At 4:53 p.m. on Tuesday, January 12 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti and lasted for 35 seconds. The epicenter was near the town of Leogane, about 15 miles west of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince. Within the next two weeks at least 52 significant aftershocks hit the area. The Haitian government reported that 316,000 people died, 300,000 were injured, 1 million were left without homes, and 3 million were affected by the quake. As well, 250,000 residences and 30,000 commercial buildings were severely damaged or destroyed. (Source: Wikipedia and http://www.childinhand.org)
In the time that has passed since the tragedy, the country has received assistance from a variety of sources. The groups include Child in Hand, whose mission is to promote youth development in post-conflict and disaster environments including medical, education, and treatment programs. As part of this effort, the group is currently working with USA Volleyball and the Haitian Volleyball Federation to open a multi-sport facility. To increase awareness of this mission and to raise funds to support their work, Child in Hand conducted a junior volleyball clinic, Colorado Serving Haiti, at the East Boulder Recreation Center on December 2.
Instruction for the event was served up by Tom Hogan, 2008 Olympic coach; Tayyiba Haneef-Park, 3 time Olympian; and Tracy Stalls, former member of the U.S. National Team. Participants sported t-shirts with the saying, “Piti, piti, zwazo fe nich li.” (Little by little, the bird builds its nest – Haitian proverb). In between instructional sessions Stall provided “reality checks” to discuss the challenges faced by victims of the earthquake and to contrast their lifestyle with the way most Americans live. When the group huddled to discuss the next drill, they would break with the cheer, “Piti, piti” – little by little. This is truly a fitting chant for the recovery of a nation and for athletes wanting to better their skills.
Park and Stalls concluded the instructional session by demonstrating how volleyball is played in Haiti. The final drill was played on a Haitian net; two players held sticks with two strings attached. Instead of using a cart full of balls, the drill was completed with one ball. The players rotated through their positions on both sides of the net, as well as a turn holding the net. For all the junior players who have come to expect first rate coaching and playing conditions, this demonstration was a real eye-opener.
After the last player was given a chance to hold up the net (the stick with two strings), the players and coaches huddled one last time for an inspirational, “Piti, piti.”
