Slidell man trying to transport water system to country
By KEVIN CHIRI
Slidell news bureau
SLIDELL – Clean water is so prevalent in the United States that it is considered a human right to most people.
The country of Haiti, on the other hand, is close to the opposite end of the world spectrum in regards to clean drinking water. For the 11.4 million people who live there, most are in poverty and do not have that basic, life-giving necessity.
A recent study by The Water Project noted that 70 percent of the Haitian population does not have access to clean drinking water, and now with an outbreak of cholera in recent years—which is caught from infected drinking water—half of the deaths each year in Haiti are from water-related illnesses.
Slidell’s Willie Robinson, 71, found himself connecting to the country and the water crisis after visiting for the first time in 2017, thanks to learning about the Haitian plight from a fellow church member at Pentecost Missionary Baptist Church.
“I went for the first trip and could not believe the living conditions, especially the lack of drinking water for the children,” Robinson said.
“If you go to Haiti, the poverty and terrible living conditions will either send you away, or it will draw you in,” he said. “For me, I saw all the children and since then I can’t stop trying to help.”
Robinson is a man who should be spending a limited retirement income on his golden years, after working several different jobs, and starting his own pest control business six years ago.
Instead, he spends most of his available income on trying to help Haiti, particularly to improve the drinking water situation, even if he knows he is just one person addressing the country’s huge problem.
“If I can help one or two children then it is worth what I do,” he said. “I know it is a huge challenge, but we can’t overlook them, and we can’t let the situation overwhelm us. For me, I will do what I can to help as many children as possible.”
Two years ago, Robinson was handed a gift that he knows could make a tremendous difference to many in Haiti—a portable water purification system that could travel from one village to the next to provide clean water. But to this day, he has not been able to raise the money to get the system shipped to Haiti, especially since the government and military turmoil make it very difficult to bring anything into the country.
“When I make a trip to Haiti I can’t bring much, only one carry on bag, so I bring toiletries and medical supplies. I fill it up, and fit a few clothes in a backpack,” he said. “The political situation there is so bad that you have to be very careful what you say when you go, so trying to get a water purification system there is something that will require more money than normal since the only way we can do it is by going to the Dominican Republic first.”
When the most recent earthquake hit the country it destroyed 18 of the water systems, making a bad situation even worse. Now most of the drinking water is trucked in and since cholera made a resurgence in the country there is more concern about what water to drink. Yet, Robinson said many of the citizens and children there end up drinking from rivers or streams and taking their chances.
“At some point, you have no choice so you hope that somehow you don’t get sick,” he said. “One time I got very sick from the water, but fortunately I survived.”
Robinson said he needs close to $10,000 to ship the water purification system to the Dominican Republic, where Dr. Franco Jean-Louis is a respected Christian leader in that area who operates a nationally-recognized non-profit known as Generations of Hope, which is addressing as many of the Haitian problems as they can.
“I met Dr. Louis and have worked through him in everything I do there,” Robinson said. “He will help us get the system into Haiti if we can get it to the Dominican Republic, but it will take close to $10,000 to ship this system there.”
The water purification system is very large, filling the back of a small trailer with its filters and motor that can clean water at any remote location it is hauled to.
Surprisingly, Robinson was given the system two years ago by area businessman Sherman Vinson, who had a construction project he purchased the system for.
“His project ended up not happening, so he decided to donate it to us after hearing about what we are trying to do,” Robinson said. “So now I’m hoping to find enough people to help us raise the $10,000 to get it to the people of Haiti. It would be a life saver to so many there, especially children who are caught up in all the mess.”
After the earthquake last year, Robinson got more interest from church members and friends who wanted to help the Haitian people. He now has a Haiti Mission Team that has started the fundraising and has raised $1,000 so far.
Since his first trip in 2017, Robinson has been making two trips a year to Haiti, staying for close to a week and providing his own talents to help repair buildings, or his recent project of planting a garden with collard greens.
“I mostly go into the mountains where they moved most of the children to an orphanage after the earthquake,” he explained. “They have a giant vat on the roof of the orphanage to collect rainwater, and that’s the only place they can get any clean water. But at times it isn’t enough for the 85 children and the staff there.”
Robinson is aware that he is a single person trying to make a difference, but he is unfazed since he made a connection to the people.
“I grew up in one of the poorest parts of the city where I was raised in Laurel, MS, so I connected right away with the children in Haiti when I met them,” he said. “Now, I can’t stop. I am going to keep doing what I can, whether it is building gardens in the area where a volcano eruption has left the most fertile soil ever, or to work on buildings to help in any way I can. I want them to become self-sufficient, but there is very little to provide clean water unless we can get this system down there. It would change their lives.”
Anyone who would like to help Robinson raise the money can call him at 985-265-6471, or you can mail a check to the Haiti Mission Team at 1104 Doverville Ct., Slidell, La., 70461.