic from Traverse City; Becky Johnson, a Coast Guard Reservists and her Don.  This team then made plans to implement CERT for the first time outside of the U.S.

With the assistance and guidance of Gary Zulinski, Program Director of Michigan Citizen Corps, the plans became a reality.  The team left for Haiti November 21, 2004.  They touched down in Port-Au-Prince and made their way by van to Leogane.

By training Haitians to be trainers of the program the team has built sustainability into the endeavor.  If the team is never able to return to Haiti, the program will still continue to grow as these trainers teach new teams.  The Michigan team also stressed the importance of utilizing local resources for first aid, fire suppression and search/rescue.  Once again this was done so the program will sustain itself independent of U.S. resources.

The Michigan team is slated to return in November 2005 to test the Haitian trainer's students.  The team will measure the success of the program at that time against a pre-established list of measurable criteria. 

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