Lydiane Lefort is a vibrant and energetic woman from the community of Rivière Tach, located in the town of Pignon. She is a mother to a 5-year-old little girl, and provides for her family by selling clarin which is produced at the town’s local distillery.* (Many families in Pignon make their living by selling this product. It’s an essential part of the Haitian economy.) As a trusted and beloved member of her community, she was appointed to be the guardian for the well that her community received from Haiti Outreach in 2018.
Early in the morning she can be found cleaning it to ensure that her neighbors are able to get their daily water needs met. One might find it odd for this woman to sacrifice her mornings to work on behalf of the community, and to do so with great energy and passion no less! For Lydiane, these efforts are more of an honor than a sacrifice. She shared, “It’s a place that I love. I’m happy when I’m here, and with what I am doing. I feel like I am useful to my community!”
Thanks to her community’s decision to come together and have a well closer to home, Lydiane and other members of her community are able to invest more time in activities that will help improve the quality of life of themselves and their children. She shared, “it has allowed me to make loans to the bank to expand my business. Not only has my business grown, I have enough to feed my family and pay for my daughter’s education.”
A few years ago, life was very exhausting for Lydiane, but now she is happy, feels fulfilled and is able to spread this joy to other women in the commune of Pignon!
*clarin is a Haitian spirit made from fermenting cane juice.
