Please meet Brian Jenson, a new intern in Haiti for Haiti Outreach. Brian is from Richfield, MN and graduated in 2011 from St. Thomas University with a degree in mechanical engineering. He knew his heart was leading him to find a meaningful career, not just a job. At one point he even signed up for the Peace Corps but a dislocated shoulder got in the way. He heard about Haiti Outreach through a friend, and after to speaking to the Executive Director Dale Snyder, he knew Haiti Outreach was the right place for him.
Says Brian, “I can’t tell you how happy I am to be doing this type of work. I have wanted to work in developing countries since I was in high school. As a bright-eyed teenager, I decided that if I was going to spend roughly a quarter of my life working at something, it had to be for a career and not a job. A career would mean something to me and would become part of who I am. So I decided to try to help people better their lives, because that means a lot to me. Through Haiti Outreach, I hope to start on that path.”
Brian arrived in Pignon, Haiti on February 7th, 2014, and will be living with a local Haitian family for the next year. He’s volunteering his time to provide assistance on water systems engineering drawings and adding new capabilities to the well management database, among other duties. He’s working on learning Haitian Creole as well, and got a head start months before he arrived in Pignon so he could “hit the ground running”! He will be updating his blog along the way. To check it out, go to www.brianjensen.blog.com. From time to time we will also post stories from Brian about his experiences. We are thrilled to have him on board