Long before a 7.0-magnitude earthquake ravaged Haiti, a mother-daughter-daughter trio of Emory’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing graduates was already working in Haiti to help thousands of orphaned children there.
Cheron Hardy (03MN) joined the staff of the nonprofit Eternal Hope in Haiti (EHIH) shortly after graduating from Emory’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. EHIH was formed in 1993 by nursing alumna Twilla Haynes (80MN) and her daughters, Angela Haynes (91PH, 08N, 09MN) and Hope Haynes Bussewius (93MN).
In 1993, Twilla Haynes (80MN), of Hoschton, Ga. – with the help of her daughters, Angela Haynes (91PH, 08N, 09MN) and Hope Haynes Bussewius (93MN) – founded Eternal Hope in Haiti (EHIH), an organization dedicated to better health care for Haiti’s people. Three years later, they opened the Hope Haven Orphanage in Cap Haitien in the northwest province of Haiti.
Emory Wire, a publication of the Emory Alumni Association, recently sat down to talk with the Haynes about their experiences in Haiti.
EHIH is currently working to meet the needs of the orphans in Port-au-Prince, helping to care for the injured and accepting newly orphaned or abandoned children. An early estimate suggested that almost 10,000 children have been orphaned by the earthquakes, according to Angela Haynes.
“Many have asked, ‘How many [children] can we take?’†Haynes says. “We cannot answer that. You have seen the pictures on TV. Which one would you turn away?â€
Hope Haven currently has no vacancy for any more children, but another orphanage is being constructed and will open to the children from the nation’s capital. The children will be provided with the basics, such as food, clothing and nurturing, Haynes says.
Read more about the Haynes work in Haiti.
The Haynes family and Hardy have called for the help of the Emory community, specifically those nursing and medical students, as well as nurses and doctors who have volunteered in Haiti to return during this “critical time.†Others interested in volunteering are encouraged to contact EHIH. The most significant way to aid in their efforts is through financial assistance that can be given through their Web site.
