Learning more about the people and history of Cerca La Source, Haiti

Background of Interviewee

Name: Emmanuelle Miraclude.  She is 48 years old and is the oldest person now living in Cerca La Source.
Family History (parents, siblings, children, etc)  Miraclude’s father died when she was 8 y/o. Her mother became handicapped. She and her 7 sisters and 4 brothers cared for her. She currently has 4 children - 3 of her own and one adopted.
Where does your family live?  She lives close to St. Francis School and Zanmi Lasante, the Partners in Health clinic.
What is your work in community? Mericlude teaches at St. Francis School part time in preschool and 2nd and 3rd grade. She also is the leader of “Les Femmes” a women’s co-operative. In addition she helps out with a literacy program for adults.

About the Village

How old is Cerca La Source? Cerca La Source was named and developed in 1898.
Explain some of its history?  The town was first La Source, meaning the spring. In this location there were frequent floods so the people moved to Cerca, meaning circle, near the spring. Hence the town received its name “Cerca La Source.”
What was your childhood like? She was raised in CLS Her Dad was always sick. She watched her mother struggle raise the family. Mericlude had a cousin who was a captain in the Haitian army. He supported her in school. Mericlude dropped out of school in 10th grade and left after her cousin was denied as a girlfriend. She remarried after marrying a military man.
What is the role/impact of government in CLS? The national government does not have a strong presence. One national post was present in CLS. The local government just completed a road project that led to some of outlying chapels. International and other organizations (NGO) are more prevalent in the area.
Historically, when did CLS see its most growth? (New construction, prosperity)  Three or four years ago when some Canadians worked and improved roads.
How does that time compare with today? Recently groups of organizations joined together to construct solar powered street lights throughout the village. In addition, the Digicel Company placed a cell phone tower in the village so many people have cell phones.
Is it unusual to see visitors (like ourselves) in CLS? Yes it is not on a regular basis, only on certain occasions.

About St Francis of Assisi

When was the church built? The church was built 60 years ago.
Was the school built at the same time? No, the school was built approximately 20 years ago.
How many small chapels does St Francis support? 6 chapels.
Describe what it’s like at the Fall Feast Day? St. Francis’ feast day is October 4th. The Bishop of Hinche comes along with 30 priests. The celebration is bigger than Christmas and Easter almost. Goats chickens and pigs are slaughtered for the party.
Christmas?  This celebration Pere Bertrand slaughters a cow and we celebrate with Mass and a feast. Easter? Mass and celebrations occur. Carnival? in preparation of Lent (our Mardi Gras) is celebrated with the school and throughout the village. This is the only other time a cow is slaughtered for a feast. There are many parades, costumes and parties for this event that can last up to a week. Confirmation? Many children from the parish and chapels come to St. Francis to be confirmed, approximately 200 children a year.  This is a 2-3 day retreat- it is the feast of the spirit.
What events have been at the church? There is a lot of music and singing. Conferences and educational sessions for the chapel take place. The church roof has leaks and will need to be repaired soon.

Developing Economic Stability

What is…besides your people…your greatest resource? Raising animals, certain crops like mangoes.
What do you think could help CLS the most?  Commerce. Both men and woman of the village need to help improve the town.
When did the bridge wash out? There was a small, poorly made bridge that got washed out some time ago.
Will the bridge be rebuilt?  No plans that she knows of.
Do you remember having a plane land in CLS?  (Old maps show an airport) Mostly helicopters landed there established under Duvalier around 20 years ago. Hadn’t been kept up, used as soccer field. Recently the area has been cleared again and it is believed a mining company is going to build an airstrip.

Future

What do you see being done to improve people’s health? Zanmi Lasante has been a big help to achieve this.
What do you hope to experience in your lifetime? Good roads, factories, industry, be able to earn money, improve living conditions. Be united.
How have computers, electricity and cell phones impacted life here? Best thing there especially for the young people.
What would you like to see changed? Improve electricity. Recently many people have obtained solar panels to help with energy including Pere Bertrand. People may need to change too and not be set in ways.
What would you like to stay the same?  St. Francis School to continue to stress education.

Interview conducted by Cathy Forslund with Translation by Junior St. Vil, Tainos Translation Services