Donation drive for Abricots, Haiti, at the 2nd year anniversary of the 2010 earthquake
Through February 24th
Potomac, MD: The McLean School, 8224 Lochinver Ln
Until February 24th, you can also drop off in Capitol Hill and Tenleytown in DC, Cheverly in Maryland, and Alexandria in Virginia.
January 22nd
Reston, VA: US Tennis Association / Mid-Atlantic
November 12th
Washington, DC: H Street Farmer's Market
November 13th
Washington, DC: Ginkgo Gardens
Friday December 2nd
Washington, DC: St. Columba's Church
Saturday December 3rd
Alexandria, VA: Forum One
To keep this as cost-effective as possible, we are filling a 40' container
Basic Needs: shoes, underwear, rain gear, school bags, lunch boxes, dress and everyday clothes (no winter), toiletries, and toys
Educational Needs: musical instruments, board games, school and craft supplies, early reader books and comic books, and translation dictionaries in English, French, and Spanish
Sporting Equipment: soccer and basket balls, goal nets and basketball hoop rings, sporting gear for these games like jerseys, shoes and socks. Camping gear including backpacks, tents, sleeping bags, and equipment.
Uniforms: Was your child on a soccer or basketball team in recent years? Coordinate with other members of your child’s team to see if they would be willing to donate old uniforms. We are looking for 11 – 15 matching boys’ jerseys in sizes medium and large and 11 – 15 matching girls’ uniforms in sizes small and medium. Has your child been in the boy scouts or girl scouts? Donate used khaki uniforms for newly established scout troops for in Abricots.
We are still collecting! Until February 24th, you can drop off at the following locations:
Volunteer Contact Us. We need volunteers to help pack and sort in preparation for shipping on Sunday, February 19th and Saturday, February 25th. Shortly thereafter we will also need volunteers to load the container.
Donate Money Would you like to make a tax-deductible monetary donation to CAPED on behalf of the 300 children they service? Donate now.
Spread the word Are you a great networker? You can forward on this website (http://www.destinationabricots.com) to your friends, colleagues, Facebook and Twitter contacts. Send a link to our website, to your local neighborhood, business, school, church and other community list serves.
There are many whose needs are still not being met two years after the 2010 earthquake. Please join us in making a difference in one small community in Haiti, Abricots, by donating goods to the children of this village. Abricots is a small fishing village located in the Grand d’Anse region of Haiti. Access to this part of the country is difficult, especially during the rainy season. Roads to the surrounding villages are in some cases non-existent. Jean-Claude Fignole is the mayor of Abricots and has dedicated all of his time since January 2010 to helping its residents navigate the latest set of challenges that have arisen with this devastating geological event. Many thousands of these residents are part of the post-earthquake mass exodus out of Port-au-Prince. Mr Fignole has introduced us to Nicole Laurent Kobe who is co-founder of CAPED (Center of Assistance to Poor Kids in Education and Development). She and her husband started CAPED when they emigrated from Alberta, Canada in 2007 to expand the educational curriculum available to the children of Abricots and the villages in the surrounding hills. They began by establishing after school educational programs for roughly 25 disadvantaged children in their very own backyard. They soon realized that the needs of the children far exceeded the original vision of CAPED, and once the earthquake hit, their service extended to the needs of many newly orphaned children transplanted from other parts of the country. They are now working directly with 250 – 300 orphans. The four local orphanages are filled beyond capacity, and local families have reached out to host the remaining children in their homes. Grant money from the city council in partnership with a French aid organization has run out, and many of these children do not have the most basic of supplies. She has provided guidance to us on how we can help improve the resources available to the children of Abricots and the greater Grand d’Anse villages. CAPED’s function has far outgrown the footprint of their backyard and Ms Kobe and her associates are now working on accepting monetary donations to create a new facility that will provide a community and educational base in Abricots. If you would like to make a monetary contribution to CAPED, you can donate now.
Meet siblings Wanglena, age 6, Michnaelle, age 5, and Richandler, age 3 and their older sister, age 10 (not pictured). They lost both parents in the earthquake and were taken in by their aunt who has 6 kids of her own. They were recipients of Mayor Fignole’s aid program to the orphans (funding has since ceased).
Meet four year old triplets Wendy, Wolds ad Woodley pictured at CAPED. They have 4 other siblings.
Emile, age 8, Franky, age 6, Florestal, age 4, and Bedjia, age 2 are pictured here with their aunt who is now fostering them. Their mother died in the earthquake and their father’s whereabouts are unknown. They were brought to Abricots by a neighbor.
This is a gathering of children at CAPED during a visit from foreign visitors.
I’m a mother of two girls, Chloe (age 4 ½) and Astrid (age 16 months), an architect by training and practice, and a Washington, DC resident for the last 14 years. Earlier this year, I decided to go on sabbatical to spend more time with my family as a stay at home mom. This break from work has also provided me and my family the opportunity to work on a special project, inspired by the devastating earthquake in Haiti, it’s upcoming 2 year anniversary, and the everyday challenges that existed in Haiti even before January 2010. Being part of the Capitol Hill community has also helped me to understand the potential that exists with such a collaborative community.
I spent part of my childhood living in Haiti, and continue to hold roots in this special place. As a child, this was a magical place rich with natural resources that were like no other playground to a child: nearby mountains and ample coastlines, the thriving tourism industry, and an interesting combination of Haitian, French and American culture. During this time, Jean-Claude Fignole, Abricots’ mayor was like a second father to me. His passion for his work, and his love for Haiti and its people were evident to me at a very early age and I’m grateful to have an opportunity to work with him in his commitment to improve the lives of those living in Abricots and surrounding villages.
Some of my family members continue to live in Haiti and were fortunately relatively untouched by the earthquake. My childhood home built by my grandfather did not survive its strike on Haiti and among the death reports, the images from the major news networks, and personal stories from family and friends, it remains a loss to me and my family that we can appreciate as small in comparison to all other losses suffered on that day. Today, my family members in Haiti are actively involved in non-profit work and the rebuilding effort that began post-earthquake, and their work humbles me to do my small part in fulfilling a life-long promise to give back to Haiti the gifts it provided me as a child.
Please join me in making a difference in one small community in Haiti, Abricots and surrounding villages, by donating goods to the children of this town.
I am a retired practical nurse and lived many years in Orlando, Florida where I managed my own foster home for handicapped children while my own children went away to college. Hans, my oldest son, is married with a family of 9 (7 kids) and lives in Tampa, Florida; My daughter Giliane is married with a family of 5 (3 kids) and lives in Virginia where she coordinates most of the administrative activities of CAPED in the USA; and my younger daughter Rachelle who lives in Bermuda with her husband (no kids yet) has been very active in raising money for school fees and sponsorship for some kids.
After living in the USA for practically 3 decades I became ill. At that time, I met Elmer Kobe to whom I have been married for 7 blessed years. I moved to Alberta, Canada with him and lived there for three years. When my husband retired in 2007, we made plans to go to Haiti where I was born. We have since made it our new home. With my heart focused always on caring for children, my husband is very supportive of my activities with the disadvantaged in Abricots. For four years now, we have been reaching out to the youth of this community along with other leaders in education and development. The needs are great and we appreciate all the help we can get. Mayor Jean Claude Fignole encourages our humanitarian work so dearly needed in the area.
On behalf of the children, we thank in advance everyone involved in Destination Abricots. You are helping to ameliorate their lives.
Jean-Claude is the mayor of Abricots and has dedicated all of his time since January 2010 to helping the residents of Abricots navigate the latest set of challenges that have arisen with this devastating geological event. Many thousands of these residents are part of the post-earthquake mass exodus out of Port-au-Prince. Prior to his retirement to Abricots and his second career as the town’s mayor, he was a journalist, a poet, co-founder of the Collège Jean Price-Mars, an art critic, and a renowned literary writer having co-created the literary movement Spiralisme, and written both non-fiction and half a dozen acclaimed novels about Haiti.
If you read French, read this article about Jean-Claude.
Food for the Poor is providing crucial logistical support, most prominently through paying for a full container to be shipped from Washington, DC through customs in Haiti. They are also providing shipping advice.
The United States Tennis Association is a proud supporter of Destination Abricots Donation Drives. The USTA’s mission is To Promote and Develop the Growth of Tennis. The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for the sport of tennis and the recognized leader in promoting and developing the sport’s growth on every level in the United States, from local communities to the crown jewel of the professional game, the US Open. As part of our Diversity & Inclusion initiatives, USTA/Mid-Atlantic will open its headquarters to host the final Destination Abricots Drive for Haiti. For More Information on USTA/Mid-Atlantic please Visit http://www.midatlantic.usta.com
Donation location Nov 13th
Donation location Nov 12th
Families of the school can donate at Yu Ying
Families of the school can donate at Burgundy
$1 off Nov 10th and 11th performances when you donate
15% off select games if you buy them to donate
Donation location December 3rd
One free admission when you donate through Nov
Donation location Jan 22nd
Drop off location for donations through January - 2301 Mt. Vernon Avenue, Alexandria, VA
drop off location for donations from now until December 11th - 1913 Mt Vernon Avenue, Alexandria, VA
Drop off location through Feb 24th
