A local Orcas Island woman, originally from Haiti, returns after a very successful second year of effective back to roots revitalization work in her family’s hometown of Limbe. Here is the latest update on the continuing saga of how one person can and is making a real difference in Haiti, yesterday, today, and the future.

Guest column by freelance journalist and web media marketing guru Ben Sheppard.

The program is called Helping Hands Noramise (HHN), and the woman who envisioned it all and founded the organization is Rosedanie Cadet, an endearing energetic woman, and intelligent dynamic speaker. Rosedanie has a fantastic story to tell, not just for the people of her homeland Haiti, but for any community in the world today looking for the “real” way to “do it themselves” and break the shackles of globalization which has failed consistently to make good on any promises but instead has created worse problems in its wake.

For more information about the Noramise program, history and past events visit the website at noramise.org. In summary, Rosedanie has singlehandedly discovered and implemented simple ways to bridge the gap between vitally important knowledge handed down from her Haitian ancestors with ingenious, practical, sustainable, earth friendly grass roots science and methodologies that has been quietly emerging out of the ashes of our failing mass production machine for almost two decades now.

Helping Hands Noramise is also most importantly a multi win educational opportunity for local Orcas Island teens and young adults, with local teens and young adults currently living in Haiti. These energetic hi spirited kids meet and share dreams, knowledge, culture, and projects with each other. Its a most compelling and endearing thing to watch. If you have the time, check out the following video clips of these kids in action!

The benefits of these connections are far reaching with very positive results, both within Haiti as well as back home here on Orcas Island. This is bringing real hope in an ever increasing environment of disaster and uncertainty about our future.

Rosedanie returned from her second successful winter 2011 trip in May. Last Thursday evening, June 2, she gave an informative update during the Noramise Organization’s second annual community report-out meeting. The meeting was attended by contributing members, friends, and supporters.

The main theme of her report is the work she and her team in Haiti have been doing to help slow down and reverse the cholera breakout. She talked about simple and cheap methods of water purification and how she empowered 10-year-olds who could read to take simple instruction posters into their neighborhood and teach others from that. Because of a child’s ability to read, that alone could make a difference and save lives!

You can imagine the beneficial snowball effect this has as one child, inspired through his/her ability to read, brings simple but vital knowledge first to their peers and later to parents and the whole community! This knowledge teaches how folks can purify their water using common household items NOW, all by them selves, without need for outside help or relief.

This lifesaving knowledge is now spreading like wild fire through village, after village as these children become the heros of the day and find wonderful new purpose for themselves, their families, and extended communities.

Rosedanie went on to talk about plans for the upcoming year, starting with a planned trip to Limbe in July. The main purpose of this trip is to provide a 3 week boot camp for computer skills and English as a second language (ESL).

Her team hopes to jumpstart an internet cafe initiative as well as to provide some key skills to the core “Limbe Committee” which is in fact the central group doing “the work” in Limbe as HHN.

Other plans for the upcoming year will focus on Aquaculture, Permaculture, Cholera Outreach and Sanitation, support of the small (Bethesda) school and a continuation to explore and lay the groundwork for the waste processing plant envisioned to be a local business that will support the community as well as to improve living conditions.

Ben Sheppard can be contacted via email at: ben@marketingwebmedia.com.