Last week we had a beautiful day installing solar panels alongside our neighbors. Since you couldn’t be here with us, we wanted to paint the picture for you.
Imagine this.
It’s 6:30 AM, the sky is a pearlescent indigo.
There are 12 steel poles in the back of the “Truck Ayisyen” —a vehicle that has seen better days, but still get’s the job done.
Also in the truck bed: a generator, a small welding device, and a stack of solar powered street lamps still in their original boxes.
Today will be our 9th solar street lamp installation and preparations have been underway for several weeks.
This involves communicating with residents of the area so they understand what Second Mile will provide—and what they, as a community, must bring to the table.
Whereas Second Mile brings panels and posts and does the work of welding them together, we need members of the community to provide cement, water, rocks, and sand, for securing them in place.
Where we provide the generator and gas to run the generator and Jos (a Second Mile team member who also happens to be a welder) to do the welding, we need members from the community to dig the holes and carry supplies from one site to the next.
This is communicated well in advance of the installation so that word can be passed from neighbor to neighbor.
We check in with the community leaders a few days before the planned installation to confirm that the materials have been gathered and the volunteers are ready.
And then it’s go time!
We’ve done this enough times now, that the whole operation appears brilliantly orchestrated, choreographed like a broadway performance with all the surprise and wonder of a well-placed flash mob.
It’s 8:30 AM now and the day’s installation, which began in the village of Pont Gracia and would end in the village of Lagosette, is unfolding as expected.
Maybe even better than expected.
At the home closest to the installation point of the first lamp, the Matriarch of the family has assembled every vessel she has that can hold water, primarily cooking pots.
While her son works to mix the cement, she pulls and shuttles water from a nearby well to fill the the vessels.
When our team was ready to move up the road, she was ready to come along. We assured her this wasn’t necessary. She’d already given more than her share and we had a feeling there were others like her, waiting up the road to offer a similar contribution.
She agreed to sit tight, once we promised to come back for her if she was needed up ahead.
We shouldn’t have been surprised when hours later, she was still waiting by the side of the road with her pots and buckets—making good on her end of the deal.
One boss from the area contributed his expertise and a few of his own tools to the installation.
One tool in particular stood out. He’d purchased it recently—a level, black and yellow and brand new.
“I spent 1000 gourdes on this and I haven’t even had the chance to use it on jobs.”
“But I’ll tell you this! I don’t care if it doesn’t make me another cent! It has now served a purpose more grand than money!”
The number of community members who volunteer to help has grown at each installation point.
People from up the road came down road to lend a hand. And people from down the road, continue ahead.
By 11:00 we had finished all of the panels that had been planned for Pont- Gracia and it was time to drive a half-mile to the first installation point in the neighboring village of Lagosette.
There would be willing volunteers waiting there to help. But the young men from Pont-Gracia weren’t tired.
“This is a work day!” They exclaimed. “We’re going to work!”
Plus, they joked, their friends in Lagosette would need an example of how to really work to get the job done.
And so with shovels and picks in hand, a team of eager teenagers and muscled twenty-somethings marched ahead—arriving in nearby Lagosette just as the Second Mile Haiti truck pulled up with a new set up posts and panels.
Around 12:00 PM, Evane, one of Lagosette’s long time residents, arrived seemingly stunned at all the work that had already transpired while she was away on an errand.
Evane was born in Lagosette and raised her children here. As a mom of twenty-somethings herself, she was endeared by the site of so many young people from two different villages working together.
She made her contribution to the installation, buying the young men bottles of cold water and several cold sodas which they shared.
And that’s how the day went down. We were done before 2 pm.
With such amazing teamwork and collaboration, 35 street lamps were installed at rate of 10 minutes per panel—our largest and fastest installation to date.
A new record!
And that’s it.
Until next time, we hope you enjoy your neighbors and sleep peacefully!
If you haven’t yet, don’t forget to sign up for the 5K, happening November 3-5th.
As a participant, you'll receive an exclusive podcast to listen to on the day of your 5K. Not only will you be supporting Second Mile Haiti, you’ll also get to take a virtual journey through the towns and villages outside our Cap Haitien Maternity Center. You’ll even meet a client from the Maternity Center.
Grab your dog or a friend and walk, run, or hike together. This will be a great way to introduce the people you love to an organization you love.
Register before October 5th to secure a Second Mile Haiti: In Her Shoes 5K t-shirt.