December 18, 2023, updated December 23rd and again on December 27th, and again on the *31st!).
Hey there! Maybe it’s been a while since you heard much news about me or Haiti. I’m doing a lot better these days; Haiti isn’t.
But rather than go on about the turmoil happening in beautiful, gang-ridden Haiti, let me tell you about my friend, Junior, who has been dealing with more in one year than anyone should have to. It’s so much that I am leaving quite a bit out, at least for now.
In speaking with Junior, he is in full panic mode about losing vision in his right eye. Because I know about this—and can’t come up with the funds on my own—I am obliged to cause support for him. A small team of people, including me, could easily fund this.
Restoring one wonderful person’s vision and putting some cash back in his pocket could make a huge difference for him. For many of us, this can be made possible with a fairly insignificant chunk of generosity.
Can we make this work?
I squirm and resist asking people for money. I hate being in need so much that I keep figuring my life out so that I am sustained personally without having to talk to anyone about it, but I don’t have a lot left over.
I am calling in my angels and guides.
What’s so:
Junior needs surgery on his right eye, which has been developing a pterygium for several years and is now encroaching on his cornea. (See scary photo below). The surgery is available in Port-au-Prince by a doctor who already di his left eye. On top of it all, on Sunday, December 10th, he was severely beaten in the streets while running routine errands. He ended up in the hospital for two days, costing everything he had.
Photos show Junior and I in San Francisco in 2006, Junior and his son, Nathan, back in 2004, and finally, a little look at what is happening with his eye (and some scars on his nose and forehead from a separate incident).
The total we are raising is $2500. This total includes the eye surgery at $1750.00 (and that comes with a pair of glasses), helping restore him after his recent hospital bill of $650.00 U.S., and $100.00 for incidentals like transfer fees. (*Update as of the 31th of December: We’re closing in, but got stuck around 70% of the way there…)
This has been a heavy lift for me, worrying about my friend and figuring out how to fundraise after not doing it for many years. I hope you can help do this, and I completely understand if you can’t swing it now.
Can you help with this?
We humbly thank you for your consideration. If you are American, your financial support is tax deductible (if you care about that). Kledev still exists and has the right to fundraise even if it doesn’t have a board or a website! (If you would prefer to send a check, send me a note at claykilgore at kledev.org, and I will give you the address)
Background on who Junior is for me: I met Junior when he worked as a driver, guide, and interpreter for people visiting Haiti. It was his business. His clients were medical missions, election observers, international journalists, documentary filmmakers, and religious mission groups. I observed the Presidential election in Haiti in 2000. Junior was the interpreter for my group.
He has been a friend ever since, but also someone I rely on for information from the streets of Port-au-Prince. When we started Kledèv in 2006, Junior was one of the key community leaders who made things happen in Port-au-Prince.
I was his best man at his wedding in 2003, which made me his “parenn”—a kind of godfather of the marriage and a genuine part of the family in the Haitian tradition. We started our first venture back then, which would give parentless boys a way to earn a living selling small bags of frozen water to thirsty drivers at crossroads while being mentored by older people who had found their way in life.
Some of you may have met him in San Francisco or around Portland or Salem, Oregon. He visited twice in the early 00s. On one of those visits, he even did the Landmark Forum!
A lot has changed in 20 years. These days, Junior is in poor health, living with type 2 diabetes, which causes him to need medications to control blood sugar and pain from peripheral neuropathy. He sometimes goes without the medications he needs, not wanting to ask for too much.
That’s a quick background on him and a little on me. I’ve been “disabled” for a little over a decade now, doing quite a bit better than before, in an unstructured rehab, and I send as much as I can to help Junior with his meds and day-to-day needs.
I know engaging a team for what’s needed now would be most effective. As I said, I dislike asking—as if I should have a mountain of cash—but providing stress relief (mine and his), better vision, and improved health are possible sooner if we get together!