4 days, 3000 miles, and 2 planes till 1 incredible summer

Bonjou!

My name is Shilpa Agrawal and I am a rising junior at Duke University. I will be spending this summer with 2 other Duke students in Leogane, Haiti! Why Haiti? Well…

Even before the earthquake that struck 5 months ago, Haiti was the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. The coastal city of Leogane, where we will be going, was at the epicenter of the January 12^th earthquake. Approximately 80% of the city was destroyed. Most people are currently living in tent cities that have sprawled across the city. Many are without adequate shelter and with the official start of the 2010 Atlantic Hurricane Season yesterday, there is the threat of even further damage.

Knowing this, how can one say “no” to an opportunity to help out in Leogane? This will be a once in a lifetime opportunity not only to help out, but also to learn from people who have suffered more than I can even imagine.

So a little about our project - We are going as part of an organization, Family Health Ministries (FHM), which has been doing work in Haiti for 17 years. Our main project will be assessing the causes of maternal mortality in Leogane through verbal autopsies. This will hopefully lay the groundwork for interventions to help reduce maternal mortality in the community. We will also be working to update the GPS map of Leogane, created by students last year, by surveying what still remains post-earthquake.

4 days till we are in Haiti! I’m super excited!

Shilpa