The Fish Farm Project

As part of a project that began in 1998, a group of Vineyarders have just come back from a nine-day trip to Haiti. Our trip was very intense and moving. For those of you unfamiliar with the Fish Farm Project our goal is to establish a self-sufficient community and a school on a two and a half acre site in Lilavois, Haiti, the poorest country in our hemisphere. Our motto is Give a person a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a person to fish, feed him for a lifetime.

The purpose of our trip was to document an overview of Haiti and to assess the progress of the Fish Farm Project. Thanks to the generosity of Jeanne and Malcolm Campbell of Vineyard Haven and Upper Montclair, New Jersey, my nephew, Jeremy Mayhew (MVRHS ë94; University of the Arts, ë98) was able to accompany us on the trip as videographer. With the help of students at the Martha Vineyard Regional High School we are compiling a film documentary of the trip. We hope this film will underscore the need to take action for Haiti, validate the Fish Farm Project, and strengthen the desire to help. We will be presenting the documentary to the public at a date to be announced.

Students will also be involved in the construction of a three dimensional scale model of the project which we plan to have on display at the third annual benefit concert. The annual Fish Farm Festival is scheduled for Sunday, July 9, 2000 at 4 PM at the Tabernacle in Oak Bluffs. Haitian musicians and dancers from the Boston community and Vineyard artists will again be volunteering their time and talent for the cause. It will be entertaining, educational, and fun for the whole family.

Sponsors for the project are needed. We are giving people the opportunity to buy; a piece of the Project or help the school enroll a child. Next to the scale model of the project we will be setting up a map with a grid. For a $100 donation people will be able to buy; a space on the grid where their name, their company name or a loved one name will be inscribed. Of course the more they donate the bigger the space.

The scale model will give people a tangible understanding of what has already been accomplished on this two and a half acre property and what we hope to achieve in the future. To date the school has been built but is still in need of furnishings.The five basins where the fish (Tilapia) will be raised and harvested are to be excavated this month.The well, which will provide water for the basins, the school, and for irrigation of vegetable gardens, is in place. Solar pumps for the water system have been donated but have yet to be delivered and installed. Our goal is for this community to become completely self-sufficient.

Our trip was a great source of encouragement for the Daughters of Mary Queen Immaculate of Haiti. On their behalf I would like to thank the people who participated on the trip: Lee Fierro, Jeremy Mayhew, Marie Vautour and Timothy Sullivan; to Congressman William Delahunt for his assistance and to all the people who have donated their time, talent and financial assistance to make this much needed project a reality. For more information or to volunteer for the Fish Farm Festival you may contact any of the travelers, as well as Susan Puciul (645-3236) or Jeanne Staples (627-8363).

Margaret Mayhew Penicaud

Daughters of Mary Queen Immaculate of Haiti

PO Box 1803

Vineyard Haven, MA 02568

(508) 693-0368

Fax (508) 693-2070

Email: penicaud@massed.net