“Haitian USF Graduate Finds Safety in Tampa” |
| Haitian USF Graduate Finds Safety in Tampa Posted: 05 Feb 2011 08:58 AM PST Frantz Jean Louis and his family survived the earthquake. And the week of living in the street, the fears of looting, civil unrest and aftershocks that followed. But after a large aftershock Wednesday, Jean Louis and his two-year-old daughter said tearful good-byes to his wife, a doctor. She stayed in Haiti to help the sick and injured. He got on a plane and took their daughter to safety. Jean Louis, a Haiti native and 2009 MPH graduate of the USF College of Public Health, and daughter Aurelie arrived Wednesday night in Tampa Bay via Angel Flight. Matthew Rollie, MPH, administrator of the college's Department of Global Health, picked them up at the airport. He had to buy a car seat for Aurelie on the way.
"He came here with a suitcase and his daughter," Rollie said at a press conference at USF Health Thursday. "That's all he has." But Jean Louis, 31, counts himself fortunate. His daughter is safe. His family, alive. "All my family is okay, thanks to God," he said. "But I lost a lot of friends." He held Aurelie as he spoke. She punctuated his remarks with cries of "Papa," looking around and pointing, as if she was surprised by the echo in the USF Health Rotunda.
Jean Louis and his daughter were able to flee Haiti's devastation and come here because she is a U.S. citizen. They have left behind a nation in tatters. "There is no city anymore," Jean Louis said of Port-au-Prince. "Every house is collapsed." He and his wife, Myriam, grabbed Aurelie and ran outside when their home began to shake last week. Once they were safe, he went in search of his parents and siblings. He found them safe, but only after a terrible journey. "There were cadavers all over the street," he said. "It was tough." The family spent a week living on the streets. He would try to sleep but could not, always fearful that looters or some other danger might endanger Aurelie, his wife, or the rest of his family. His wife is working in a hospital. For a week, she has cared for patients with broken legs and arms or terrible infections. "People are dying from infections," he said. The task ahead overwhelms him. "We have a country to rebuild," he said. "It was already pretty devastated with political issues, and now it is even worse. And the government is so powerless."
Jean Louis does not know how long he will be in Tampa Bay. He plans to send money home to Haiti and hopes to see his wife within a few months. He has no money, no job and nowhere to live. But Thursday morning, his daughter twirled around, happy to be near him. She wore cheerful clothes: a T-shirt emblazoned with strawberries, jeans and sunshine-yellow Crocs. For now, they are able to stay with friends.
"Here, I feel safe," Jean Louis said. Last night, he slept. Matthew Rollie has set up an account at the USF Federal Credit Union for donations from those who wish to help the Jean Louis family. To send help: USF Federal Credit Union, 13302 USF Palm Dr., Tampa, FL 3312; make checks payable to USF FCU and put "Frantz" in the subject line. All donations will go entirely to the family. - Story by Lisa Greene and photos by Klaus Herdocia, USF Health Communications This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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