In the mountains of Hati, most families live in tiny huts with dirt floors. They may have one room or a few small rooms: as many as 10 to 12 people live together. And they're often hungry.
Living on drit floors, children easily contract scabies, worms and other illnesses that lead to sevious deseases, especially dangerous in this country with little healthcare.
Cement Floors Can HelpFortunately, there is a partial solution: a cement floor, suggested by Paul Farmer, author of the The Uses of Haiti.
Here's how the program works: Glesil selects homes with children most in need. Families prepare their homes -- leveling the floor, gathering gravel and rocks, carring cement from distant storage, and hauling water to fill and re-fill the contractor's 50 gallon barrel. The contractor installs the floor; Glesil inspects the job. Both educate the family on maintenance and sanitation, and Glesil makes follow-up visits
So Far, over 100 floors have been installed. Many more await theirs.
$10 Buys a Sack of Cement, $175 a Full FloorYour $10 contribution will buy one sack of cement. A gift of $175 pays for the cement and labor for an average-sized home's floor. Because this is a private project, contributions are not tax-deductible.
To help, please send your contributions one of two ways: