Haiti Day #3: The girls receiving their pictures

 

Pictures by Helena Harper

The reaction of the girls receiving their pictures was heartwarming. They were all smiling and they were all proud of showing their gift to all their peers. This was only the second time we were handing out pictures on site and seeing the smiles on all these beautiful kids made it all worth it. We also brought a bag full of toothbrushes donated by a dentist in Los Angeles and they all received one with their snacks. It was a day of pure joy and the girls who wanted to become hairdressers even practiced their skills on me.

Haiti Day #3: A teacher

We were surprised that we didn't have more kids wanting to become teachers....but most of them never set a foot in a school before and they don't really know what school is about. This girl wanted to be a teacher to help the kids of the future find their own pah too.

Haiti Day #3: Girls who want to rebuild the city

In Port-au-prince, all the damages from the earthquake are still visible and there are rumbles and ruins all around the city. These girls have seen hundreds of locals working on cleaning and rebuilding the city and they want to be able to help out in the future.

Haiti Day #3: Girls just wanna have fun

The girls at the orphanage had the cutest smiles. They don't know much of the life outside the orphanage. The women that surround them and help them daily seem to be their main inspirations for the future. The girls who wanted to become hairdressers even practiced on me while we were printing the pictures on site.

Haiti Day #3: A miniature medical staff

A lot of these kids want to be helped and rescued. It's no surprise that in return they want to help others when they grow up and become doctors, dentists, and nurses to continue the efforts to rebuild a city and a country in need.

Haiti Day #3: A good mother

This orphanage was full of adorable little girls who were supervised by a few older women who cared for them and cooked their meals. One of the orphans, who was holding my hand from the time we walked through the gates, moved us when she said that all she wanted to do when she grew up was to be a good mother.

Haiti Day #3: Our first Girls orphanage in Port-au-prince

On our third day in Haiti, the pastor who had welcomed us in his orphanage the day before took us to a girls' orphanage in a secluded part of port-au-prince. He even offered to take us to another orphanage right after we were done with our session but after taking pictures of almost 50 young girls, we were too exhausted to even consider it. All the kids were incredible from the moment we walked through the orphanage's gate to the moment we left.