TRAVEL AGREEMENT & FAQs

As a participant attending a HoH travel experience to Haiti, I fully and whole heartedly commit to this outreach opportunity.  My signature indicates my review and agreement to the following commitments:

GENERAL COMMITMENT: 

This travel experience is more then a road trip. It is a commitment to a life-changing experience. Therefore, I understand that it requires my commitment before, during and after the trip. 

·       I must attend all scheduled programs and activities.
·       I will commit to preparing my trip areas of responsibility as agreed upon with the team leader.
·       I agree to promote this trip experience and HoH. (Example: sharing stories, experiences and photos on social media platforms.)

FINANCIAL AGREEMENT: 

My commitment to the fundraising process will keep out-of-pocket expenses low.  The total cost per person is *$1500.00 plus the cost of the plane ticket to and from Port au Prince. 

·       I must contribute to fundraising efforts of this program through individual and group efforts.
·       All funds raised and payments made are solely intended for the trip and are non-refundable. Any excess funds will be applied to the feeding program at House of Hope and any other miscellaneous supplies for the trip. 
·       If for some reason I do not ultimately make the trip, I am responsible for any fees incurred as a result of my non-participation.
·       I understand that the trip costs include, but are not limited to: lodging and meals, security, transportation, interpreters, labor for hired Haitians, funding towards current project

Please complete and return with your deposit:

1.) $250.00 deposit is due at the time you sign up for trip.  
2.) ½ of your total cost due 60 days prior to your trip
3.) Final payment is due 30 days prior to your trip

If a balance due still exists after the final payment deadline, I will be asked to put the balance due on a personal credit card.  

ADDITIONAL NOTE: All flights should be purchased one month prior or before, to ensure we all obtain our flights to PAP.  Please speak with a HoH team member before confirming your flight to ensure transportation is scheduled most effectively. 

I, the undersigned, wish to participate in a Journey of Hope trip in the country of Haiti under the auspices of Project House of Hope. By signing this form, I acknowledge (1) that travel to and in Haiti involves hazards not customarily encountered when traveling in America. (2) Medical facilities in Haiti are substandard and that should a medical emergency develop during my trip, it is unlikely that I will receive medical care in Haiti equivalent to that available in America. (3) Working conditions in Haiti are often inferior to conditions in America. (4) Project House of Hope does not carry insurance to insure against any of the risks I may encounter in Haiti. Despite the foregoing, it is my desire to participate in the work in Haiti, and I knowingly assume the risks that are involved and release Project House of Hope, its co-founders, board of directors and agents, from any liability for injury, damage, or harm which may occur to my person or property while traveling in connection with this project or otherwise participating in this project. I affirm that I am eighteen (18) years of age or older, or the parent/guardian of the participant if under eighteen years of age, and that this Acknowledgment, Assumption, and Release is binding on me and my executor, administrators, and heirs. I give Project House of Hope and it's representative(s) with me on any such trip authority to request and authorize medical and/or hospital treatment/transport for my benefit in the event of any injury or sickness sustained by me which deems me incapacitated while on such ministry activity, including, without limitation, while traveling to and from Haiti. I agree to pay for all such treatment. 

FAQs

What to Bring
 

• Copy of your passport

• Light weight clothes! You will shower often, it is hot in Haiti! One outfit for church. (ladies please remember to be correct when it comes to respect of culture, no short shorts please)

• Sunglasses, hat

• Water shoes, bathing suit, towel, flip flops

• One pair of closed toe shoes (hiking, or tennis shoe is ideal)

• Water bottle, day pack, zip lock bags, mosquito spray

• Sunscreen, soap, shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrush (an extra toothbrush is advised in case you put one in the water)

• Anti bac wipes, and gel

• OTC meds

• Snacks (no chocolate - it will melt)

• Pillow (if you need a fluffy one…)

• Money for personal use, refreshments, lunch, tips, souvenirs, (small bills work best in Haiti)

Rules

• Please remember to NEVER hand out cash to anyone adult or child. You will be asked for money and you will want to give, but remember we only “give” things/money out under a controlled environment.

• We are thankful if you bring items for the children at House of Hope, but not necessary! We will provide a list of needed items upon request.

• You have been asked to help with collecting the items we need for our trip. Please do what you can and work off the list. If you think of something else you want to bring or share just let us know and we will work it in.

Haiti Facts & Information

Haiti is in desperate need of economic improvement. The lack of market activity has led to tremendous unemployment, food scarcity and poor education.

• Haiti is ranked 149th out of 177 on the 2009 United Nations Human Development Index.

• Port-au-Prince is ranked 213th out of 221 on the 2010 Mercer world cities livability index.

• The World Food Program reports that food supply covers only 55% of the population.

• Haiti ranks among the worst three countries in the world in daily caloric intake per person.

• 42% of children less than five years of age suffer from stunting of growth.

• Literacy rates in Haiti for the general population were 45% in 2010.

• Unemployment is now 90% in Haiti and 80% of Haiti’s people live in abject poverty.

• There are over 400,000 children without parents in Haiti.

• There are still over 17,000 children in surrounding areas that will never go to school, due jointly to lack of money and lack of schools.

• 1 out of 5 children will die before the age of five.

GEOGRAPHY Haiti occupies the western third of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, sharing a border with the Dominican Republic. It sits about 700 miles off the coast of Miami and occupies an area just slightly smaller than the state of Maryland. 

CAPITAL Port-au-Prince

CLIMATE Being a tropical climate, Haiti is hot and humid during most months of the year. Some areas of the country, however, can be almost desert-like and dry where the mountains cut off the trade winds.

TERRAIN AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES Most of Haiti is rugged and mountainous. Mass deforestation and poor environmental controls have left large areas of the country bare and contributed to large-scale loss of topsoil. Much of the remaining forested land is being cleared and used as fuel. 

NATURAL HAZARDS Haiti lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October. In 2010, Haiti experienced a magnitude 7 earthquake.

DEMOGRAPHICS Haiti has a very large young population, in part because of a high birthrate and shorter life expectancies – 37% of Haitians are younger than 14, 59% are between 15 and 64 years old, and just 3% are 65 and older. 

POPULATION Over 9 million people live in Haiti. ECONOMY Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. More than two-thirds of the population is unemployed. Its main exports are apparel, oils, cocoa, mangoes and coffee.

LANGUAGES Haitian Creole, French

RELIGION Roughly 80 percent of Haitians are Roman Catholic, while fewer than one in five claims to be Protestant. Roughly 95 percent of Haitians – regardless of religious affiliation – hold at least some Voodoo beliefs or superstitions. 

HISTORY The native Taino Amerindians inhabited the island of Hispaniola when it was discovered by Columbus in 1492. Within 25 years the Taino Amerindians had been virtually annihilated by Spanish settlers. In the early 17th century, the French established a presence on Hispaniola. Haiti became a bustling French colony, based on forestry and sugar-related industries, Haiti became one of the wealthiest colonies in the Caribbean but only through the heavy importation of African slaves and considerable environmental degradation. African slaves were imported by the thousands to work on sugar, tobacco and coffee plantations. A long and violent slave uprising finally led to Haitian independence in 1804. Haiti became the first black republic to declare independence. However, the country could not revive its profitable plantation economy. Haiti has been plagued by political violence for most of its history. Haiti endured a series of occupations by U.S. Marines and, beginning in the 1950s, a period of rule by brutal dictators François “Papa Doc” Duvalier and “Baby Doc,” his son. During that period, an estimated 30,000 Haitians were killed for being opponents of the Duvalier regime. The country returned to a few brief months of democratic rule under President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who was temporarily overthrown in a coup that eventually led to intervention by the United Nations, which continues today. Haitians currently live with a tentative restored government and a demobilized military. In 2008 Haiti was hit by four tropical storms back-to-back, which severely damaged the transportation infrastructure and agricultural sector. Then on January 12th, 2010 a massive magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti with an epicenter about 15 km southwest of the capital, Port-au-Prince. The earthquake is assessed as the worst in this region over the last 200 years; massive international assistance is required to help the country recover.