How poor would you have to be to eat mud?

On the small Caribbean island nation of Haiti, people are experiencing tremendous hunger. In addition to the recent earthquakes and subsequent diseases that swept the country, Haiti was already the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere.

I grew up in Haiti for most of my childhood with my parents and other brothers and sisters. My father taught us young people the need to work hard and the importance of food. From my house, I watched lines of merchants arrive at my father’s business every morning to buy beef, pork, chicken, and fish. They would go to the markets and sell these foods every day and return the next morning to buy again. I had no idea how much of the country got their food from our factory in Port-Au-Prince, but I know that supermarkets, street vendors, and families alike all bought from my father.

I learned from a very young age that many had little. Food and clothing were scarce. Electricity, a luxury. Even though many of my friends lived on less than 25 cents a day, there was always something to smile about. An invisible hope that kept families going.

Like many others, my family and I eventually moved to the United States, but my father remained in business there for the rest of his life. He would come home every year to see my father and friends. As time passed and I got older, I realized that the situation was not improving.

And then I saw it. World Focus reporting on a YouTube video showing a terrible reality. People making, selling and eating mud cookies. Without money, or a stable government, the situation only deteriorates. Despite more than a billion dollars in aid, Haiti remains the least developed nation in the Western Hemisphere.

Let us help those whom we have the power to help.