Another Joy at English Camp (June 22, 2012)

At this 2012 Haiti English Camp, academies are held twelve times a day, forty minutes each, with different topics. On June 7th, the CPR Academy demonstrated the importance of CPR in the event of a heart attack. On the 8th, the second day of the camp, the Hygiene Academy taught the proper methods of washing your hands, brushing your teeth, and effectively purifying water for drinking. Taking a close look at the teeth of one of the Haitian students, we can see that there are many cavities and much plaque. Although most students know the importance of brushing their teeth, they cannot do it because of the lack of water or knowledge of proper tooth brushing. Therefore, the number of students, suffering from toothaches, is increasing. Moreover, there are many students who just wash their hands superficially. Knowing this, the academy instructor emphasized how important it is to clean under the nails and each finger when washing one’s hands.

“Even though I washed my hands, I actually didn’t know how to wash them properly. But through this academy class, I found out how to properly wash my hands. I was especially happy to learn that even the parts under the nails could be clean. I’m already excited about what we’re going to learn in tomorrow’s lesson,” stated one academy participant.

Glen Heil, a 23-year-old volunteer from Detroit and academy instructor, says, “Even though there were difficulties due to language barrier, seeing the enthusiastic students gave me strength. When a student would come and ask me things that he couldn’t understand during class, I was delighted and proud that even though his English was broken, he used what he learned. It was a worthwhile experience.”