Nov 5th, 2011
Some have asked about the boy whose photo appears 
on the cover of Margaret’s book, On That Day, Everybody Ate. His name is Obassi, and he goes by Oba (pronounced “Obay”). The cover photo of him was taken in 2007 by Wadner Pierre, a What If? scholarship recipient who is now studying photojournalism, one day when Oba was eating at the food program.
Margaret remembers being struck by Oba’s gentle shyness when she first met him in 2008 (see photo on the left) and how delighted he was when
she gave him a copy of her book. Oba is now 10 years old, and in 5th grade. He is a What If? school scholarship recipient, and always comes up to greet Margaret when she attends meetings with the students What If? sponsors in Haiti. On the right is a photo of Oba waiting to take a microphone to speak at a student meeting Margaret attended in April 2011. He has said he is grateful for his scholarship, as he would otherwise not be able to go to school, and that he is studying hard so that he can become a doctor and help people in Haiti.
Oct 28th, 2011
Haiti Justice Alliance (HJA) invited Lavarice Gaudin, the What If? 
Foundation’s program liaison in Haiti, to come to Minnesota in early November to speak about food sovereignty and social justice in Haiti. He will be giving presentations at St. Olaf College (11/7), Carleton College (11/8), and the University of Minnesota (11/9). Everyone is welcome to come hear him share about his work, his personal story, and his inspiring vision for agriculture in Haiti.
For more information about these public presentations or about smaller gatherings with Lavarice, please contact HJA at nathan.yaffe@gmail.com. You can also read more about HJA, a coalition that works for sustainable structural change in Haiti, and which helps raise funds for the What If? Foundation and other established grassroots efforts in Haiti, at haitijusticealliance.homestead.com.
Oct 19th, 2011
Last Sunday, I visited a very special garden in St. Helena, CA. It’s the passion of Helen Walka Dake, a very generous woman who also has a passion for children. Through this garden, which is right in front of her house and currently loaded with squash and pumpkins, Helen raised over $4,600 for the What If? Foundation over the past few months (and another $4,000 last summer)!
How does she do it? Here’s a photo of me with Helen in front of her “Dean York Garden” self-service/honor-system farm stand. Helen’s garden is quite big, and she says she spends between 1 to 4 hours tending it and harvesting the produce each day, depending on what needs to be done (and her husband helps too). Then she puts her fresh produce and flowers out for sale, with signs letting people know that all proceeds from sales go to support the programs the What If? Foundation funds for children in Haiti. Word has rapidly spread about the quality of her produce, and Helen says buyers love knowing that their money is going to What If.
Seeing all the produce on the table reminded me of the produce our Haitian partners buy for the food program at the farmer’s market in Port-au-Prince. And I thought about how the money Helen collects from her farm stand helps pay for that produce in Port-au-Prince, supporting farmers and gardens and children in Haiti. I am so touched by this circle of giving, and all that Helen has done to help create it. Her project is, to me, such a beautiful example of love in action. What a gift.
Oct 16th, 2011
World Food Day is a worldwide event designed to increase awareness, understanding and informed, year-round action to alleviate hunger.
This year’s World Food Day theme is “Food Prices – From Crisis to Stability”. The UN’s Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO) chose this theme in recognition of the fact that increases in food prices pose a major threat to food security in developing countries. According to the World Bank, rising food costs pushed nearly 70 million people into extreme poverty in 2010-2011.
We’ve seen the impact rising food prices have had on so many in Haiti this past year. With your help, the food program that the What If? Foundation funds in Port-au-Prince continues to serve thousands each week, despite increasing food prices. On World Food Day 2011 we invite you to join us in looking at what causes swings in food prices, and doing what you can to help to reduce their impact on the those that they hit the hardest – the poor. What’s one small step you can take to help alleviate hunger?
Thank you.
Oct 13th, 2011
Dear Friends of the What If? Foundation,
I recently returned from Haiti, where I was again touched by the joy and hope the programs we fund inspire in the lives of so many children, and have important news to share with you.
First, our Haitian partners just relocated the food program. Faced with the need to move it out of the rectory building with just a few days notice, they moved it to a temporary site near the property we purchased last year. The story of the move, which you can read about below, illustrates yet again the resilience and creativity of our Haitian partners.
Second, I’m excited to introduce you to the team we are working with on plans to build a neighborhood school and cafeteria on the new property. Two members of the team, who are affiliated with Builders Without Borders, joined me for part of my trip to Haiti. After site visits and meetings with our Haitian partners, they are excited to be working on preliminary designs.
Finally, I want to let you know that, thanks to your donations, at least 200 young people received What If? scholarships for this school year. Despite large increases in tuition costs, we’re thrilled that all the students we sponsored last year who did not graduate will be able to continue with their studies.
I welcome you to read more about these exciting developments below. Thank you to each one of you for your interest and continued support — we could not do it without you!
With gratitude,
Caitlin
Caitlin Szymanski
Executive Director, What If? Foundation
The food program just moved to a temporary location
As anticipated, the time finally came for our Haitian partners to relocate the food program from the St. Clare’s rectory building, which was its home for more than 11 years. (The new priest of St. Clare’s is using the space for other purposes.) In mid-September, with just a few days’ notice, the cooking team moved the 7 enormous stoves along with all the stored food and cooking supplies out of the rectory building and into a temporary structure they built on the side of the house of one of the cooks. In just 3 days they completed the move and created a whole new food program system.
Although the kitchen and serving areas are temporary, due to their location and the simple building materials used, I am happy to report that the program is running smoothly. Click here to see some of the photos I took of the new food program in action.
The cooking team is now preparing an average of 1,000 meals each weekday at the new location. About 800 meals are served to children. Some 200 meals are then served to hungry adults. Click here to read more about the move on our website.
The team that is helping us build the new school and cafeteria
As you may know, the What If? Foundation purchased land in 2010 after receiving word from the new priest of St. Clare’s that we would need to relocate the food and education programs from the rectory building. After researching many options, we are delighted to have found the ideal team to partner with to build on the land. The team includes architect Martin Hammer, engineer Henri Mannik, and builder Andy Mueller.
The members of this team are all affiliated with Builders Without Borders (BWB), an international network of builders dedicated to natural and culturally sensitive building. They have demonstrated respect fo
r Haitians and Haitian culture while working on previous projects in Haiti, and are committed to using local labor and expertise as well as local materials wherever possible.
With their involvement, the vision we share with our Haitian partners of building a neighborhood school and a cafeteria (that will feed the students and other hungry children) is closer to becoming a reality. Click here to read more about the building team (2 members of which are pictured here with Lavarice) and preliminary plans for the project on our website.
on the cover of Margaret’s book, On That Day, Everybody Ate. His name is Obassi, and he goes by Oba (pronounced “Obay”). The cover photo of him was taken in 2007 by Wadner Pierre, a What If? scholarship recipient who is now studying photojournalism, one day when Oba was eating at the food program.
Margaret remembers being struck by Oba’s gentle shyness when she first met him in 2008 (see photo on the left) and how delighted he was when
she gave him a copy of her book. Oba is now 10 years old, and in 5th grade. He is a What If? school scholarship recipient, and always comes up to greet Margaret when she attends meetings with the students What If? sponsors in Haiti. On the right is a photo of Oba waiting to take a microphone to speak at a student meeting Margaret attended in April 2011. He has said he is grateful for his scholarship, as he would otherwise not be able to go to school, and that he is studying hard so that he can become a doctor and help people in Haiti.
