Polene

For Polene Germain, International Child Care’s community health program provides more than just life-saving care: it creates a sense of community that she can trust. “If I didn’t have this program, I wouldn’t know how to keep my children healthy,” she said. “It’s very useful because here the living conditions are so bad.”

Polene and her children, ages 10 and 5, live in a tent community in Port-au-Prince. Meant for temporary housing after the catastrophic earthquake of 2010, tent cities are still common throughout the city. Polene’s family and neighbors live in harsh conditions without clean water or toilets, and the scrap metal structures are what they call home.

International Child Care’s program in Haiti sends healthcare workers out into the community to serve people who couldn’t otherwise come to the hospital. They also heavily emphasize on teaching people about proper nutrition, sanitation, and personal hygiene in order to keep their families healthy.

Polene also participates in a mother’s club that ICC hosts where she is able to feel uplifted and supported by the other women of her community. At the club, she also receives vitamins for her children. “They taught me how to feed my children to keep them healthy even when I don’t have enough money. I know now to feed them rice with legumes and some lemon juice.”

But of course reactive healthcare is also important. One of Polene’s children has a disability, and the healthcare worker worked for many years through physical therapy. “Now my child can walk,” Polene said.

These are the incredible services you provide when you give to International Child Care. Without the support from donors, stories like Polene’s wouldn’t be possible. With your support, ICC can reach out to even more families in tent cities just like Polene’s to provide guidance and support and give hope.